Memories of My Hometown

Abstract

My orchestral piece, Memories of My Hometown, has two movements: I. Pine Trees Standing on the Snowy Mountain; II. Passionate Land. After studying abroad for many years, I yearned for my hometown in China and hoped to express personal attachment to my hometown through this piece. The first movement shows the indomitable mental outlook exhibited by Chinese people. I am inspired by pine trees in China which, to me, represent the persevering character of the Chinese people. Since ancient times, Chinese people have adored pine trees because they can thrive even in frigid and challenging environments. Therefore, I attempted to express through music the image of the lush pines straightly standing on the snow-covered mountains. The melodic material of this movement is excerpted from the song called Xin Hua Tian Ying composed by Jiang Kui, a composer of the Song Dynasty (1154-1221). I chiefly interwove the melodic material into the orchestral tutti to reflect the steadfast and sedate features of the pine trees. Additionally, the playing technique of strings, including harmonics, pizzicati, and glissandi, the metallic percussions and harp, and the fluctuation of woodwinds, portray the scene of wind blowing and snow falling. The second movement embodies the enthusiastic and energetic spirit that Chinese people express. The melodic material of this movement derives from the pentatonic scales commonly employed in folk songs. Compared with the scholarly melody of the first movement symbolizes self-restraint and fortitude, the folk material of the second movement represents vibrant energy. These pentatonic scales leap between different instrumental groups, sometimes racing forward in a competitive fashion, sometimes superimposing themselves to establish the gigantic acoustic wall. Flowing textures and aggressive percussion are prominent in the movement, depicting people’s passion as burning lava underground, extending all around until an inevitable eruption. These fiery streams occasionally ease and contrast with the pendulum-like melody guided by the instrumental mix of metal percussion and harp. Such instrumental combinations are also used in the first movement to create a tight connection between the two movements. The second movement ends in a sonorous texture, depicting the figure of a passionate land.