Tommy Yu

Their Souls Were Lifted From the Dust

The inspiration of this powerful wind ensemble piece came from the tragic events of the atomic bombing on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. This piece is a memorial work for one of the eventual victims, a young girl named Sadako Sasaki. At the age of ten, Sadako was diagnosed with Leukemia, and she was given but a few months to live. Determined to survive, Sadako clung to Japanese traditional belief that if she folded one thousand origami cranes (senba-zuru), the Gods would grant her wish to live, but her wish was unfortunately not realized. This very original work is a musical eulogy for Sadako, and uses many poignant solos and simple ensemble singing in Japanese and English to convey a message of hope and peace for our fragile planet and its inhabitants. Grand Prize winner of the 2021 Grand Mesa Music Composition Contest.