tsuki ga dete/ the moon rises

Emerging from a mysterious drone, this rhythmic and ecstatic piece celebrates the beauty of the natural world and the joy of sharing that with a loved one. My husband gave me this poem as a Valentine’s Day gift when we were first dating and I set it to music to celebrate our wedding. It was inspired by moonlit walks on the beach below the bluffs on the UC Santa Barbara campus; the lap of the small waves against the sand, and the shimmering path of light from the moon on the water. The moon rises. Overhead a silver night. This is happiness. There is some divisi in the bass part near the end of the piece.