St. Teresa in Ecstasy (2010)

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When I began working on St. Teresa in Ecstasy, the idea of religious ecstasy – a state of spiritual transcendence brought about through the joy of communing with one’s higher power – immediately came to mind. The use of music to induce trance states was also an important element. In what seemed to me a natural combination of those two sources, Bernini’s sculpture “The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa”(also known as the “Transverberation of Saint Teresa” or “Saint Teresa in Ecstasy”) became the inspiration for this composition, which mixes a jubilant fanfare with driving runs in an attempt to hint at what a mystic might feel during such an experience.