Transformations in Flight depicts real and imaginary birds in flight in different parts of the world. The first section is a day in the life of a pretend magical bird, starting with anticipation and contemplation of life followed by a joyful flight. The second movement describes the song and flight of cardinals and red-winged blackbirds in Canada and the third depicts the hawks flying in northern Toronto and a chase for the attempt of catching a squirrel.

The piece is also a journey of discovery of links between ancient and folk music of China and Greece which have fascinated me since I started research in ancient Greek music and alternative tuning systems. My research has been in the microtonal music of ancient Greece but also in the relationship of ancient tuning systems in other cultures. Folk instruments such as the dizi flute in China have influenced the tone colour and expression in this work which combines extended techniques of the modern piccolo with folk flute sounds.