SOLO/CHAMBER
SOLO
vertigo for solo
violin (2009) 4'45"
Three Pieces
for Carillon
(2006-7) 8'
A Play of
Intentions for solo harp
(2003) 4'
Three Sketches for solo piano (2003) 4'30"
DUO
TAG for 2 violins and
electronic drone (2010) 3'
restrictions
apply, see details for violin and clarinet
(2007) 1'30"
Metamorphosis for solo violin and piano, arr. (2001-7) 19'
Six Sketches for violin and piano (2003) 10'
Interference for violin and piano (1997-2000) 10'
TRIO
binalig for percussion trio (2011) 5'
Dirge (for the victims of veiled tyranny) for vn, pno and kulintang (2006-7) 7'
Kulintang Suite for violin, piano and piano assistant
(2005-6) 18'
Elegy
for violin, piano, and percussion (2000) 6'
QUARTET
dopamine for string
quartet (2007) 13'
Short Quartet for string quartet (2005) 1'45"
Tidtu for
saxophone quartet (2004-5) 8'
Metamorphosis II for string quartet (2002) 23'
QUINTET+
Makassar Strait for quintet [bcl,vibes,pf,vn,vc] (2008) 10'
Roaring Fork for sextet [bcl,hn,perc,hp,vc,cb] (2009) 5'30"
In memory
of Allen Strange
for sextet [bcl,vibes,pf,vn,vla,vc] (2008) 8'
Overture for Strings for Hutchins East [vns: T,S,M,A,T,B,Sb,Cb] or string octet [4vn,vla,vc,2cb] (2012) 6'
In memory
of Allen Strange
for sextet [bcl,vibes,pf,vn,vla,vc] (2008) 8'
Raised by Wolves for octet [fl, b.cl, tpt, timp, perc, pf,
vn, vc] (1998-2002) 15'
ORCHESTRAL/BAND
Metamorphosis arr. for
solo violin, string orchestra and piano (2001-8) 20'
Liberation for orchestra (2008) 6'30
Organum-Tambura for Large Wind Ensemble (2007) 23'
after Escher for orchestra (2006) 8'
Regeneration for orchestra (2003) 9'
Metamorphosis for solo violin
and orchestra (2001) 20'
Sechs Kleine
Klavierstücke, Op.19
[Schoenberg/Myers] arr. for orchestra (1998) 5'30"
VOCAL
Sleep fall on us... for soprano, baritone and piano trio
(2009-10) 5'40"
The Age of
Assassins for tenor, horn
and piano (2008) 15'
Rosamounde for viola and treble voice (2008) 6'
The Hunger Art a tragicomic opera in one act (2008) 22'
Baudelaire Songs for soprano and piano with assistant (2005)
17'
Zamrazane Slowa for SATB chorus and piano (2002) 6'
Buzz, a sound installation for amplified electric machines (2005) 5+ days
Gestations for CD playback (2001) 4'13"
Five Parametric Etudes for Disklavier (1996-8) 9'30"
CLICK ON
TITLES for more info
SCROLL DOWN for notes, scores and audio samples
PERUSAL
SCORES AVAILABLE UPON >>>REQUEST
Selected works:
SOLO:
vertigo for solo violin (2009) 4'45"
Three Pieces for Carillon (2006-7) 8'
Three Pieces for Carillon was written for Richard Giszczak, a carilloner and chemistry professor at the University of Michigan. The first movement "Kulintang," evokes Filipino kulintang gongs (see my other kulintang pieces), the second movement "Hymn to Claude Vivier," uses melodic devices inspired by Vivier, and the last movement "Resonant Bodies" creates a stream of continuously modulating, whirling sound. Download a score excerpt here.
A Play of Intentions for solo harp (2003) 4'
A Play of Intentions (premiere recording)
Three Sketches for solo piano (2003) 4'30"
The Three Sketches develop two basic pianistic gestures, the chord and the arpeggiation. The first sketch takes the phrase and fixed-pitch stucture of Filipino kulintang music and superimposes it onto a chromatically shifting chordal accompaniment. The overtone series figures prominantly in the last two sketches as a harmonic device. The Three Sketches were premiered by Ming-Hsiu Yen at the University of Michigan in October of 2003.
