#Pay2Play (orchestra) (2022)
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#Pay2Play is a ~1-minute orchestra frenzy, giving a peak into the life of a chronic co-dependant (both personally and professionally).
Recorded by the Moscow Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra
Program Notes
#Pay2Play is about the struggle of young people, particularly from marginalized backgrounds— economically, culturally, etc.— in “professional” settings. The title is a reference to inequitable music programs that require a large financial investment, thus barring the participation of those from lower socio-economic brackets, like myself, and propagating the extent inaccessible model of classical music. I have only been able to participate in such programs due to generous scholarships from donors and through random access to more equitable organizations.
I like to imagine the protagonist of #Pay2Play as an intern in a big office. In the span of just one minute, the piece expresses excitement, compassion, precision, and social facility in a non-stop, constantly morphing sprint— a metaphor for the pressure and expectation of perfection from younger workers, having to be everything to everyone all of the time. Even when the piece does relax a bit, the action starts up again after only about 1.5 seconds, racing toward the big finish. Even the method by which this piece was created and recorded resonates with this theme.
Every composition program I apply for wants an orchestral piece accompanied by a recording. Sure, it makes sense; they want to see how their prospective composer handles heavy forces. The only issue… where is a young artist with a full-time day job supposed to find an orchestra willing to play their music— let alone time to write for such forces in a medium that is so unlikely to be performed?
If I want to succeed, though, I have to play the game to some extent. So I subscribed to the newsletters of several European orchestras-for-hire, saved up some money, and waited for a sale. When one finally offered a discounted rate, I immediately booked the cheapest time slot available, a 30 minute session with their chamber orchestra. I wrote a piece for that exact instrumentation, kept it one minute long so they would definitely have time to rehearse and refine everything, and I tried to fit as much of my “skill” into that minute as possible while still maintaining arc and cohesion.
