Ritual I embodies one of five “overcoming” cycles in traditional Chinese wu xing (five element) cosmology; the piece is a kind of abstract ritual accompaniment for the “metal-overcoming-wood” cycle. This transformational cycle is represented most explicitly in the piece’s gradual shift from wooden timbres (col legno tratto, sul tasto) to metallic timbres (scraped tam-tam, sul ponticello). It is also reflected, at a subtler level, in the densification of rhythmic and motific material, an increasing emphasis on open intervals, and an expansion of dynamic range.