Since the time of Brahms, there has been a tradition among certain composers to write lullabies for young children, which I unavoidably did for my baby son Leo, during my recent pregnancy before he was born. Imagining sweet happiness, warm emotions and love at first sight, I weaved these fanciful thoughts into a lullaby. The first week of being a new mother was absolute bliss. What I did not anticipate were the dark emotions, which developed rapidly after Leo was born. Suddenly, tears overcame me for no reason and feelings of mourning, anxiety and loss suddenly appeared without warning.

After childbirth, according to the American Pregnancy Association, around 80 percent of women experience various postpartum mood swings often referred to as “baby blues.” Fortunately, these “blues” usually go away within two to three weeks. Gradually, my tears dried out and I started being able to trust the joy of being a new mother.

While the depression lasted for a short time (compared to the 40-week pregnancy, or to the longer process of raising a child), the experience was so profound that I felt compelled to compose a work about it. The music I have composed suggests the extreme bliss of childbirth, the melancholy and struggling thereafter and the mysterious transformative process which leads to final resolution and peace.