Nebula 星云

Nebula takes its inspiration from the vast celestial clouds of gas and dust that give birth to new stars. The work unfolds as a sequence of evolving sonic landscapes, suggesting nebulae of different colors, densities, and forms drifting through cosmic space.

Shifting textures and layered sonorities evoke the fluid, ever-changing nature of these stellar nurseries, where matter gathers, disperses, and gradually transforms into light. Drawing on a sensibility shaped by both Eastern aesthetics and Western instrumental color, the music reflects the quiet mystery and expansive scale of the universe.

World premiere: 26 May 2024 at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall

“Toru Takemitsu Composition Award Final Concert”

Performed by Yoichi Sugiyama (conductor)

Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra

The Toru Takemitsu Composition Award 2024 judge Mark-Anthony Turnagecommented:
“This piece is very beautifully scored ... It’s a very interesting skill to almost be sentimental but not quite. And that’s a really hard thing to do, and she does it really well. There was something very touching, and actually quite moving about some of the chords. I loved harmony … and I think the last section is very special, the final bars are beautifully paced”.