Three Sketches (premiere performance)
I. Del Kulintang
II. Toccata
III. Hommage à Rameau
DUO:
TAG for 2 violins and electronic drone (2010) 3'
restrictions apply, see details for violin and clarinet (2007) 1'30"
restrictions apply, see details was written for the New York Miniaturist Ensemble. It uses scordatura harmonics on the violin part so that all microtonal notes are precise and consistent. The clarinet has some microtonal multiphonics as well. It was premiered at the Stone in NYC on October 12, 2007 by Erik Carlson (vn) and Joshua Rubin (cl).
Six Sketches for violin and piano (2003) 10'
Six Sketches
I.
II. Quasi recitativo
III.
IV. Quasi notturno (excerpt)
V.
VI. Non rubato (excerpt) Six Sketches is now available in mp3 format at most online music retailers!
Metamorphosis for solo violin and piano, arr. (2001) 19
Metamorphosis (premiere performance by Yuki Numata and Ming-Hsiu Yen, 2006)Interference for violin and piano (1997-2000) 10
Interference is a two-movement violin and piano duo with contrasting rhythmic and lyrical sections. It was premiered by violinist Amy Watson and pianist Marja Mutru at San José State University in May of 1999. (premiere performance)
I. Prelude
II. Interference (excerpt)
TRIO:
binalig for percussion trio (2011) 5'
binalig was written for Timetable Percussion in 2011. It is scored for small gongs (or any similar graduated percussion with a definite pitch), any kind of drum, and drum set with an agung, or any large gong. The variable instrumentation allows the players to color the piece the way that they like, or to play the instrument that they would prefer to play. The ensemble vaguely resembles a Filipino kulintang ensemble, which usually features a soloistic gong set, a continuous drum beat, and a set of large gongs which play a bass pattern. The form of the piece is also similar to kulintang music, in that it uses short cyclical melodic motives. In my piece, these patterns develop and morph in different directions than conventional kulintang pieces, but nonetheless, the ethos of kulintang pervades the music throughout. In the kulintang repertoire, the "binalig" genre represents a modern or progressive approach to the performance and compositon of kulintang music.Kulintang Suite for violin, piano and piano assistant (2005-6) 18'binalig - premiere performance by Timetable Percussion (2011)
The Kulintang Suite, for violin, piano and assistant is a set of pieces based on and inspired by kulintang gong melodies. All but the first melody are based on real kulintang pieces. Many of the original melodies are distorted, contracted and re-pitched for expressive reasons. In movements 2, 4 and 6, the assistant mutes and or stops the piano strings, turning the piano into a gong-like percussion instrument.The Kulintang Suite was premiered by violinist Yuki Numata, with composer Ming-Hsiu Yen on piano along with myself as the assistant at Ms.Numata's Master's Degree Recital at the University of Michigan in March of 2006.Dirge (for the victims of veiled tyranny) for violin, piano and kulintang (or 8 similarly tuned nipple gongs) (2006-7) 7'Kulintang Suite (premiere performance, first movement)
I. Prelude
II. Kapagonor
III. Sinulog a binalig
IV. Tagunggo (healing ritual)
V. Sinulog
VI. Duyug a binaligKulintang Suite is now available in mp3 format at most online music retailers!
Dirge (for the victims of veiled tyranny) was written for violinist Yuki Numata, pianist Ming-Hsiu Yen and myself on the kulintang gongs. This piece is dedicated to all of the victims of veiled tyranny (i.e. institutions or programs which appear benevolent, but are mainly interested in power and control). This piece was written with three instrumental characters in mind: the violin acts as a narrator, the piano represents the fixity of reactionary dogma, and the kulintang (indigenous Filipino instrument/repertoire) represents the fight for change. The relationship between these layers creates a tension which gives rise to explosions, interruptions and convergences. Download a score excerpt here. Dirge (excerpt) (Yuki Numata, vn; Ming-Hsiu Yen, pf; Jeff Myers, kulintang - Symphony Space, 2007)Elegy for violin, piano, and percussion (2000) 6'
Elegy (Michael Jorgensen, vn; Winnee Cheung, pf; Sean Connors, perc. - Eastman School of Music, October of 2001)
QUARTET:
dopamine for string quartet (2007) 13'
dopamine was written for the JACK Quartet. It uses scordatura harmonics on the all the instruments to obtain precise microtonal notes and chords. The title refers to a hormone and neurotransmitter which occurs in humans and some mammals. Dopamine is typically associated with the pleasure system; people with higher dopamine levels tend to seek out more pleasurable activities and vice versa. Dopamine is also associated with creativity and the generation of new ideas. I used dopamine as a metaphor for this string quartet because it was written within a short span of a few days in an unprecedented creative fervor. My motivation came from both the creative experience and from the music itself, which gave me great pleasure to listen to. Perhaps my own level of dopamine was very high as I wrote this music. I suppose I will never know. Here is a sample of the score to download.Short Quartet for string quartet (2005) 1'45"dopamine (premiere performance at University of Huddersfield (UK))
Tidtu for saxophone quartet (2004-5) 8'Short Quartet was written especially for the St.Petersburg Quartet while they were in residence at the University of Michigan.
