Composed for the Central Michigan University New Music Ensemble, both movements are typical of my current compositional output. Harmonies are based on the repetition of a simple interval pattern and long lyrical melodies weave their way through these chaconnes. The rhythms and colors are rather plain, unadorned, and far from ornate. The directness and simplicity…
Tag: violin
H.B.M.D. for horn, trombone, and strings (2004)
In the summer of 2004, I was fortunate to be accepted to the Composers Conference at Wellesley College. Mario Davidovsky, the main composer entity during those two weeks, was celebrating his 70th birthday that year. All of the composer fellows decided, quite at the last minute, to each write a variation on “Happy Birthday” and surprise Mario with performances of…
Goodnight, Nobody for flute, vibraphone, violin, and cello (2008)
The mood of the piece is quiet and contemplative which is in stark contrast to the heavy and aggressive work I started composing for this instrumentation. I’ve been finding lately that my music is tending towards soft, slow, and spare sounds instead of raucous cacophony. The title comes from the most unusual line in the children’s book…
No. for violin and cello (2011)
This short duet was composed for the “Fifteen Minutes of Fame” opportunity that Zentripetal offered in February of 2011. When I began writing this piece, it was something different. As I was putting the finishing touches on that earlier version of the score, a “what if I…” hit me out of the blue. I cut…
Twitch for violin (2011)
I composed this piece for Conway Kuo’s “Fifteen Minutes of Fame.” The idea was simple, just a high-pitched jittery idea that doesn’t go away. A rich melody wants to emerge but doesn’t get far. Download the score: Twitch