DUET FOR FRENCH HORN AND TROMBONE (in two movements)
This work was written for Texas Christian University faculty members Professor Heather Test and Dr. Dave Begnoche.
Suite for Solo Flute
Performed by flautist Mehrdad Gholami at the 2019 Society of Composers Region VI Conference at Texas A&M University Commerce.
The piece seeks beauty taking three distinct paths.The first is ever excited, filled with anticipation of what new vista might lie just beyond the field of vision. There is a breathless quality here naïve and earnest in the best of ways.
The second piece is suave, sophisticated and perhaps a bit too self- assured. Still there is a sincerity that emerges and informs the return of the self-absorbed aesthetician.
The third piece is methodical in its search, considering beauty carefully and fully before being absorbed by the object of its desire. This exploration is carried out isometrically at first and then, when fully engaged, as a joyful fantasia.
Frames of Reference for flute, cello and piano
Frames of Reference explores the changing manner in which we might experience music, especially as it is first performed and heard. The experience of performer and audience alike will change as what is new becomes more familiar, and as we process the familiar into something more surely known. The five movements of this work are all carved out of the same raw material, but seek to explore this material from different aspects. So, in its creation, the changing frames of reference were an essential part of the structure. As the first three movements are cycled through several times, listen for the changing interpretations brought by the performers and the manner in which your perception of same might be altered each time through the material.
Frames of Reference was written on commission for the Clear Creek Music Festival held in Halfway, OR. The Festival was hosted and directed by Sheila Allen and David Yeomans. I most profoundly thank them for their support and inspiration. Tonight’s performance is the “live” premiere. The summer 2020 premiere of the work was done via recordings made and sent between performers (David Yeomans, Lydia Yan, and Tsun Kwok), a bit of engineering magic, and online release of the piece in increments to those in virtual attendance at the Festival.
Special thanks to Tsun Kwok for the aforementioned bit of engineering magic.
Winds
New Home Suite for Clarinet and Piano
New Home Suite was inspired by social media buzz around my friend and colleague, Corey Mackey. Corey and wife, Madayln, had recently purchase a home and there was the usual excitement mixed with trepidation that surrounds such events. Most of all, there was much work to be done!
The first movement, Moving Day, captures the frenetic activity associated with trying to get everything you own from one place to the other in a single day. There is a moment for break, and perhaps a bit of reflection at midday, but this is short-lived. Next comes Boxes wherein one finds themselves facing piles of cardboard containers and decision after decision concerning where they might best be stored, which ones to unpack first, what will cause more chaos and what less. Sometimes the best course of action is to pause and strategize. The third movement, Exhaustion, captures the essence of its mood in a slow blues. There is an occasional moment of energy and deep happiness but, all in all, a rest is what is needed. But there is no rest, at least not yet. Later that day, or perhaps the next morning, things start to get put away in closets, drawers, bedrooms, the kitchen, etc. The couple must find, A Place for Everything. Finally, at some point, the undertaking ceases to be more chore than joy. That moment of satisfaction and feelings of accomplishment are captured in, … and now, it is home. In this movement listen for the echoes of the Stephen Foster tune, Home Sweet Home.