Homeland is an orchestral piece written as an expression of my emotions towards my native land of Taiwan.

 

Atonality and traditional tonality are combined in this piece so that a wider audience can embrace the sentiments of longing contained in Homeland.

 

According to the musical structures and moods, music can be divided into four parts.

 

The first part describes a city born to suffering and poverty. A great deal of dissonant acoustics and tense rhythm show the depression of the city and inhabitants’ agitation. The consecutive repetitions of pitches and motifs echoed sharply among the voices sharply bring out the tension in the music.

 

After a round of acoustic turmoil, the music changes gears to feature the deep sounds of the timpani and the bass drum, and then develops into the dolce second part at bar 70. The mellow and solemn tone brings to mind the prosperity and beauty of the city. Simultaneously, the scattered but restless echoes of trills haunting the voices resemble the unstable moods pervading the city; nevertheless, the trilling fears are soon transformed into the singing of strings as warm light sprinkles the lovely city.

 

Moving on into the third part at bar 101, the trills return as another danger emerges!? The city remains secure throughout these changes though, as many groups of rapid short notes dart in and out between the voices. This distinctive rhythm endows the section with an uninhibited atmosphere.

 

At bar 140, with the advent of night, the city seems tranquil!?