"Tree shadows in river mists die like smoke..."
The imagery in the poem links closely with the compositional processes at work within the piece although it is in no sense programmatic. A melodic line unravels, at the start by two oboes shadowing and echoing one another, later on this approach is taken up by solo strings, trumpets, french horns, woodwind and a string trio. These fragments of chamber music are interspersed with commentary by the larger orchestral forces, each branch-like passage being rooted back to the main musical material in various ways until the two main bodies of the orchestra, wind (and brass) and strings are employed antiphonally which leads to breaking point. The music then meanders through the 'river mists' before evaporating into nothing.
The piece was awarded a prize in the 2011 Kazimierz Serocki International Composers' Competition, Poland. The Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra was conducted by Maciej Zoltowski at the Witold Lutoslawski Concert Hall, Warsaw, November, 2011.
