Three Choral Works (2024)

Three Choral Works are part of India Hooi’s ongoing album recording project of original music, with the aim of composing for different classical instruments and voice, and recording them for release as an album. The songs feature poetic texts in several languages written by her international colleagues at the New World Symphony, on the themes of human emotions and states of being – focusing on the connection and shared experiences we as humans all have despite our different languages and backgrounds. As an emerging choral composer, India drew musical influence for these choral pieces from many of the styles she has enjoyed during her years of choral singing, from medieval and Gregorian chants, to Spanish folk rhythms and modern a cappella choral harmonies.

Vinyl Road for solo bassoon and solo violin, small string ensemble and plastic bags (2024)

Vinyl Road, deriving its title from the Silk Road but substituting Silk with Vinyl, sheds light on the environmental impact of single-use products, urging collective action towards preserving our planet.

The music unfolds in three sections. The first section establishes an atmospheric tone with a string ensemble, encouraging audience participation through the use of plastic bag sounds. A solo violin and bassoon introduce a chant-like melody, serving as the thematic backbone, ‘recycled’ throughout the piece.

Transitioning into the groovy second section, an underwater scene is depicted with boat horn sounds produced by the bassoon’s multiphonic technique and a whole-tone scale, symbolizing the journey of discarded plastic bags. Here, small musical fragments intertwine and evolve, symbolizing the cumulative impact of individual efforts on the environment.

The final section resembles the first, with its chant-like melody and atmospheric strings, but without the plastic bag sounds – serving as a reminder and hopeful aspiration for a cleaner, greener future.

Building Blocks for Double String Quartet (2024)

When Bryan Bailey initially approached myself and Max Mulpagano about writing a chamber work for the New World Symphony, I was struck by his passion for critical thinking, and his urgent need to disseminate values to make the world a better place. Immediately, I asked why he was so passionate about making a piece about creating a better world, and in turn he told me it was because of his relationship with his grandfather, Spencer, and the values that Spencer gave to him while Bryan was growing up. This work waxes lyrical about what it means to pass on a way of thinking to someone else, while exploring unbridled creativity and curiosity. In order to learn, we must constantly push the boundaries of what is possible, at the risk of creating something uncontrolled, or “ugly”. To me, these moments of unstructured play is what makes us good artists— sometimes it’s worth creating a “mess” in order to fully enjoy the process.

‘building blocks’ features audio from live interviews with both Spencer and Bryan, speaking about their experiences together and what it meant to have each other in their respective lives. It is accompanied by a visual concerto by Max Mulpagano, which explores what it means to truly go off the rails in the name of creativity and exploration. Max, thank you for jumping into the deep with me.

Thank you to both Bryan and Spencer for your honesty, intimacy, and trust.