Tsutsu (2015) & Tsutsu II (2018)

Program note:

“Tsutsu” means “tube” in Japanese.

Throughout his/her lifetime, the air constantly goes through one’s body in and out without any pause as if scraping and massaging the wall of one’s inner spiritual body to produce life energy, friction, heat, and tension to stimulate the meaning of life. The hairy texture of the inner bronchial tubes, even finer than high quality cashmere fabric, gently and quietly serves the duration of life.

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We are meant to breathe, and it is our responsibility.

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Compositional idea:

(The following text should NOT be presented to the audience in any form)

¨Tsutsu¨ means ¨tube¨ or any object with a thin cylindrical form.

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Human internal organs are full of ¨tsutsu¨ such as trachea. When one breathes, the air constantly goes through the tube like storm, scrapes and massages the countless Cilium, tiny-hair-like organelle growing on the surface of the wall of trachea. Tsutsu is a composition trying to capture the sound of the swaying Cilium.

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Tsutsu was based on several of my life experiences concerning health and life.

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In 2012, I had a severe stomach problem, perhaps from steak tartare from a not-so-good restaurant, home-made wine, or heavy meat based holiday food. The reason was never clear and I suffered from not being able to eat and lost a lot of weight. One thing, for some reason, made my stomach feels slightly better was yoga like breathing. 

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In 2013, my daughter was born, and I still remember vividly when the doctor, with a very serious face, said to my new born daughter ¨It is your responsibility to breathe¨.