Aurora for Piano

Aurora was composed for Cristian Pastorello, Assistant Professor of Music at Aurora University. The name of the university where Dr. Pastorello teaches was the inspiration for this composition. Further research into the meaning and mythology surrounding Aurora gave rise to the individual movements. I. Goddess of Dawn The music of this movement reflects a sunrise from its first hint of light to its full-blazed glory. II. Ravens - Spirit Guides Many North American cultures believed that the Aurora Borealis represented spirits of departed ancestors. Ravens were often thought to be the conveyor of the spirit to the heavens. This movement is a scherzo and trio. The scherzo represents the dancing and playful spirits where the trio has an ethereal quality. III. Sister of the Sun and Moon - The Greeks held that Aurora was the sister of Helios and Seline, the sun and moon respectively, and that she raced across the early morning sky in her multi-colored chariot to alert her siblings to the dawning of a new day. This movement contains colorful harmony. The left hand plays a rising line representing dawn while the right hand represents Aurora racing across the sky through rapid musical motifs. IV. Celestial Battle Between Good and Evil - It is said that many of the early Chinese legends associated with dragons were a result of the Northern Lights. The belief is that the lights were viewed as a celestial battle between good and evil dragons that breathed fire across the firmament. Battle music dominates the first two-thirds of this movement before giving way to the triumph of good over evil.