Clarinet
Broken Tulip (2008)
Flute/Piccolo, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Bassoon, Contrafortre or Contrabassoon, Trombone, Percussion 7' 40" Broken Tulip was premiered on July 9, 2008 at Interlochen Arts Camp. Performers were: Jill Heyboer, flute; Daniel Silver, clarinet; Tim McAllister, alto saxophone; George Sakakeeny, bassoon; Hank Skolnick, contraforte; Mark Hetzler, trombone; and Kim Burja, percussion Broken Tulip takes inspiration from the notion that an idea or an object can remain static while the perception of that idea or object shifts radically around it. A real life example of this type of radical paradigm shift is the broken tulip, a rare, multi-colored tulip with irregular flame- or feather-like markings. A standard tulip, however, is solid-colored, a unitary blend of two overlaid pigments. Because a tulip is reproduced by planting its genetically identical offsets, a broken tulip was quite rare and appeared seemingly at random. This combination of mystery and rare beauty made the broken tulip aesthetically prized--and economically valuable. But it was discovered that a virus, carried from bulb to bulb by the peach potato aphid, irregularly suppressed the laid-on color of the tulip, allowing a portion of the base color to show through in that tell-tale flame or feathered pattern. These rare moments of beauty were suddenly seen as diseased and undesirable, and growers set about ridding their fields of the infected tulips. A violent paradigm shift occurred and the broken tulip was doomed. My piece does not tell the story of the rise and fall of the broken tulip—there is no tulip melody, no virus leitmotif. It borrows the energy and tension in the story of the broken tulip and explores the more general idea of radical paradigm shift. I’d like to point to another example of a potential paradigm shift right in our midst. Broken Tulip has an important part for the contraforte, played by Hank Skolnick. The contraforte is a modern, reworked version of the contrabassoon. It has a wider bore, is more agile, and more consistent throughout its expanded range. The rather limited paradigm of the contrabassoon as an occasional octave doubler of the bassoon in late romantic and 20th c. orchestra music may shift as the contraforte moves into chamber repertoire like Broken Tulip and its own solo repertoire.
Cascade (2011)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Trombone 7' 15" I like the way cascade is used in electronics—a series of networks, each having an output that serves as the input for the next. This image gets at the deep connectedness between distinct sections that I was striving for in Cascade. But the several long, descending gestures in Cascade draw on another sense of cascade—a series of waterfalls over steep rocks.
A Fine Garment, a Gentle Weave, Woven with Whispers and Exclamation Points (1998)
Woodwind Quintet 8' 30" This composition is more autobiographical than any of my other compositions: a very intense relationship develops between two people. A physical and emotional separation occurs. In the midst of awful loneliness there are flashbacks to the earlier relationship. The relationship is renewed but this time it is much more richly textured, more resilient and more positive. This basic story can be the template for all sorts of relationships--between lovers, between a parent and a child, and between friends. Quite apart from the specific relationship I was thinking of, I hope that you as listeners can find your own experiences resonating in the musical story. A Fine Garment was written for the Camerata Quintet in 1998 and was premiered by them at Western Illinois University on March 7, 1999.
A Fraction of your Grace (1997)
Clarinet and String Quartet 8' 40" A Fraction of Your Grace was inspired by the wonderful grace shown by a friend whose family was dealt a terrible blow. The phrase comes from a letter in which I said "I hope that I can find even a fraction of your grace should something similar happen to me or my family." Sections based on quartal chords and sections based on open fifths stated in a rhythmic ostinato move slowly around the circle of fifths. Motives derived from extensions of the basic quintal and quartal structures provide most of the melodic material. Published by Arsis Press.
Gathering (2012)
Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Cello 20' 20" - 3 Movements The three movements of Gathering are 'gathered' together by means of an essential bass line that moves downward by half step with each new movement. In the first movement, an insistent underlying tone anchors and eventually pulls down the lines rising above it. The second movement is full of rhythmic and metrical diversity, with outer sections alternating between an asymmetrical meter (12 345) and a chorale-style passage. A distinct middle section plays with the accent tension between 3/4 and 6/8 (12 23 56 vs. 123 456), sometimes one after the other, sometimes simultaneously. The third movement draws on traditional tonality as a way to establish a sense of both unresolved longing and of remembrance.
