Terelj

Terelj is a work of three short pieces inspired by Mongolian culture.  Camel's Tear mimics the horsehead fiddle, which serves a central role in Mongolian culture.  Interestingly enough, it is said that camels shed tears in reaction to the instrument's beautiful sound.  Shagai!, meaning ankle bones, evokes the spirit of children playing a marbles-like game played, instead, with sheep ankle bones.  Ger, named for the portable Mongolian home, represents the calm and powerful energy of a united family.  And, central to their proud nomadic heritage, the piece cherishes the openness of their countryside.

Interested in performing Terelj?

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Performances:

Oh, That Light!

This piece explores density, both instrumentally and rhythmically. The piece was written for the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival and read by the Imani Winds.

Interested in performing Oh, That Light!?

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Performances:

FOR 20 ELECTRIC KEYBOARDS

A free-form piece based off of both Terry Riley's In C and John Zorn's Cobra. Letters indicate repeated musical ideas and numbers specify which pianist performs which idea. The director has complete control over the order of the events, though there are three suggested sections to follow in order to create a departure and return.

Interested in performing FOR 20 ELECTRIC KEYBOARDS?

download here.

Performances:

  • April 11, 2015, [Premiere], Brigham Young University ALMA Lab (Open Lab Time).
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Improvisations IV: An Appeal to the [SOUND] Masses

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This improvisation is fed through a Pd Extended patch, which processes, modulates, and loops the improvised sounds.  The structure is determined by a loop pedal, and the performer is encouraged to familiarize him or herself with this structure to take advantage of its unique qualities. This is the first of a larger Improvisations series. See the following links for further examples:

Improvisations V: Two-Track Mind
Improvisations 5.2: Two Tracks for Two Minds (free electronics with laptop performer)
Improvisations VI: Just, Plane, Natural
Improvisations I: MicroTunes

Interested in performing Improvisations IV: An Appeal to the [SOUND] Masses?

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Performances

Lakewind

Four Chicago Perspectives based on scenic views of the Windy City. Artist Tony Parra made awesome visual artwork based on the scenic photography providing another point of view to each movement.

Interested in performing Lakewind?

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Performances:

Performed by Rachel Miles (flute), Brian Woodbury (trombone), Joseph Woodward (cello), and Alexandra Brown (marimba). 

Imagine If...

Imagine If... explores my former clarinet professor Jaren Hinckley's teaching style based on Stanislavski's acting method.  The perfomer has written prompts within the part that must be weaved together into one story by the performer.  But the main difference from Hinckley's method is that the piece calls for actual acting from the performer...

Interested in performing Imagine If...?

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Performances:

Andrew Bjarnson performing my comedy piece Imagine If... Performed 3/14/15 at BYU.

Fisherman Ascends

Fisherman Ascends refers to the transfiguration of Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration.  "Remit" expresses the cleansing and purging process from sins found in baptism.  "Sanctify" expresses the change of heart and character through the receiving of the Gift of the Holy Ghost over a lifetime.

Interested in performing Fisherman Ascends?

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  • Read by the New York Piano Trio, November 22, 2014.

[Breathe if needed]

This open instrumentation work develops rhythms based on four articulations/attack styles of the performers' choice. It can be performed by at least two performers, and there is no limit on the number of performers.

Interested in performing [Breathe if needed]?

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Performances

February, 21st 2017, Catch and Release: Student Composers, Inc., Diego Matallana (contrabass), Guillermo Ospina (percussion), Dylan Findley (clarinet).

November 20th, 2014 [Premiere], Group for Experimental Music, Stuart Wheeler (voice), Chris Morrison (piano), Brian Lee (percussion), Dylan Findley (clarinet).

Cleansing

"And the priest shall go forth out of the camp; and the priest shall look, and, behold, if the plague of leprosy be healed in the leper; [t]hen shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop[.] And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water[.] As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water[.] And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field." (Leviticus 14:3-7)

"But notwithstanding the law of Moses, they did look forward to the coming of Christ, considering that the law of Moses was a type of his coming, and believing that they must keep those outward performances until the time that he should be revealed unto them." (Alma 25:15)

Interested in performing Cleansing?

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Performances:

  • November 12, 2014 [Premiere], Group for New Music: Student Edition, Nick Ayala, Jesse Quebbeman-Turley.

Time Moves On

Time Moves On expresses the hope for resurrection.  The interplay between the melancholy death theme and the warm and humorous life theme give both the reflection on the true focus of life, and the future that awaits those who hope in the next life.

This piece is dedicated to my Aunt Mary Lynn.

Interested in performing Time Moves On?

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Performances:

  • October 29, 2014 [Premiere], Brigham Young University Symphonic Band.

Sleep Dances

Sleep Dances expresses the idea of brain waves during the sleeping process. The piece begins with Beta Waves, which are found during activity, then progresses to Alpha Waves, Theta Waves (and K-spindles), and finally into Delta Waves.

Interested in performing Sleep Dances?

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Performances:

  • April 18, 2014 [Premiere], BYU Composition Seminar Showcase, BYU Clarinet Choir.

Thoughtsketches

Thoughtsketches features an open-ended structure that allows for improvisation.  This technique is largely explored by Christian Asplund, who I studied with at the time.  The first movement, Canonic Perception, has a line of text that is read by the performers at the rhythm of their choice, but within a tapped tempo. It proceeds in a round.
Synesthesia provides a uniquely colored chromatic scale for each performer. The vocalist has a list of colors with associated words to vocalize. The instrumentalists play within the limits of the colored notes according to which color they feel matches the word.

Interested in performing Thoughtsketches?

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Performances:

Romance Sonámbulo

A setting of the text of the same name by Federico García Lorca, Romance Sonambulo explores the relationships of words and ideas within the poet's bleak yet beautiful text.  Lorca contrasts the joys of nature to the persecutions of the Gypsies shortly before the Spanish Civil War.  For this and other poems seeking social change, Lorca was later assassinated. 

Interested in performing Romance Sonámbulo?

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Performances:

  • March 14, 2014 [Premiere], Group for New Music: Student Edition, Monica Bennett, Zane Harker, Charlotte Heiner, Gatelyn Gentry, TJ Smith, Hunter Montgomery, Hannah Cope, Anna Dunford. 
  • March 14, 2015, To Another Place and Time, Monica Bennett, Zane Harker, Charlotte Heiner, Leslie Sampson, Brad Sampson, Aaron Clark, Lizzie Tutt, Alexandra Brown.
  • April 9th, 2016, Denney, Findley, Taylor, Ryan Gardner, Elena Blyskal, Andrew Eshbach, Kevin Gregory, Josh Schwartz, Dana Kaufman, Javier Chacon, Ryan Hecker.

RF ISOLATION: Faraday Cage

for string quartet

A Faraday Cage allows a safe area from currents or transmissions.  For example, when lightning strikes an automobile, the driver will not be shocked, being in the vehicle.  The driver is surrounded by the charge—being inside the conductive material; however, the car acts as a Faraday Cage and isolates its interior from outside forces.  A musical example would be a safe haven from radio or telecommunication, an isolation from outside noises.

The piece is symbolic of the battle between the outside influences and voices that the world has to offer and the subtle, yet sublime inner peace that comes from following the values that resonate in the heart.  Each part yearns for inner peace while surrounded by the dissonance of its opposing parts.  Allusions to early chant music echo the search for peace that comes from hearkening to the ancient and eternal truths revealed by God.  The unison ending refers to the ultimate finding of tranquility through God.

Interested in performing RF ISOLATION: Faraday Cage?

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Performances: