Program Notes

 

Reveal (2013)

Reveal was commissioned by the Los Angeles Based ensemble and modern music collective wild Up as part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Brooklyn Festival. The piece flucates between atmospheric textures and very rhythmic based textures. The main motive and rhythmic base can first be heard in the double bass and is slowly transformed and modulated throughout the piece.

 

How About Now (2007)

I wrote How About Now for the wonderful NOW Ensemble as a challenge to myself on how to write ultimately idiomatic music for each individual instrument as well as for the ensemble as an organism. I wanted the piece to feel like it comes from their preexisting pantry of musical devices “a sort of thrown-together meal with close friends: a can of chick peas here, this mysterious dried mushroom, that jar of cocktail onions, and somehow, dinner happens. Structurally and harmonically, the piece is a comfortable, communal one, and lasts seven minutes.                                                                                  – Note by the composer

 

Spes Novus (2015)

As a composer, one of my goals is to give back to the world as much as I can. That is what I believe our purpose is, to share our gift with others. A few years ago, something immense happened that changed the lives of many in my community. On May 22nd, 2011. an EF5 Tornado swept through the town of Joplin, Missouri and claimed the lives of over 100 people and caused miles of damage. The city of completely wounded and it looked as though recovery was unlikely. However, the disaster did not stop the community. People from across the world got together to rebuild Joplin and that is what this composition represents. The piece reflects the emotions that came out of the disaster, fromm the feelings of sadness and despair after the storm to the hope and courage felt during the revival of Joplin. “Hope for Joplin” became the symbol of the recovery process. The title of this work is Spes Novus and means “New Hope” in Latin. I dedicate the piece to the families who lost thier loved ones on that tragic day.                                              – Note by the composer

 

To Hipparchus (2014)

Hipparchus is considered to be the father of trigonometry and was one of the first mathematicians to standardize the use of the sine function. Both the flute and vibraphone technique of creating vibrato could be graphed as a sine wave.

The idea of two very dissimilar instruments with many capabilities in common is the unifying feature of this piece. In addition to vibrato, the pitch bend possibilites on both flute and vibes are explored, drawing more links between the two.

The material used in the flute is derived from [015] set, and the vibraphone part comes from a [0146] set. In some sections of the duet, the two sets are joined into a [01456] pentachord.                                                                                                                 – Note by the composer

 

Assembly Lines (2011)

Assembly Lines was commissioned by the Detour New Music Ensemble. The work can be optionally accompanied by live video projections of factory footage from the Prelinger Archives. After a brief, yet clangorous fanfare, a solo bassoon unveils the work’s “conveyor belt” theme. Not unlike Ford’s automobile assembly line, the ensemble appends this tune with a series of interchangeable motifs, which hammer and thrash the musical texture in an intricate web of syncopation and orchestral color. The Model T is born.