His piece is an elegy for his grandmother, the text of which (in Chinese) is by Ruo himself. It is written for soprano or Chinese folk voice and orchestra. “Sao” in Chinese means sorrowful predicament. The title (only) is taken from a poem by Qu Yuan (fourth century B. C.). Huang Ruo himself “sings” the solo part (it is more of a falsetto croon), a meditation on life and death. This is a most involving piece whose compositional expertise far outstrips the novelty of Ruo’s voice. The scoring is often magical, with silvery percussion introducing the middle lament.