Lift (2019)
Clarinet and Piano 6' 05" The term 'lift' has a nice referential flexibiltiy without losing its essential meaning in changing contexts: we lift up our voice in song, we lift up revenue, we lift an object down, and we even lift (or steal) something. Lift is built on three gestures that, once established, are developed quite continously. One gesture is simply a continuous upward pitch contour, another is a continuous downward flow of pitches, and the third is a faster, nervous, embellished gesture that expresses the building of energy towards one of the other gestures. Lift is a companion piece to Rift and both were commissioned by Claricello.
The More the Merrier, the Fewer the Better Fare (2023)
Clarinet, Bassoon, Bayan Accordion 7' 06" Coming Soon
No Longer Suitable for Framing (1999)
Clarinet and Trombone 8' 30" Was written in 1999 for Sandra Potkay Jackson, clarinet, and David Jackson, trombone. It was premiered by Sandy and David the next summer on an Interlochen Arts Camp faculty recital. I re-used the same pitch material in each of the seven snapshots, but with the instruments in different relationships each time. Those musical relationships drew to a certain extent on relationships in marriage--I was aware that Sandy and David had recently married, and my own marriage was near its end, so I had many positive and negative images to work with. The snapshots are each very short and intense and the relationships are not always positive (one person talking, the other not listening, for instance), but some are playful and connected. It's important not to take this programmatic image too seriously though! I consider No Longer Suitable for Framing to be very virtuosic, both in terms of the demands on the individual instrumentalists and in terms of their very intense chamber music relationship. Published by JOMAR Press.
The Old Songs (2012)
Scena for Soprano, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Contrabass 10'00" Coming Soon
Play up a Storm (1997)
Flute, Clarinet, Bassoon, Violin, Cello 7' 00" Around my house we connect the phrase "...up a storm" to any activity done with intensity, verve, or commitment. We might play up a storm, eat up a storm, sing up a storm, complain up a storm, or even, occasionally, sleep up a storm. Play Up A Storm draws inspiration from this notion of doing an activity with intense focus.
Quartet Ablaze (2012)
Clarinet, Violin, Cello, Piano 8' 00" Quartet Ablaze has two structural features in common with my experience of Facebook, the social networking site: the sense that a posting is rarely static, because over time it becomes embellished by comments of increasingly greater separation from the original; and the notion that seemingly unrelated steps on a Facebook “path” are, in fact, related by the intervening series of clicks, however tangential and numerous, that connect them. In Quartet Ablaze, there is a significant number of musical themes or characters linked into larger musical units. These themes return multiple times, but always in a new guise—a new order of connection (thus reconfiguring the unit of which they are a part), more embellished, re-orchestrated, and so forth. Although Quartet Ablaze is like Facebook in interesting ways, it is not, in fact, inspired by it--they have analogous features. But the title was inspired by a friend’s Facebook status: imagine your first name followed by Ablaze, as in Zae Ablaze, or Astrid Ablaze. It suggests that you are inspired, on fire, motivated, on the move. Insert Quartet in that space, for obvious reasons, and you have the title. The metaphorical fire/energy/direction builds, roars, dies down, smolders, crackles again.
Flexible Instrumentation
Achieving Sprezzatura (2017)
Flex Instrumentation for Large Ensemble 7' 00" Achieving Sprezzatura explores the tension between a carefully constructed external nonchalance and an internal, private reality.
Always a New Now (2012)
High-Med-Low Flex Instrumentation 6' 45" The title, Always A New Now, comes from Michael Colgrass’ book My Lessons With Kumi, in which Kumi extols the benefits of reacting like a dog: “To a dog, a misstep is gone the moment it happens, because the dog is already paying attention to the next moment. There is no ‘mistake’ because there is no past. And there’s no fear, because there’s no future. There is only now…and now…and now.” The flex instrumentation approach was a way of connecting to Kumi’s idea that “there is only now…and now…and now.” The trio might work with “this combination…or this combination…or this combination.” Another way to think about it is this idea which comes up in my life surprisingly often: There is not one right answer here.
