Baekyang temple sits in a narrow valley among the mountains of South Korea. From the summit high above, one can hear the monks chanting and the bell ringing below, but because of the hills and valleys, the sounds seems to come from everywhere. The echoes are haunting. With Irichori (Korean--sort of--for “bouncing around here and there”), I have tried to emulate the spatial aural sensations of Baekyang temple by moving the pianos far apart on stage.

This recording was created by Hyangmee Kim and Young Mi Seo in Seoul in May 2010.

Irichori (2 pianos)

I'm a composer. I'm currently an associate professor of music and chair of the music program at Sweet Briar College in central Virginia. I have degrees from Appalachian State University, Brigham Young University, and the University of North Texas. 

My music is grounded in a fascination with visual art, textures, sound spectra, non-linear narratives, and extreme temporal manipulations, and it has been heavily influenced by studio techniques of electroacoustic composers. I've been commissioned by the Barlow Endowment for Music Composition, the Nova Ensemble at UNT, Akropolis Reed Quintet, Virginia Wesleyan University, and many amazing performers. I've composed two feature film scores—King Rat (2017) and HUM (2020), and my concert works have been performed throughout the United States as well as South Korea, and is available on the SEAMUS and Ravello record labels.

Check out additional pieces at my YouTube channel (link below).

Email me at jkharriscomposer@gmail.com

Irichori (2 pianos)

Joshua Harris