Close Distancing

Perhaps at many other times in history, this piece would evoke the universal experience of longing for those who are far away. It originated more specifically, however, as the world retreated from COVID-19 in the late winter and spring of 2020, when many connected via video calls to work and stay in touch from a safe distance. This song opens simply as the first hum of a connection is made online, and the repeating harmonies illustrate revolving similar days, the constant struggle to hear each other, and the ever-present yearning to be together. The text begins together, sometimes drops out, gradually falls apart in imitation of the sound delay of technology that's not quite up to real-time interactions, and returns ambiguously to a slightly altered new place of an open fifth.