Nature's Chopsticks (2011)
Flex Instrumentation 4' 45" A striking picture of a sandhill crane using its astoundingly long beak to eat a worm, along with its caption of “Nature’s Chopsticks” released a riot of musings about chicken-egg and life-imitating-art relationships. How odd to use chopsticks as a metaphor for this long beak! Surely Nature did not design the beak in the image of the chopsticks! If anything it would be the other way around. But what if we know far more about chopsticks (or art!) than sandhill crane beaks (or life!), so that we come by this kind of reverse metaphor honestly? Nature’s Chopsticks intermixes materials from “real” life (phone numbers, current quotations from newspapers and Facebook statuses) with indeterminate musical materials (high-as-possible pitches and clusters), and minimalist textures, pitches, and rhythms. It was written especially for the JFCA Composers Orchestra with its eclectic and changeable instrumentation. It is a piece that can be performed by a group as small as a dozen or so and as big as a large orchestra or band.
Percussion
Broken Tulip (2008)
Flute/Piccolo, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Bassoon, Contrafortre or Contrabassoon, Trombone, Percussion 7' 40" Broken Tulip was premiered on July 9, 2008 at Interlochen Arts Camp. Performers were: Jill Heyboer, flute; Daniel Silver, clarinet; Tim McAllister, alto saxophone; George Sakakeeny, bassoon; Hank Skolnick, contraforte; Mark Hetzler, trombone; and Kim Burja, percussion Broken Tulip takes inspiration from the notion that an idea or an object can remain static while the perception of that idea or object shifts radically around it. A real life example of this type of radical paradigm shift is the broken tulip, a rare, multi-colored tulip with irregular flame- or feather-like markings. A standard tulip, however, is solid-colored, a unitary blend of two overlaid pigments. Because a tulip is reproduced by planting its genetically identical offsets, a broken tulip was quite rare and appeared seemingly at random. This combination of mystery and rare beauty made the broken tulip aesthetically prized--and economically valuable. But it was discovered that a virus, carried from bulb to bulb by the peach potato aphid, irregularly suppressed the laid-on color of the tulip, allowing a portion of the base color to show through in that tell-tale flame or feathered pattern. These rare moments of beauty were suddenly seen as diseased and undesirable, and growers set about ridding their fields of the infected tulips. A violent paradigm shift occurred and the broken tulip was doomed. My piece does not tell the story of the rise and fall of the broken tulip—there is no tulip melody, no virus leitmotif. It borrows the energy and tension in the story of the broken tulip and explores the more general idea of radical paradigm shift. I’d like to point to another example of a potential paradigm shift right in our midst. Broken Tulip has an important part for the contraforte, played by Hank Skolnick. The contraforte is a modern, reworked version of the contrabassoon. It has a wider bore, is more agile, and more consistent throughout its expanded range. The rather limited paradigm of the contrabassoon as an occasional octave doubler of the bassoon in late romantic and 20th c. orchestra music may shift as the contraforte moves into chamber repertoire like Broken Tulip and its own solo repertoire.
Interface (1983)
Viola and Marimba 7' 30" The artist, played by the viola, undertakes to capture and intone a discernible version of the archetype, played by the marimba. As they come closer and closer together in their expressions, they join in a flash of insight and inspiration; they are linked in an uneasy dance. Their dance falters: the marimba begins a slow fall down its scale; the artist struggles to retain the inspiration. The archetype recedes more and more, the artist falls silent. Published by Honeyrock. It's the Soup That Animates the Noodle Three movements. The title is a phrase from Tampopo, the 1987 Japanese film that tells the story of a search for the perfect noodle. The first movement deals with a kind of "reverse heterophony," carving simpler lines and pedals from a more complex strand; the second movement uses layering techniques to build intensity and creates new lines from short quotations of different layers; the third movement alternates intense unisons based on additive rhythm and free, expressive, contrapuntal versions of the same pitch material. Duration 10 min. Published by Arsis Press.
