A Surreal Symphony

Adrian Gordon, Director of Orchestras, recalls being captivated by sophomore Owen Moore's original composition "A Nighttime Overture."

Written by Anna Maria Della Costa.

The melody lingered in Adrian Gordon’s head. It had been days since his initial encounter with “A Nighttime Overture”—a piece Providence Day sophomore Owen Moore composed over several months. The allure of the music was powerful.

“I was captivated,” Gordon, the Director of Orchestras, says. “It actually got stuck in my head. I was impressed by his ability to compose in a manner that showcased the distinctive characteristics of each instrument within [an] orchestra. I remained impressed by the overall composition he created.”

Composing “A Nighttime Overture” and then taking the lead and conducting his piece during the Orchestra Concert this school year was surreal, he says. Gordon swapped positions and played the cello as Owen directed his peers.

“It's valuable for musicians to gain insight into the interpretation of music directly from the source,” Gordon says of giving Owen the opportunity to conduct his own piece. “It felt natural for him to share his personal experiences and artistic intent with his colleagues. This presented a unique teaching opportunity, allowing us to collectively delve into the art of conducting and further enhance Owen's and everyone else's understanding of this intricate musical skill.”

Owen’s opus was born from a passion he uses to escape, relax, and find comfort.

“It’s a creative outlet,” Owen says. “I can’t put it into writing, but I can use music to convey messages. ‘A Nighttime Overture’ was really this melody that came into my head while I was doing homework or getting ready for bed. From there, I built harmonies around it.”

He says his peers' being open to having him conduct his own piece pushed him to perfect the music.

“It was a really cool feeling to be the person leading all the other instruments,” Owen says. “I wanted to evoke the emotion the best they [could.]”

Gordon says the experience instilled in students the importance of thinking outside the box, emphasizing that the sky's the limit when it comes to fostering creativity.

“My mantra ‘permission granted’ has always encouraged sharing ideas with the world without constraints,” Gordon says. “This experience served as a powerful reminder that there is no age minimum or limit to embracing and embodying this mantra in our creative pursuits.”

It’s not the first time Owen, who will study engineering in college because he’s “really into the way things work,” has taken unprecedented steps at Providence Day.

The member of the school’s cross country and track teams created the Air Jordan 1 “PD” shoe in the spring of 2022 with fellow sophomore Calvin Currier.

“[I] decided to make some designs, and when I sent them to [Calvin], he thought it would be cool to make them real shoes,” he says. “I’ve always had a lot of ideas, and then I think, ‘Why does this have to be an idea? Why can’t it actually be happening? So I try to make it happen.”

And where did he get the idea for the title of “A Nighttime Overture”?

“It was something I thought about for a while. I did a lot of listening to the piece and reflecting about how it felt to me,” Owen says. “I went through a lot of options. Then I thought about the feeling of when the sun is going down, and the moon is coming out, and the darkness of night. That really summed it up. All of it is connected. That’s how it is with me and music; it all connects.”