Cue of the Week: "I"

Second to last in the Anthem series, this cue is the fullest development of the story's main musical theme. Over the course of the audiobook, I had the theme grow as the character did; so whereas the melody is just a faint suggestion in the opening chapter, not even reaching its full interval height, here it appears in full form and orchestration. I try to avoid overintellectualizing my music, but in this case a parallel between the growth and self-actualization of the protagonist and his six-note musical leitmotif made perfect sense.

The music accompanies a five-and-a-half-minute speech from start to finish, which is a very unusual amount of underscore for an audiobook chapter. (Also not the kind of thing you write overnight!) The music's shifts in tone tend to follow the contour of the narration, but I strived to give it a musical structure that would make sense even out of context. The chapter clearly called for music of heroic character, but at the same time I wanted more of a sense of premonition than an overt celebration - a feeling of impending rather than already-accomplished triumph, with just a touch of righteous anger.

Anthem chapter 9: "I"