Quintet: Terrible Title Trouble (2014)
Flute, Trombone, Violin, Cello, 4 Roto-toms 7' 25" Terrible Title Trouble is a celebratory pastiche, quoting tunes of Tchaikovsky* and referencing Renaissance style melodies, intermixed with more modern asymmetrical meters and melodic gestures. The unusual combination of instruments—flute, trombone, 4 roto-toms, violin, and cello—is also an aspect of this diversity and eclecticism. *Violin Concerto in D, Rococo Variations
Start Dancing (1999)
Viola and Roto-toms 9' 00" Start Dancing, for viola and roto-toms, was commissioned in 1999 by violist Joanne Swenson-Eldridge. Start Dancing celebrates the notion of moving beyond the study of something to the actually doing of that something; allowing all the study, contemplation and rehearsing to take us finally to something more than just study, contemplation and rehearsing. Published by HoneyRock.
Tangles in the Web (1997)
Mixed Percussion - 6 Players 7' 15" The title borrows from the oft-quoted line from Sir Walter Scott: "Oh what a tangled web we weave when we first practice to deceive." Material appears, connects, recedes, realigns and re-asserts in a complex web of relationships. It was written for percussionist Keith Aleo in 1997 for performance by his student ensembles. Published by Honeyrock.
Saxophone
Anchoring (2013)
Violin and Alto Saxphone 8' 40" Anchoring has four distinct sections, each solidly anchored in its own way. Yin-Yang alternates between two very distinct characters in a yin-yang fashion; Shadow is anchored by reflecting around a core interval in rhythmic unison; Melodia is anchored by pitch-centricity. Each section first establishes the anchor, then celebrates the fun and outlandish departures made possible by the secure anchor. Merge, the fourth, ending section, intermixes the differently anchored materials in a celebration of the coexistence of diverse anchoring possibilities. Anchoring was written for saxophonist Thomas Snydacker. He and violinist Autumn Chodorowski premiered it.
Broken Tulip (2008)
Flute/Piccolo, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Bassoon, Contrafortre or Contrabassoon, Trombone, Percussion 7' 40" Broken Tulip was premiered on July 9, 2008 at Interlochen Arts Camp. Performers were: Jill Heyboer, flute; Daniel Silver, clarinet; Tim McAllister, alto saxophone; George Sakakeeny, bassoon; Hank Skolnick, contraforte; Mark Hetzler, trombone; and Kim Burja, percussion Broken Tulip takes inspiration from the notion that an idea or an object can remain static while the perception of that idea or object shifts radically around it. A real life example of this type of radical paradigm shift is the broken tulip, a rare, multi-colored tulip with irregular flame- or feather-like markings. A standard tulip, however, is solid-colored, a unitary blend of two overlaid pigments. Because a tulip is reproduced by planting its genetically identical offsets, a broken tulip was quite rare and appeared seemingly at random. This combination of mystery and rare beauty made the broken tulip aesthetically prized--and economically valuable. But it was discovered that a virus, carried from bulb to bulb by the peach potato aphid, irregularly suppressed the laid-on color of the tulip, allowing a portion of the base color to show through in that tell-tale flame or feathered pattern. These rare moments of beauty were suddenly seen as diseased and undesirable, and growers set about ridding their fields of the infected tulips. A violent paradigm shift occurred and the broken tulip was doomed. My piece does not tell the story of the rise and fall of the broken tulip—there is no tulip melody, no virus leitmotif. It borrows the energy and tension in the story of the broken tulip and explores the more general idea of radical paradigm shift. I’d like to point to another example of a potential paradigm shift right in our midst. Broken Tulip has an important part for the contraforte, played by Hank Skolnick. The contraforte is a modern, reworked version of the contrabassoon. It has a wider bore, is more agile, and more consistent throughout its expanded range. The rather limited paradigm of the contrabassoon as an occasional octave doubler of the bassoon in late romantic and 20th c. orchestra music may shift as the contraforte moves into chamber repertoire like Broken Tulip and its own solo repertoire.
