The idea derives from the mental illusion of a person who stays in the dark abyss. I attempt to depict not only hopeless feelings of the person but also the situation that the man who is still looking for a chance to leave this dark place after seeing a thread of light. These contrast ideas, the illusions of both hopeful and hopeless feelings, also influence the reactions between the viola and the electronics. Technically, by using the delayed technique of electronics, the pitches are prolonged and produce the echoes which merge with the following notes. Besides, by means of the recording technique, the electronics also combine the layers and the materials and create the counterpoints between the up-to-the-minute playing and the previous melodies.


Illusion, in the deep of the abyss - for Viola Solo and Electronics (2013)

Dream - for Flute, Cello, and Percussion (2013)

The idea derives from the blooming of lilies and the spreading of the fragrance, depicting how the buds are gradually transferring to flowers. By retuning the strings, I divide the harmony into two spectral structures and attempt to transfer the sounds from one spectral system to another with harmonic glissandi and accented pitches. The musical texture not only present the gradual process of lilies’ growth but also the static expansion of a fragrance, atmosphere, and colors.

Blooming Lilies on a Summer Evening 〈夏夜百合〉: for string quartet (2023)

00:00  在海潮之下 …under the tides
02:56  在潮汐之間 …between tides
05:55  在波光之上 …above the waves
09:13  在消散之際 …while dissipating

〈無人知曉的海岸〉一曲完成於2023年夏季，為現代音樂協會 ISCM 委託創作之鋼琴獨奏作品。其創作靈感源自於我學生時期記憶的片段：在無人海岸凝望遠方時，湛藍的空氣中卻嗅出了寂寥的氛圍，就如同在是枝裕和的電影作品裡平靜的敘事之下，悄然滲入的悵然。我嘗試將這樣的氛圍融入這首作品中，並以當時目光凝望之處 —— 海浪、潮汐、波光等意象作為發想素材，來描繪記憶中曾佇足的無人海岸。

A Coast Where Nobody Knows〈無人知曉的海岸〉：for piano solo (2023)

〈星辰的十一個迴響〉- 為預置二十一弦箏與互動式電聲 - 完成於2023年7月，但最初的創作構想起始於2019-20年，時值我留學初返台灣之際，當時初識之音樂學者暨古箏演奏家楊宜樺，在多次討論後決定嘗試寫作一首有創造性與研究性質的古箏作品。創作靈感源自於George Crumb室內樂作品 Eleven Echoes of the Autumn 開場的鋼琴內部泛音聲響，我在George Crumb逝世的2022年開始著手寫作這首作品，以作為對於這位作曲家的紀念。

本曲名為星辰的十一個迴響，以十一個星辰的共鳴（光暈的折射、回聲的共振）對應Crumb作品中對於秋天的十一個回聲。對我而言，Crumb作品中的回聲（echoes）塑造了他音樂的空間感，但我卻希望能夠以聲響（包含回聲）散盡且逐漸融入環境中的迴響（resonances）作為全曲的焦點。換言之，Crumb著重的是聲音的姿態（timbral gestures）在空間中的延展，而我希望以聲音散開後的織度（textures）與氛圍（atmosphere），作為本作品實質的主題。

Resonance 4/5：Shuttling Starlight / Intergalactic Echoes（穿梭往返銀河之光 / 跨越星際的回聲）

Resonance 11：Mirages of Celestial Reflections（星辰的幻影）

Resonance 10：Light and Reverberations from Distant Universe（來自宇宙深處的光與共鳴）

Resonance 8：Static Flows in the Black Hole（黑洞中的靜滯之光）

Resonance 6/7：Kaleidoscopic Starshine /  Celestial Reflections（絢麗多變的星隕光輝 / 星體之光影互映）

Resonance 1：Luminous Ashes of Comets（流星餘燼之光) excerpted from Eleven Resonances of Galaxies

Composed in 2021, Fang-Wei Luo’s Songs of Desolation is inspired by the words “sighs, frost, dust, shadows, and dreams” mentioned in Chen Li’s poem "Listening to Winterreise on a Spring Night." The texture of music are particularly emphasized for showing different moods of desolation, focusing on how the various sounds are stretched, suspended, and dissolved into the atmosphere with time. This piece consists of several open-ended songs without texts, reflecting the composer’s speechless contemplation of human existence in the continuous wars.

