The End and The Beginning, for bamboo flute, pipa, cello and percussion - Huan Sun

This composition is inspired by a poignant poem about war by the Polish poet Wislawa Szymborska:
After the war, there will always be someone to clean up, to tidy the battlefield. Order does not appear on its own. Someone will always sweep the rubble to the side of the road, so that carts full of bodies can pass through unimpeded. Someone will always remove the mud and ashes, the springs from the sofa, shards of glass, and the blood-stained rags... Bridges need to be repaired, stations need to be rebuilt. Rolled-up sleeves have already been torn into fragments. Those holding the broom will still remember the war... Those who witnessed the flames of war must make way for those who know less about it, those who know very little, or even nothing at all. Some will lie in the grass that hides the causes and consequences, chewing on a blade of wheat, eyes gazing at the drifting clouds.
While war might seem distant, recent conflicts have drawn us abruptly back from the comfort of peace into a harsh, bloody reality. This piece develops themes from two folk songs-China’s "Xiao He Tang Shui" and America’s "Where Have All the Flowers Gone"-each reflecting on war and peace. The presence of beauty amid brutality only heightens the terror and dread of war.