This piece, affectionately subtitled "Ballroom" is a love letter to both the Ballroom scene and Western classical harmony. It is an introspective look at my intersectional identity and my place within both the queer and classical communities. Like this quartet, I too feel I am too classical to be queer and waaay too queer to be classical.
I'm still figuring out why I revere classical music's so-called "masters" when they never would have recognized my humanity. And yet I continue to work in their idiom .You'd be hard pressed to find someone who hasn't heard of Madonna's "Vouge" or used phrases like "clocked, tea, or gagged." Black trans women have made innumerable contributions to popular culture, and yet we are continually demonized.
I feel that this internal conflict is on full display throughout this piece; The two core elements, string quartet and voguing track, represent the two extremes of my identity. Through their interaction, I hope that the audience is also able to live in my odd yet undeniably earnest world where these elements coalesce.
