I wrote “I Wish You Daisies and Roses” at a very special time in my life, as it was the first composition I worked on after the birth of my son Aaron. What really touched me in those first months as a new mother was the feeling of this immeasurable and infinite love that you feel as a parent and how much and with all your heart you wish your child the best for their future. I started writing this piece out of that energy and I think it guided me through the whole process.

In 19th century floral language, daisies represent health and happiness and the joy of simple things, while roses stand for all sorts of things depending on the color, but generally represent the finer, nobler things and classically, as everyone knows, symbolize eternal love. I could never come up with a title that lists everything I wish for my son in his life, of course, but health, happiness and love are probably a pretty good choice to start this list and hopefully capture the idea of where this music is coming from.

As I was working on this composition, I wondered how many times in history a female composer has been able to capture something as crucial as the first year with her child and the feelings associated with it in such an exposed work for large orchestra. Music history is full of great existential emotions, but the complex emotional world that comes with the first months of motherhood has rarely or never been explored in an orchestral work, let alone from a female perspective. Even though I missed my son every second I was away from him while working on this music, I realize that this piece is probably part of something bigger, because it's a great proof that a lot has changed in the field of classical music in the last decades.

I think “I Wish You Daisies and Roses” is one of the most intuitive compositions I have written so far, it even surprised myself in so many ways and I am proud and grateful to be able to give my son such a unique gift for his first birthday.