Fantasia on “Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir” (2018)

Commission: Phoon Yu

Instrumentation: organ

Duration: 4 minutes

Program Information:
Fantasia on Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu dir (Out of deep distress I cry to you) is based on J.S. Bach’s chorale of the same name, BWV686/687. Like Bach’s chorale, the work is structured in five phrases, each beginning with a complex chord that hints at the chorale prelude by removing pitches of the prelude from the chord. These sections are followed by (with the exception of the first), a fantasia like expansion of material, with each building on those before to reach the climatic question “Wer kann, Herr, für dir bleiben?” (Who can stand before you, Lord?)

Premiere: August 26 2018 | Phoon Yu | Singapore

Performance:
December 5 2018 | Phoon Yu | Paul Hall, Juilliard School, New York, NY
April 6 2019 | Phoon Yu | Paul Hall, Juilliard School, New York, NY