impermanence was inspired by the death of Monk's partner of 22 years, Mieke van Hoek. In an interview on BAM's website, Monk describes the music for the work as "more chromatic and dissonant than what I usually write. My music tends to be modal while in this piece I explored other harmonic possibilities."

"Generally, I would say that Part I of impermanence conveys the idea of individual lives or personalities," she adds, "while in Part II everything is stripped down to essences. As souls, we are all part of an inevitable cycle. The 'Line Dance' in Part II suggests that eternal on-goingness and progression."

Impermanence will run through Sunday, November 5 at BAM's Harvey Theater. Information and tickets are available at www.bam.org.