Cascade (2011)
Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Trombone 7' 15" I like the way cascade is used in electronics—a series of networks, each having an output that serves as the input for the next. This image gets at the deep connectedness between distinct sections that I was striving for in Cascade. But the several long, descending gestures in Cascade draw on another sense of cascade—a series of waterfalls over steep rocks.
Disclosure (2003)
Violin, Alto Saxophone, Bassoon 8' 00" “In the interest of full disclosure” is associated with legal, political, and commercial situations, but has made its way into interpersonal situations as well. Is full disclosure possible on a personal level? The act of disclosing inevitably changes what is disclosed, reveals new connections and implications, is nuanced by the one to whom the disclosure is made, and the context of the disclosure. Consider the onion metaphor, in which each layer that is peeled off reveals another layer closer to the core. Add the further complexity that our act of peeling might alter the next layer, revealing it to be, in fact, an artichoke, the next a radish. This morphing onion metaphor begins to get at my sense of the non-static nature of personal disclosure, and it is that sense which infused the writing of this piece. Published by JOMAR Press. Disclosure was premiered in July 2004 at Interlochen Arts Camp by Barbara Sturgis-Everett, violin, Timothy McAllister, alto saxophone, and Eric Stomberg, bassoon.
Gnashing of Teeth (2019)
Alto Sax and Bass Trombone 10' 00" Gnashing of Teeth marshals instrumental sounds, singing, shouting, and speaking to capture different aspects of extreme anger and frustration; building towards outrage and letting it dissipate, then building again in a new way and perhaps over yet another irritant. All of the texts are borrowed from fabulous Facebook 'rants' by the saxophonist Lois Wozniak. She and her husband Matt commissioned this piece and premiered it at the 2020 Biennial Conference of the North American Saxophone Alliance just before the pandemic closed out nearly all live performances.
Hanging onto the Vine (2012)
Saxophone Quartet 10' 00" Hanging Onto the Vine, for saxophone quartet, was commissioned by Kelland Thomas and was composed in 2000. It was premiered by the Indiana University Student Saxophone Quartet in 2001. The title draws on several obliquely related images of vines and hanging: images in the Book of John of branches abiding in the vine and bearing fruit, the psychological state of "hanging by a thread," and Tarzan swinging from a vine. Published by JOMAR Press.
Music: A Love Story (2011)
Violin, Alto Saxophone, Piano 7' 00" Many books and movies share the title format of Music: A Love Story—Capitalism: A Love Story, War: A Love Story, Drinking: A Love Story, etc--and each one expresses more than a little irony about its primary topic. This musical love story includes a “lamenting” section, made of traditional phrases and clear cadences, that reappears with great determination; a couple of duets, full of longing; sections of intense counterpoint; and even what I consider to be a creepy lullaby. There is love, there is irony, there is music.
The Old Songs (2012)
Scena for Soprano, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Contrabass 10'00" Coming Soon
They Were Mysterious Guests, Hard to Capture (1996)
Alto Saxophone and Piano 11' 00" This three-movement work for alto sax and piano will work well as a recital piece, with demanding parts for both players. The movement titles are: I. They were mysterious guests, hard to capture II. If enough hosts weep, the all-night dance ceremony is considered a success III. Recollection "They were mysterious guests, hard to capture" is a sentence from When Elephants Weep by Jeffrey Masson. The phrase refers to the unbidden nature of emotions. It served both as a starting point for the piece and as the basic watchword which focused the musical development of the first movement. The "all night dance ceremony" is described in Judith Becker's 1986 article "Is Western Art Music Superior?" She describes a ceremonial song performed by talented guests which takes "the hosts on a nostalgic journey intended to touch upon the pain of remembrance and the memory of loss." There is both grief and resolution in this movement. In the third movement, Recollection, direct and distant quotations and reminiscences recall temperaments from the earlier movements. Published by Frank E. Warren Music Service.
Viola
Accord (2017)
Oboe, Viola, Piano 5' 30" Reaching an accord can be a desirable outcome where differences and disagreements prevent productive or positive results--in personal and work relationships, in labor-management negotiations, within and between organizations, and amongst nations. It is challenging to understand and then accommodate an array of positions and identities and then to weave them together in a way that maximizes coherence without minimizing the value of all the elements.
