Byron Au Yong | 歐陽良仁

DESCRIPTION
In 2006, a 28-year-old shot six youth, then killed himself. Thinking about the Capitol Hill shootings close to home and bombs dropping on the other side of the world, I created Piao Zhu: Flying Bamboo, a site-responsive ceremony.
 
Ji Mo: The Stillness of Solitude began as a reworking of Piao Zhu for Lincoln Hall. My cast and I talked about the acute isolation felt by the Capitol Hill shooter, those who commit suicide and the hikikomori - adolescents and young adults in Japan who withdraw from society.
 
I struggle to connect those who are perpetually on orange alert with happy drumming. How can I create a music that is both relevant and pleasurable? In Ji Mo, my collaborators and I go beyond the comforting heartbeat of the drums to explore the distress signals of memory and loss. Through this ceremony, we can hopefully come together and feel a bit less lonely.

INSTRUMENTATION
for voice, xun (clay flute), er-hu (fiddle), Chinese percussion, bamboo, water, and rocks

DETAILS
Duration c. 17 minutes

Premiered/Performed at Lincoln Performance Hall on 06 April 2007 and 07 April 2007

Commissioned by Portland Taiko

PRESS QUOTES
"Seattle's Byron Au Yong brings a highly visual theatricality."

"Taiko is often about loud, rapid drumming that thrills audiences with its physicality. But Portland Taiko takes a different tack with a new work on its upcoming concert... Ji Mo: The Stillness of Solitude by Byron Au Yong is a healing meditation."