Stars Beyond Turmoil

In March of 2020, it was like the world was falling apart. On the 12th, at The University of Nebraska - Lincoln, we received word that school was shutting down and we were all getting sent home. The next day, my boyfriend broke up with me. In the coming weeks I would do remote work and school, I would homeschool my younger brother, I would be in-and-out of doctors' offices and on bedrest for two months having fallen ill. Every time I would turn on the news, another aspect of the world was falling apart and more people were dying.

I took solace in my music. Shortly before we had all been sent home from school, the percussion studio had received a new set of bass pans and my friend Tamario Brooks had purchased a new hand pan. Almost as a joke, I'd promised to write a duet for the instruments. Whenever I would feel lost, and my emotions were too much to handle, I would doodle melodies wherever I could fit them. I tried to make them as happy as possible, though as you'll hearthat goal wasn't always achieved.

Those melodies became the foundation for this piece. The electronics are created from media sound bytes from 2020. I dedicate this piece to my friends who got me through the socially-distanced game nights, quarantine bubble hikes and coffee dates, and to all the friendships that shone out above the noise.