Interface (1983)
Viola and Marimba 7' 30" The artist, played by the viola, undertakes to capture and intone a discernible version of the archetype, played by the marimba. As they come closer and closer together in their expressions, they join in a flash of insight and inspiration; they are linked in an uneasy dance. Their dance falters: the marimba begins a slow fall down its scale; the artist struggles to retain the inspiration. The archetype recedes more and more, the artist falls silent. Published by Honeyrock. It's the Soup That Animates the Noodle Three movements. The title is a phrase from Tampopo, the 1987 Japanese film that tells the story of a search for the perfect noodle. The first movement deals with a kind of "reverse heterophony," carving simpler lines and pedals from a more complex strand; the second movement uses layering techniques to build intensity and creates new lines from short quotations of different layers; the third movement alternates intense unisons based on additive rhythm and free, expressive, contrapuntal versions of the same pitch material. Duration 10 min. Published by Arsis Press.
Nudged Along Time's Notched Stick (1997)
Guitar, Flute, Viola 9' 30" - 3 Movements The saying "nudged along on time's notched stick" sets up a notched stick as a metaphor for our experience of time. I imagine the smooth parts of the stick to be those periods of our lives which are somewhat static, schedules are in place, and things are predictable; the notches in the stick are the events which force us out of our routine and change the patterns of our lives. This composition is in three short movements, each of which nudges us along the notched stick in different ways. I wrote Nudged for violist Chris Rutledge. Published by JOMAR Press.
Start Dancing (1999)
Viola and Roto-toms 9' 00" Start Dancing, for viola and roto-toms, was commissioned in 1999 by violist Joanne Swenson-Eldridge. Start Dancing celebrates the notion of moving beyond the study of something to the actually doing of that something; allowing all the study, contemplation and rehearsing to take us finally to something more than just study, contemplation and rehearsing. Published by HoneyRock.
Two for Three (1994)
Soprano, Flute, Viola 8' 00" Texts by Peg Lauber In "For a few minutes, lie in the sun," an expression of serenity is followed by more venomous emotions, which are then followed by a return to serenity. This structure puts musical parentheses around anger and bitterness, encapsulated by the text "let bitterness lapse momentarily." This directness and sincerity of expression is contrasted with a wittier, more urbane and self-conscious presentation in "Contemplate cliché angels." The words of the song celebrate themselves--they are about words--but they occasionally bump into seemingly unavoidable clichés. Sections of music with a manic, humorous character, complete with intentionally silly word painting, alternate with clearly derivative jazz. Texts by Peg Lauber. Published by Arsis Press. Advanced college and beyond.
What's for Supper? (1995)
Soprano, Piano, Viola (optional) 14' 00" Texts by Peg Lauber These four songs were written to perform for grade school age children to teach them about and interest them in contemporary art music. They have also been remarkably successful in a traditional recital setting--adults are very appreciative of the music-text relationships and other references to the art music tradition. The second song, What's for Supper?, enlists the pianist and violist as both speakers and singers. The viola part is cued in the piano part so performance without a violist is possible. The texts were commissioned from Peg Lauber. Published by Arsis Press. Advanced College and beyond.
Young Performers
Absorb (2015)
Youth Band 6' 15" I’m interested in the way things that are initially distinct and quite different can become part of the same thing. We hear about how immigrants are absorbed into a culture and, in so doing, change the culture. If we are absorbed in a wonderful book or an activity, it’s almost as if we have been taken over by or entered into the book or activity. In Absorb, there are two distinct elements: a G major triad (GBD) and a 3-note chord built in 4ths (Ab Db Gb). They initially are very distinct (no notes in common, separated in space by register, shortness of duration, different instrumental colors). Then the absorption begins—the two chords touch in time (full quarter notes), then they overlap. But there are other absorption paths as well, for instance, scale passages form from all the available notes and elongate, so that the two entities are no longer distinct. The more melodic sections are where the real absorption is accomplished, because the melodies and their accompaniments utilize all the pitch resources and let go of register and tone color differences. Essentially, a new ‘culture’ is created.
