Her Latitude

Program Notes

I have known and admired Jenny’s recordings and performances since long before I met her in person and got to know her as a dear friend. Her invitation to compose this work made me truly think about her, her background as an incredible musician, a child of immigrants from Korea, a socially and politically passionate citizen inside and outside of music, and as someone with immense curiosity in exploring new sounds. I find many of her strengths and characteristics resonate with me, and think about her unique cultural and artistic origins as part of her overall persona as a great violinist.

Her Latitude is written for violin and electronics, with a special semi-improvised part for me to play, reacting in real time to Jenny’s treatment of time and gesture. The electronics part includes processed sounds from various sources of spiritual calm and catastrophic unrest: Buddhist chants, rusty bell sounds, faint old Korean pop songs, nuclear alarms, and the clanging of earthenware symbolizing early civilization. I thought a lot about the artistic and emotional journeys a woman artist of a non-mainstream heritage in the western world goes through before proudly performing on stage, often the most challenging compositions. For me, and certainly for Jenny as well, music is never just about the delivery of notes. The richness of her playing and character is the primary inspiration for this piece.

– Wang Lu