Elena Kats-Chernin - 'Kwong Song' (Sydney Conservatorium Clarinet Ensemble)

A dark and poignant work by one of Australia's most eminent composers. Here's how I introduced it when we performed it earlier in May:
"We've come now to the most sombre work on our program. Elena Kats-Chernin wrote Kwong Song for the Australian chef Kylie Kwong, when Kwong's father was terminally ill. It's a piece about the sorrow of imminently losing someone close to you, and feeling the foreshadowing of how they'll be remembered. I feel that this work masterfully conveys the ongoing ache of having someone you love slowly slip away."
Recorded in room 3047 at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, on the 24th of May, 2024. Many thanks to Georgia Webb for helping to facilitate this recording.
Conductor/Recording Engineer: Peter Anthony Smith
Clarinets: Aiden Love, Tessa Darby, Emma Lang, Hannah Christie, Naomi Kirkwood, Frances Gray, Amber Davies, Ilaria Ramirez, Alice Betteridge, Jacky Li, Wai Ching (Ian) Ng, Audrey Blackman, Michelle Liang
Bass Clarinet: Justin Wang
Contrabass Clarinet: Eleanor Brimblecombe

[@subversiveasset]

;_; it's so beautiful. *reads description* 🥺😭😭😭

[@soundole2701]

I think it's really profound writing. It's rare to hear this sort of emotional weight in works for the clarinet ensemble, but this one really hits home.