Build a World (2000)
SSA and Piano 4' 00" Peg Lauber, a Wisconsin poet, wrote the text for Build A World specifically for Zae Munn to set for the Madison Children's Choir. Each of three visions of a better world is followed by a rejection of something negative in our current world. The two musical characters in Build A World closely follow this alternation of text ideas. However, the music dwells on and develops some special words and phrases such as "overflows," like a spring," and "where freedom shines." The piano both supports the singers and provides subtle changes in character for each verse. Commissioned by the Madison Children's Choir (Wisconsin), Heather Thorpe, Director. Premiered by them on May 14, 2000. Advanced children; High school. "We want to build a world where peace comes down like rain and snow, so...don't give us a world of hunger and cold." Published by Yelton Rhodes Music.
The Canvas (1998)
Treble Choir and Orchestra 11' 00" Text by Peg Lauber Text and music suitable for both children's and women's choirs with mostly unison and two-part writing; pitch material well-supported in the instrumental parts; orchestral writing appropriate for college and community orchestras, with an emphasis on relatively simple parts for strings and more challenging parts for winds; pairs of winds plus piccolo, 3 tps, 3 hns, 2 tbns, 1 tuba, timpani, 1 percussion, strings. Text quote: "I loosen the canvas when the wind has dried it and the sun passed through it to become the unbelievable light that touches each living thing." Commissioned by Cynthia Bradford, conductor of the Southlake Children's Choir and Dennis Friesen-Carper, conductor of the Valparaiso University Symphony Orchestra. Published by Yelton Rhodes Music. High school; College; Adult women.
Come with Me (1995)
SA and Piano 4' 45" This piece plays with the idea of encouragement and resistance, for instance: "Come on! Let's skate upon a cloud." "Not on a cloud, I'm not allowed." There are passages using asymmetrical meters, clapping, and foot stomping, as well as optional maracas and rhythm sticks. The text is by Peg Lauber. Commissioned by the Southlake Children's Choir in Crown Point, Indiana, Cynthia Bradford, conductor; premiered by them at the 1996 Indiana Music Educators' Conference in Indianapolis. Advanced children; High school.
Lyrical Limericks (2010)
SSA 8' 00" Lyrical Limericks is a musical setting of eight limericks written especially for this project, each intended to capture an aspect of the lives of the young women who would be singing it. Some are whimsical (piercing, vampires, Harry Potter) while others address weightier topics (dating and marriage, athletics, and feminism). A recurring section ("Once upon a time...") begins and ends the piece and also groups the limericks into three sections. The lyricists are Peg Lauber, Marilyn L. Taylor, Paul Munn, and Zae Munn. Lyrical Limericks is the result of a consortium commission headed by conductor Robert Geary.
Skit (1988/rev. 2011)
String Orchestra with optional Winds, Brass, Timpani 2' 20" Grade 2.5 This is a short piece with introductory level mixed meter passages for a string ensemble core, with optional bass, flutes, oboe, clarinets, horn, trumpets, trombone, and timpani. It has been performed by grade school and high school strings and small orchestra groups.
Time to Face the Music (2007)
Youth Orchestra 6' 00" This new work for younger players uses a variety of eclectic materials in a user-friendly, introductory way: minimalism, asymmetric and traditional meters, and tonal, quartal and modal pitch material. All the orchestra sections and many individual players are highlighted. It is appropriate for high school players and beyond. The title is a playful use of the old expression “It’s time to face the music,” meaning that it’s time to face up to what you have done. This is something musicians always do when they perform music, and it is literally what they do each time they sit down facing a music stand. The two possible sources for the expression each add their own musical flavor o the saying. One story is that a soldier being forced out of the army would be put backwards on a horse and led away, facing the military band. The other story refers to new actors, shaking in fear at the prospect of an audience, were told to go out and face the music. It was quite literal because the musicians were seated at the front of the stage or in the pit, between the actor and the audience. Time to Face the Music was written for conductor Paul Salerni and the Intermediate Concert Orchestra at Interlochen Arts Camp. They premiered it on August 4, 2007. Has been performed by youth orchestra and adult community groups.