Déjà vu (2017) for cello and piano

Déjà vu is dedicated to and written for my friend, Gracie Lookadoo. She and I share the same name and birthday, which had served as common ground between us at the beginning of our friendship. The sense of familiarity I had experienced when I met her inspired me to describe this feeling through music. To illustrate the phenomenon, I reuse a motive, first heard in the opening melody, throughout the work. Its reappearance simulates the familiarity that one feels while experiencing déjà vu. In addition, I employ harmony constructed with open intervals to portray the underlying tone of confusion as one considers whether they have “already seen” the present moment.