Entangled (2022)
A duo for prepared piano and prepared harp, to be recorded/premiered with Nuiko Wadden.
Entangled was written while participating in the University of Pittsburgh Department of Physics and Astronomy Artist-in-Residence Program. The piece consists of seven reflections on the phenomenon of quantum entanglement. When two subatomic particles are entangled, measurements made to one particle will instantaneously determine the quantum state of the other. While visiting Dr. Michael Hatridge’s quantum computing lab, I was struck by the almost impossible fragility of these quantum systems—even the smallest perturbation will cause the system to prematurely collapse without revealing anything about the desired calculation.
This fragility is mirrored in the timbral similarity between the prepared piano and the prepared harp. If you close your eyes, you may not be able to tell which instrument is producing which sound; my goal in each duo movement is to preserve this timbral uncertainty as long as possible. However, the moment one instrument does something to reveal its true identity, then—à la quantum entanglement—you will instantaneously know the identity of the other. Each movement plays with this metaphoric entanglement in different ways: a single line may be played by both instruments at different speeds, or a percussive texture may crossfade from one instrument to another and back, or the two instruments may simply perform in unison, producing unique, hybrid sonorities that would be impossible for a single instrument to produce alone.
Entangled is dedicated to Mai Khôi, with whom I hope to remain entangled forever.