BETWEEN OUR BREATHS WE SING
J. A. J. Sedarski
Published by SedarskiMusic (ASCAP)
Duration ca. 5:00 min
2024 finalist for the American Prize
Instrumentation
Flute
Clarinet in Bb
Vibraphone
Transposing score
Program Note
In a composer’s life, one or many pieces may require more time to think through than actually to compose. For me, Between Our Breaths We Sing is one of those pieces. I found myself asking big questions like, “How do I face tragedy? How does my community? The world?” I pondered these questions for over a year before finally sitting down to write the first notes of this work.
In the process of creating this piece, I found myself extremely humbled. I’ve lived such a short time on this planet and have been so fortunate to find myself taking another breath each morning.
This idea became the foundation on which my piece is built. Each phrase clusters and collects like an organic intake of air. In this repetitive ritual, melodic material gathers together. It begins to transform until it reaches a point of grand, maximum density before finally rising toward a climax of pitch and volume. After this moment of triumph, you’ll find all of the instruments “inhaling” and “exhaling” together toward the piece’s conclusion.
This programmatic work represents my belief that when we are united in our humanity, we can arise from tragedy and look toward a better world.
“Showing a deeper understanding of harmony” (Boston Musical Intelligencer) J. A. J. Sedarski (b. 2000) is a composer whose music blends bold, dramatic gestures with moments of striking intimacy. Drawing inspiration from his Mexican heritage, real-life events, and the natural world, his work resonates with personal depth and expressive range.
Sedarski began composing at 14, sparked by a dusty family piano tucked in the corner of his home. By 15, he earned his first credit writing incidental music for a production of The Vagina Monologues at the Rochester Civic Center. At 19, he received his first commission from the Boston-based Juventas New Music Ensemble—an artistic relationship that continues to this day and includes three concert hall world premieres.
His music has been performed by the MIVOS Quartet, Argento Reading Ensemble, Boston University Symphony Orchestra, Boston University Chamber Orchestra, ALLEA III, Sound Icon, and Juventas New Music Ensemble. He has studied under composers Rodney Lister, Joshua Fineberg, and John Wallace.
In his first year at Boston University, he won the 2020 Composition Competition for Variants for Orchestra. In 2022, he received an achievement award from Luke Hill’s composition studio for Gradus ad Paradisum, was named a 2021 finalist for the American Prize for Behind the Universe, and a 2024 finalist for the American Prize for Between Our Breaths We Sing. In 2023, he debuted his first monodrama, Sentience, inspired by contemporary developments in A.I., at Boston University’s School of Music. He earned his Bachelor of Music in Theory and Composition from Boston University College of Fine Arts.
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