Sleepless Souls (for Violin, Bb Clarinet (doubled with Bass Clarinet), and Piano)

Program Note (Sleepless Souls for Violin, Bb Clarinet, and Piano)

This piece is dedicated to 309 killed or missing passengers from the Sewol Ferry Disaster near southwest coast of South Korea on Apr. 16, 2014. The music starts with slow, lamenting melodic motives with some traditional Korean folklores, thinking of past memories with their classmates (most of the victims were high school students on the school trip). Then it becomes agitating in the middle section, describing the emergency where they were waiting for the rescue while the ship was sinking but the rescue team could not approach to the scene because of bad weather with strong current. After the climax, it returns to the beginning music describing the calm sea after the storm (calling their friends' names but no answers)…

Link to the Wikipedia article about the incident: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_MV_Sewol

Not a huge fan of the middle faster section... the nicely subtle orchestration of the early and later parts are almost more angry than the middle section, just because of how simplistic it is in comparison, despite the overlapping modes. 
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I think the middle section could have been a bit more paced and foreshadowed in the first section. The build up was good -but I think it could have been a bit more dramatic. The delicate stretto in measure 8 is a nice touch -but, as I noticed throughout, you do this then just completely leave it without much expansion. I almost wish the imitation here would have lasted past that bar. That would further embed that motif -which I think was your intent by spreading it across the three instruments. And compared to what you have after (up to the Doppio section)… would've been much more interesting. I didn't care for the motif that you introduce at measure 13. It's definitely contrasting... but I wanted more time!!! 

At any rate, nice and strong work. Would love to see this more fleshed out.