JOSE LOPEZ performs CHAI VARIATIONS on Eliahu HaNavi on his program The Judaic Muse on the Sunset Arts Series at the Episcopal Church of the Incarnation. The Hebrew word 'Chai' means 'living' in Hebrew, and symbolically stands for the number 18 in Cabalistic mysticism. The performer chooses the order of the variations, with only the opening and closing themes set. Since there are 18! potential ordering, there is a lot to choose from! The goal of having the performer choose the order is to reach a deeper level of collaboration between performer and composer.