Students’ Compositions under Hong Kong Composers’ Guild Mentorship Scheme

This piece is inspired by Lewis Carroll’s famous novel Alice in Wonderland. The flute and clarinet duet plays whole-tone melodies and builds up a mysterious atmosphere. It symbolises Alice’s fear of the unknown as she tumbled down the deep hole. The changes in tempo and the use of the octatonic scale represent the instability and unsettling emotion. Growing to be nine feet tall after Alice finishes the cake, the polyrhythms portray her panic and anxiety. Fast notes in semiquavers on the piano and violin describe Alice’s busy routine as a housemaid. The clarinet plays in a steady pulse to depict Alice confidently responding to the Queen’s question. The clarinet plays longer notes to reveal Alice responding flippantly and losing the Queen’s affection. The whole tone scale returns with imitation in the clarinet and piano. The steady and slow pulse features Alice’s conversation with the King in a solemn and orderly trial. The tempo accelerates implying the conflict between the King and Alice. The piece ends with an extensive use of accents and staccatos, illustrating Alice’s dangerous escape from the courtroom, and returning to her home – the reality.