And Suddenly, an Elegy

In June 2026, while talking to my dear friend Dr. Wesley Broadnax, he told me about the sadly passing of his student, Justin Pierce. Late July, he had the terrific idea to have a composer composing a piece to honor him and somehow trying to heal his other student’s mourning, so he asked me to do it. Even though I was in the midst of two other commitments, and just had a week to compose the music, I felt I had to write this piece for him and his ensemble. Actually, I can tell you this was like a premonition, since I had a melody on my head for several weeks, and I wanted to use it in a piece like this. Composition process went pretty fast, and I had the piece ready in a few days. When heard the piece for the very first time, Dr. Broadnax said: “I can tell you this melody was meant for Justin, because I can hear his name on every single statement of the main motive” (he referred to the sixteenth-dotted eight note motive, that you can fin throughout the piece). I wanted to create a piece that reflects sadness and melancholy, but also celebrating life, good memories and music. Since Justin played oboe and English horn, those instruments have plenty of solos and are the main voice of this Elegy.