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Earth Tones - for Euphonium and Piano
1. Ode to the Mountains
2. Out of this World
3. Impressions of the River
This piece is written for and dedicated to Allison Scull. Its premier will be on March 5, 2007 in Berkman Auditorium
at University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT. It was written for Allison's senior recital at the Hartt School of Music.
The idea behind this piece is that it would depict three activities that Allison and I do during our free time away from
school, during vacations or whenever. Among these things are driving through the mountainous roads of Somers, CT, stargazing,
visiting a boat launch sitting on the Connecticut River and other things. However, these three activities are what Earth
Tones pays tribute to.
Allison had many ideas about the style of the piece, which ranged from a solo piece in the style of the Bach cello suites,
to a chamber piece possibly using electronics. She settled on Euphonium and Piano as more of a recital consideration. Musically,
the piece might be reminiscent of English music, having a strong sense of melody.
The second movement is full of musical puns and quotes. Allison asked for a specific quote to be used, but it also serves
as my tip of the hat to Tomasi's Triptique for Trumpet and Piano. I quoted the opening statement and also quoted a few popular
songs which refer to stars or the sky. I won't mention which ones, but some remain an inside joke between Allison and I.
However, the third movement closes with a quote from the "Golden Girls" theme song melodically quoting the words
"Thank you for being a friend," which is certainly my personal message for Allison.
MacArthur Park - for brass band
This is more of a transcription than an arrangement or composition. As Andrew Stetson and I were talking about his senior
recital, we knew it needed to end with a bang. We were listening to some recordings of different things and we came across
a brass band arrangement of the popular Richard Harris tune "MacArthur Park" played by the Grimethorpe Colliery
Band, a British brass band. I transcribed the arrangement for American instruments and was successfully performed as a 12
piece brass band including drumset and timpani.
Other Selected Works
La Vallée des Cloches (arrangement) 2001, rev. 2006
by Maurice Ravel
for Percussion trio
premiere: Boston, MA; January 2007
The Dark Side of Chocolate 2004
for Percussion Ensemble
Concerto for Trombone and Wind Ensemble 2002, rev. 2004
premiere: Hartford, CT; March 2003
Rhapsody of Power and Beauty 2001, rev. 2002
for Orchestra
premiere: Interlochen, MI; August 2002
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