I’m very pleased to be one of seven composers from around the world selected to compose a new work for New York City-based ensemble mise-en for this year’s Mise-en Festival, to take place June 23-28 in New York. My planned work is tentatively called Parallel Lives and is inspired by my own experience traveling back-and-forth between Hong Kong and the US (and many other places!) over the last four years. I’ve become fascinated with how much activity is taking place at once, whether in a particular building, on a single street, throughout a whole city, or between two points on opposite sides of the globe. Darting to and fro around the world, I’ve gained a new appreciation for how time passes—sometimes quickly, other times at a laborious place—and how our perceptions shift over vast distances. The sudden shifts of time, place, and energy fascinate me and are something I want to explore musically in my work. I’m very much looking forward to working with the stellar musicians of ensemble mise-en and their conductor, Moon Young Ha, this summer.