All the instrumental material in this piece is derived from a poem  written in 1910 by the Estonian writer Juhan Liiv. 

Only later did I discover that, at the time of writing, Liiv had  already been suffering from schizophrenia for several years—yet  he continued to produce some of his most beautiful and profound  works, including this luminous text. 

I began by analysing the spectral content of Estonian syllables,  extracting rhythms, overtones, and coarticulations. The structure of the work follows this process: from vowel-based overtone  chords to verse-derived harmony and rhythm, and finally to  melodies shaped by the contours of speech. 

By working in this way, I believe the text revealed yet another  layer of both lightness and darkness embedded in the language  Liiv chose. With a wealth of material generated from this analysis, I sought to shape a form that would be sensitive both to  the meaning of the text and to its overtone fabric.  

The final section is a multilayered composition of prerecorded  voices—some of which seemed to haunt me during the creation  of this work.  

Liisa Hirsch