I. Earth was Formless, VoidII. When Jesus WeptIII. Dreaming in NeonIV. From Dust ye Were Made Visions is a piece of four contrasting, interwoven movements which explore themes of prehistoric chaos and utopic peace, sleepy surreality and real human catastrophe. As an element of orchestration, it incorporates a wide variety of electronic sounds ranging from… Continue reading Visions
Audio
Quadrangularis Reversum
Quadrangularis Reversum is a piece inspired by Harry Partch’s marimba-like instrument of the same name which is a real-time interactive duet between a solo violist and six unique FM synthesis sounds crafted in Max/MSP. The ratios available on Partch’s instrument, situated so that the player can easily play them in sweeping arpeggios, are here rendered… Continue reading Quadrangularis Reversum
Ritual Dance in a Buchlidian Temple
Ritual Dance in a Buchlidian Temple is my first fully performable patch on the Buchla system without the aid of additional processes inside of Max/MSP (except for fzero~ for tuning and a bit of reverb). The piece is based on a drone and uses a sequence which is primarily built on the Dorian mode, a… Continue reading Ritual Dance in a Buchlidian Temple
Distances
Distances for Trumpet Octet is a piece which entertains concepts of distances in various musical ways. Throughout the piece the listener will notice spatial changes within the ensemble, so that parts which compliment one another are sometimes heard close together, and at other times from across the ensemble. Spatial considerations are used to enhance rhythmic… Continue reading Distances
String Quartet no. 1
This String Quartet is made up of three movements with the two outer movements serving as mirrored poles and a contrasting second movement in the middle. The piece is very free but the first and third movements are comprised (almost) entirely of a repetitive intervallic pattern which is cut up and manipulated in many ways,… Continue reading String Quartet no. 1
Buchlidian Landscape no.2
This piece is a meditative drone based composition which features the Buchla analog synthesizer processed in Max/MSP. Individual sounds were layered on top of one another using the record~ object to store sounds in a buffer~. These musical objects were then looped using groove~ to form a psychedelic texture which envelops the listener. Below I… Continue reading Buchlidian Landscape no.2
Winston Smith Enters Room 101
Winston Smith Enters Room 101 is a piece inspired by George Orwell’s 1984. All of the spoken portions of the piece are lines borrowed from the novel. The intention of the music is to characterize the state of mind of Winston Smith, the book’s protagonist, when he is tortured and dehumanized in Room 101 –… Continue reading Winston Smith Enters Room 101
With the Shapes
With the Shapes is a sort of compound piece made up of two entirely different settings of the same text by Michael McClure – Song (I work with the Shape). The first setting, for female voice (alto) and piano treats the poem with mystery and ambiguity. The second setting, for male voice (bass/baritone) and guitar,… Continue reading With the Shapes
Shall the Circle Survive?
Shall the Circle Survive? for double saxophone quartet is told from the perspective of an unknown narrator, whose voice is heard in the piece from the various members of the ensemble. Having just lost a loved one, their (the narrator’s) jumbled thoughts of mourning are heard at the very beginning. These thoughts are interrupted throughout … Continue reading Shall the Circle Survive?
Dance with the Dawn
This piece, inspired in part by Terry Riley‘s Rainbow in Curved Air, consists of 4 continuous tracks layered on top of one another. Track/Patch 1 The first patch, originally conceived as an attempt at Krell Patching which fell short, became a sort of blanket or foundation for the rest of the piece. It consists of… Continue reading Dance with the Dawn