Tidtu [TEED-too] is a style of Philippine kulintang music, a genre which is played by an ensemble of gongs and a drum. My piece takes a tidtu melody and gradually transforms it into a swirling harmonic texture. Tidtu was commissioned by the PRISM Quartet and premiered in New York City at Symphony Space in May of 2005.Tidtu (PRISM Quartet; Philadelphia performance, 2005)
Metamorphosis II for string quartet (2002) 23'
Metamorphosis II (premiere performance)
excerpt near the end
QUINTET+:
Makassar Strait for quintet [bcl,vibes,pf,vn,vc] (2008) 10'
Makassar Strait (ensemble s21, International Conference on Contemporary Music, A Coruña University, Spain)
I. Kulintang I (Doppler-Morphing) - full clip
II. Kulintang II (Rhythm-Sculpture) - excerpt
III. of Java (Interlude) - excerpt
IV. Kulintang III (Escher-Counterpoint) - excerpt
Roaring Fork for sextet [bcl,hn,perc,hp,vc,cb] (2009) 5'30"
Roaring Fork - excerpted premiere, recorded live in Lincoln Theatre, Miami Beach (1.30.09)
In memory of Allen Strange for sextet [bcl,vibes,pf,vn,vla,vc] (2008) 8'
Overture for Strings for Hutchins East [vns: T,S,M,A,T,B,Sb,Cb] or string octet [4vn,vla,vc,2cb] (2012) 6'In memory of Allen Strange - Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, Syd Hodkinson, cond., feat. Lisa Raschiatore, bass cl.; premiere, recorded live in Harris Hall, Aspen (7.11.08)
First Movement
Second Movement
Overture for Strings was written for my good friends in Hutchins Consort East. This piece continues to explore issues of microtonality. The strings in this ensemble are capable of playing quite loud, so I wanted to use this property to bring out the beating and "strained" sounds which are achieved when similar instruments play microtonal chords. The color-melodies are largely inspired by the music of late Canadian composer Claude Vivier, which was himself inspired by Gamelan music. Click here for more about Hutchins Consort, a new family of instruments based upon the proportions of the violin.
Raised by Wolves for octet [fl, b.cl, tpt, timp, perc, pf, vn, vc] (1998-2002) 15'
Raised by Wolves (premiere recording)
excerpt of introduction
excerpt of ending
Orchestral/Band:
Metamorphosis arr. for
solo violin, string orchestra and piano (2001-8) 20'
This arrangement of Metamorphosis was premiered at Le Poisson Rouge (NYC) in 2008 by violinist Yuki Numata and the Wordless Music Orchestra under conductor Ryan McAdams.
