Instrumental & Electronic

Blue lets the brass play on the beach in smoky sunset, listening to the boats tossed by ebb and flow at the dock. Lush harmonies and rhythmic interplay depicting the water scene present this color in sound.

Tango for string quartet imagines a dance near a street corner in Buenos Aires, two partners stepping in opposing flowing triplet rhythms versus duple syncopation, accompanied by bandoneón. The members of the string quartet trade off roles in the dance and the accompaniment through to two solo sections and a heated reprise. 

  

◆ Energy Event Winner

 
Rusty Ladder to the Sun for marimba duo considers the beauty of the natural world imperiled by pollution.

The composition of At Sea began with an old vocal setting of mine
of John Masefield's Sea-Fever: "I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky / And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by..." Using the poem and song as a guide, the piece for orchestra traveled further to an imagined orchestral island, a moment of calm before the piece roars to a climactic finish.   

▶ Listen to an excerpt of At Sea

The tuba solo portrays the eponymous lighthouse amidst a sea of fog, soon assailed by a percussion tempest. Despite gales, the lighthouse must persevere and shine a way for vessels on the open sea to reach a safe harbor. 

◆ Longy Orchestral Competition Winner

Borges Symphony reimagines the work of Argentine author, Jorge Luis Borges, through the orchestra. Beginning with a visit to the infamous Library of Babel, rising through the pampas with Argentine gauchos, dancing a thrilling tango, and finishing with a movement inspired by Borgesian ideas of time. Featuring book percussion, a stratospheric violin solo, and tearing paper, this work sings of Buenos Aires, magic realism, and fantasy.

Inspired by the fairies of Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream, this piece for flute choir is a mischievous and frenetic frolic through a magical wood, racing to beat the dawn.  

◆ Longy Honors Competition Finalist

Countermark (the imprints of a double stamped coin) explores a duality of moods, diverse timbres competing for overlapping space.  

▶ Listen on an excerpt from Countermark

◆ Electrogals Festival Selection

A sound art piece for electronics constructed with musique concrète techniques. Queen of Spades showcases inherent percussive rhythms and timbral range within the sonic capabilities of a deck of playing cards. 

▶ Listen to an excerpt from Queen of Spades

L'assenza (Italian: the absence) is a piece for mixed ensemble exploring the depths of an absence with limited pitch set minimalism, highlighting the poignant gaps left by the absence of a loved one. 

▶ Listen to an excerpt from L'assenza

◆ Vento Chiaro Composition Competition Winner

Sailing ekphrastically depicts a woodwind quintet boat's journey from calm melodic waters to a storm of extended techniques and back again. 

◆ String Generations Award Winner

Rinceoir is a rousing Celtic-inspired dance comprised of four violin parts, enabling young players of various levels to all play together.