Sakura Rain is a composition that honors steadfast love amid the upheavals of history, like the fleeting bloom of sakura, brief yet radiant. Along the exquisiteness and thematic layerings, the music portrays the poignant love amidst the turbulence and during wartime, where fateful encounters unfold in the swirling blooms, and this transient beauty mirrors the blossom and fall of sakura—fleeting yet radiant.

The inspiration for Sakura Rain traces back to Apple Chang’s time spent in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Gyoen during the cherry blossom season in April 2019, alongside recollections of serene blossom viewings on Taipei’s Yangming Mountain.

In crafting the instrumental gestures and performing technique, the work

weaves a singular dialogue between piano, harp, solo violin, flute,

and strings, encapsulating the exquisite confluence of musical aesthetics and intricate textures. Through the delicate orchestration of piano and harp, the music reflects the exquisiteness of Koto repertoire tradition, interlacing the entire work with a unique ethereal quality and a transformation of time and space. The flute’s multifaceted interpretation of phrase shaping, the violin solo echoing the rise and fall of Eastern linguistic rhythms, and the interweaving strings create an intricate tapestry where the voices alternate and complement one another.

Amidst its dynamic surges and delicate retreats, the music unfolds the poignant tale of love amidst the fleeting beauty of cherry blossoms, and the enduring strength of love’s resilience under the devastation of war and the shifting tides of history. Throughout the composition, one can hear the subtle transformation and reappearance of a three-note motif—deeply embedded, yet subtly entwining and shifting among different instruments. Some of these motifs reveal themselves upon first hearing, while others emerge only through several listening, leaving behind a lingering echo.