Liberation for
orchestra (2008) 6'30
[2222/4231/timp/str]
Liberation was written for the Ann Arbor Symphony at the request of its conductor Arie Lipsky. This piece is a musical interpretation of M.C. Escher's lithograph Liberation, in which geometric shapes morph into birds. In my musical version, pulsating chords morph into bird song. For more on Escher, visit www.mcescher.com. For a link to the Liberation lithograph click here.Organum-Tambura for Large Wind Ensemble (2007) 23'Liberation (excerpt)
Liberation
[3picc,3fl,2ob,eng,clts:Eb,3Bb,bass,cbcl;2bsn,cbsn;4sax:SATB/6hn,4tpt(+2picc),3trb,btrb;tba/timp;4perc(+CD playback)]
Organum-Tambura was written for the University of Michigan Symphonic Band. This piece is all about blurring the distictions between color, harmony and melody. Both organum (the practice of singing a parallel melody an interval above or below another given melody) and the tambura (Indian drone instrument) are evoked in this piece because these musical topics resonate with the idea that harmony, color and melody are on a continuum. The use of propulsive rhythms and overtone chords was in some ways influenced by many listenings of Georg Friedrich Haas's orchestra work natures mortes. Download a score excerpt here. I provide the first three pages of each movement.Organum-Tambura (premiere performance; Rodney Dorsey; Univ. of Michigan Symphonic Band)
I. Organum
II. Tambura
III. "Mixture"
after
Escher for
orchestra (2006) 8'
[2(+picc)222(+cbsn)/322/5timp,perc,hp/str]
after Escher for orchestra was written for Festival Acanthes and premiered by Jacques Mercier with the Orchestre National de Lorraine in 2006. The music is made of melodies and textures which, in different ways, do something illusive in the spirit of M.C.Escher. There are melodies which interlock in grid-like fashion, melodies which become stretched, chord progressions which keep ascending without getting higher, and colors which fade in and out. Some of these gradual changes span a few bars and other span the whole piece (such as the gradual introduction of more and more dissonance).Regeneration for orchestra (2003) 9'
[3(+picc)333/4331/timp,3perc/str]
Regeneration is a four movement orchestral work which contrasts stark action with meditative, sensuous orchestral textures. The last movement quotes fragments of the first three movements; these fragments regenerate and then transform into the violent music from the beginning of the last movement. Regeneration was commissioned by the New York Youth Symphony and premiered under Paul Haas at Carnegie Hall in May of 2004.Metamorphosis for solo violin and orchestra (2001) 19'
Read the full program notes...Regeneration (premiere performance)
I. Violent!
II. Calm
III. Ecstatic! (attacca)
IV. Violent!-Calm-Ecstatic!-Regeneration
[2(+picc/alt),2(+eng),2(+Eb,bass),2(+cbsn),alto sax/4231/timp,4perc,kbd(cel/hpsd),pno,hp/str]
Metamorphosis is a dramatic violin concerto which juxtaposes and recombines three contrasting sound-worlds which synthesize and transform themselves throughout the musical narrative. Metamorphosis was premiered by violinist Yuki Numata under conductor David Gilbert with the Eastman Philharmonia at Eastman Theatre in May of 2002.Sechs Kleine Klavierstücke, Op.19 arr. [Schoenberg/Myers] for orchestra (1998) 5'30"Metamorphosis (complete 18' premiere performance)
first excerpt
second excerpt
third excerpt
[3(+picc)222/3231/4timp,3perc,cel,hp/str]
This orchestration of Arnold Schoenberg's Sechs Kleine Klavierstucke (Six Little Piano Pieces) was made for the San José State University Symphony. They performed it under Jun Nakabayashi on May of 1999. The score and parts are available from Belmont Music Publishers [click here to rent the music from Belmont].Sechs Kleine Klavierstucke (premiere performance of this version)
I. Leicht, zart
II. Langsam
III. Sehr langsam
IV. Rasch, aber leicht
V. Etwas rasch
VI. Sehr langsam
Sleep fall on us...
for soprano, baritone and
piano trio (2009-10) 5'40"
(also available in both solo piano and string quartet accompaniments)
Sleep fall on us... (aka Evening Beauty/Evening Furnace) - premiered by The Coterie at Joe's Pub (2009)
Morgan James (MAREN)- soprano
Christopher Burchett (SATAN)- baritone
Yuki Numata, violin
Kevin McFarland, 'cello
Steven Malone - piano
The Age of Assassins for tenor, horn and piano (2008) 18'
The Age of Assassins was written for hornist Laura Klock and commissioned in part by the International Horn Society's Meir Rimon Fund. Each of the five songs is set to a poem by Arthur Rimbaud: I. Chanson de la plus haute tour, II. Veillées (III), III. L'Éternité, IV. Matineé d'Ivresse, V. Sensation-Mémoire. The title of the piece comes from Matineé d'Ivresse and refers to the Arabic hashshashin. The second song makes use of natural horn overtones to convey a sense of imbalance and drunkeness.