Songs Of Desolation〈荒蕪之歌〉for electronics (2021)

Etude for Guitar Solo (NO.2) - An Ancient Dance (2011)

Death Of Democracy〈民主之死〉: for Ob, Cl, Sop Sax, Bass Cl, Bn (2014-2015)

Note on the Composition:
I takes the lyrics of this choral piece from “Jin-Lung Temple,” a poem written by Luo Fu, a contemporary poet of Taiwan. In this poem, the poet depicts through images what he saw and how he felt when leaving the temple. At the beginning of this piece, I uses the overtone of the piano to create the atmosphere of the fall of the approaching dusk and imitate the sounds of the bell from Jin-Lung Temple. I divide the Chinese character 「鐘」(pronounced as “zhong,” meaning “bell”) into three parts (zhong—wu—ong) to present the echoing sounds of the bell. In the second section, the choral parts appear alternately to show the scene of luxuriant ferns. In the third section, I have the solo tenor sings out the pondering and imagination of the poet: “If it should snow here…” And the chorus plays the role of the accompaniment and the background to present the snowy scene and solemn atmosphere. In the final section, the bass part interrupts the solo tenor’s performance, and four parts of the chorus appear alternately to depict the lighting up of the evening lanterns in the mountain.


Jin-Lung Temple〈金龍禪寺〉: for chorus and piano (2010)

Composed in 2018, the piece Seven Nights of Loneliness is dedicated to the children in the current wars. This piece consists of seven dramatic sections. Each section is highlighted by its diverse sounds, but all the timbral materials are closely related to other sections. Different human voices are employed to reinforce the mystic and scary atmosphere throughout the piece. Whispers and whistles are not only fused into the white noises produced by bowing muffled strings but also combined with string’s crystal harmonics. Structurally, I attempt to use white noises and fast glissandi to highlight the peaceful pizzicato sections where the strings imitate plucking mandolins. The juxtaposition of chaotic noises and peaceful pizzicati reveals the ambiguous and ironical beauty of this composition.

[Sections] 
I.    Silent Hills					                0: 00
II.   Distant Wails					                3: 03
III.  Interrupted Nocturne (Duo)	                        5: 06
IV.  Lullaby of Ruins 				                5: 56	
V.   Echoes of Ruins (Solo, with whispers)	11: 58
VI.  A Song for Ravens				                13: 12
VII. Nocturne of Loneliness (Duo-Trio-Tutti)	16: 50

Seven Nights of Loneliness〈七夜〉: for string quartet (2018)

Fang-Wei Luo is a Taiwanese composer who holds his Ph.D. in music theory and composition from University of California at Davis. Fang-Wei's works focus on exploring the balance between musical material, acoustic atmosphere, and musical texture. Depicting solitude and dreams, satirizing current events, and voicing for the underprivileged are the recurrent themes in his composition. He has placed emphasis on writing pieces for specific political issues or unjust treatments, particularly Taiwan’s arduous situation, which is entangled with his belief in music writing. He has placed emphasis on writing pieces for specific political issues or unjust treatments, particularly Taiwan’s arduous situation, which is entangled with his belief in music writing.

羅芳偉為美國加州大學戴維斯分校的音樂理論與作曲博士、國立臺北藝術大學作曲碩士與理論作曲學士。其創作手法與形式多元，著重於探索音樂素材、聲響氛圍、織度層次三者之間的平衡，音樂描寫的主題涉及孤獨、夢境、諷刺時事、反映弱勢族群的遭遇，皆與其創作密不可分。

Popular tracks by Fang-Wei Luo (羅芳偉)