The Age of Assassins - premiered in Amherst, MA by William Hite, tenor; Laura Klock, hn.; Gregory Hayes, pno (2009)
I. Chanson de la plus haute tour
II. Veillées (excerpt)
III. L'Éternité (excerpt)
IV. Matineé d'Ivresse
V. Sensation-Mémoire (excerpt)
Rosamounde for viola and treble voice (2008) 6'
Rosamounde was written for Kirsten Swanson and Heather Davis, colleagues of mine from Eastman. The text comes from Geoffrey Chaucer's poem "Rosamounde". The work is sung in Middle English.
The Hunger Art a tragicomic opera in one act (2008) 22'
The Hunger Art was developed and written as part of the American Lyric Theater's Composer/Librettist Development Program under the guidance of director Lawrence Edelson and composer/librettist Mark Adamo. The Biblical story of Adam and Eve was used as a given abstract template for the narrative of the opera. The librettist then took this template and fused it with material from Franz Kafka's "A Fasting Artist." Further changes were made for dramatic and musical purposes (i.e. the addition of the chorus of butchers.) The opera once workshopped at Symphony Space on January 7, 2008 with the following cast:ALFONS - Thomas Wazelle; IVONA - Amanda Pabyan; BRONISLAV - Bryce Smith; JAN - Edwin Vega; MILOS - David Korn; Piano - Keith Chambers
Scene I, Alfon's aria
Scene III, pt.1
Scene III, pt.2
Scene III, pt.3
Scene III, finale
Below is a video excerpt from SF Cabaret Opera's 2010 production.
Justin Marsh sings the role of Alfons, accompanied by Hadley McCarroll on piano.
Meghan Dibble directs and performs the role of Jan along with Eliza O'Malley (Ivona), Joshua Beld (Bronislav)
and Sophia Santulli (Milos).
Baudelaire Songs for soprano and piano with assistant (2005) 17'
I. À celle qui est trop gaieZamrazane Slowa for SATB chorus and piano (2002) 6'
II. Obsession
III. La Beauté (Suzanne Klock, sopr.; Ming-Hsiu-Yen, pno; Jeff Myers, asst.; University of Illinois, 2006)
Zamrazane Slowa (premiere recording, excerpt)
Buzz a sound installation for amplified electric machines (2005) 5+ days
Buzz is a sound installation which presents the common ambience of buzzing appliances as a concert/art event. Various "instruments" such as refrigerators, dehumidifiers, and electric typewriters are plugged in and run with amplification for about six hours a day. They sit spotlighted on a stage and are presented before the audience (anyone who happens to drop by) who may sit in the dark on chairs or benches and read the program while sucking on a Halls® (to prevent noisy coughing). Visit the Buzz page for program notes, photos and sounds...
Gestations for CD playback (2001) 4'13"
Gestations abstracts the essence of speech and creates a colorful, textured narrative. It begins with an electronically stretched-out scream, followed by a layering of spoken dialogue (using readings from a computer program manual), and ends with a static harmony that fluctuates with the quality of human speech. Gestations was written in 2001 using the programs Cecilia and Ceres3.Five Parametric Etudes for Disklavier (1996-8)
The Five Parametric Etudes were written and conceived for the Disklavier, a computer-driven player-piano. Each etude takes advantage of the possibilities inherent in a piano which has the ability to play music which would be impossible for human pianists to master. Disklavier music can be loaded onto a floppy disk and played back live to hear; click on the link below to download the files. The Five Parametric Etudes has been performed several ltimes and was premiered in its entirety at the Walker Art Center as part of the Sonic Circuits VI Festival in November of 1998.Five Parametric Etudes for Disklavier (studio recording)
I. Assigned Register (excerpt)
II. Developing Fifths (excerpt)
III. Linear and Vertical Polyrhythms (excerpt)
IV. Variations on a Theme by Rachmaninoff (excerpt)
V. Octaves in Motor Rhythm (excerpt)
Download the Disklavier files to play live on a Disklavier: I - II - III - IV - V
Buy the Five Parametric Etudes on CD at Amazon.com.
