LARGE ENSEMBLE
for any inquiries in regards to purchases, perusal scores, or other commissions, please see [contact me here].
ORCHIDS, PASSION FLOWERS, HUMMINGBIRDS — [IN PROGRESS]
for solo trombone and wind ensemble, 10’
commissioned by conductor Dajuan Brooks for soloist Marlia Nash
FRAGRANCES OF SOMETHING SWEET (2025)
for orchestra, 6’
written for and premiered by the University of Michigan Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Kendra Chao at Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, MI, February 2025
Scored for 2222/4331/2perc/pno/hp/str
I wrote this piece with a particular memory I had with my grandmother Mary, who I had been thinking about a lot over the nine months I wrote this piece. She was the first person who introduce me to coffee, which I love a lot now. After always being refused the drink by my mom, I remember jump at the opportunity to have it, which, oddly, resulted in me completed knocked out on her living room floor. In every cup of coffee I have to this day, I think about her. The title "something sweet" refers to coffee, this piece is about, but in particular to my grandmother who was also someone incredibly sweet, kind, and supportive.
Performances:
February 13, 2025, University of Michigan Philharmonia Orchestra, Kendra Chao, Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, MI
SHUFFLE (2024)
two dance pieces for symphonic band, 8’
commissioned by a consortium of ensembles and individuals led by TJ Mack and the Illinois State University Symphonic Band and completed in August 2024
Scored for picc, 2fl, 2ob, 3cl, bcl, 2bsn, 4sax, 3tpt, 2hn, 2trb, btrb, euph, tba, bgtr, pno, hp, 6perc
Last year, I composed a wind ensemble piece titled “Metaphors” which was inspired by a piece I wrote for an electronic music course. When writing the program notes for the work, I mentioned I didn’t take much inspiration or listened to much electronic music when writing the piece. I realized later that this was not true. After surfing through the music on my phone, I realized that I was drawing inspiration from many different genres subconsciously. Not only was electronic music finding its way into my classical works, but I could also notice jazz, pop, hip-hop, and even rock influences when looking back at my old works. This made me realize that my music and I are the sum of our parts and it’s better to acknowledge and lean into it rather than stay away from it. Shuffle is just that. A piece that merges pop, electronic, and jazz idioms with Western classical composition techniques intentionally draws from and connects our classical world to the one of popular music and brings lively, dance music to the concert stage.
Consortium Members:
Alexander Gonzalez, Southern Oregon University (Ashland, OR); Allison Allender, Monticello High School (Monticello, IL); Andrew H. Davis, Reavis High School (Burbank, IL); Brian Boron & Cody Halberstadt Glenbrook South High School (Glenview, IL); Brian T. Harris & Kappa Kappa Psi, Nu Gamma Robert Morris University (Moon Township, PA); Chris Barnum, Prospect High School (Mt. Prospect, IL); Geoff DeSpain, Eastern Arizona College (Thatcher, AZ); J. Nick Smith, Eastern Michigan University (Ypsilanti, MI); Josh Waymire, Valley High School (West Des Moines, IA); Justin M. Johnson, Niles West High School (Skokie, IL); Kathy Perring Parge and Ted Parge (Houston, TX); Keith Levin, Crystal Lake Central High School (Crystal Lake, IL)
Norman Wika, Saginaw Valley State University (Saginaw, MI); Pamela L. Klena, Oakland University (Rochester, MI); Patrick Neff, West Park High School (Roseville, CA); Paul Carter, Normal Community High School (Normal, IL); Quinten Breach, Tri-Valley High School (Downs, IL); Rachel J. Maxwell, Traughber Junior High School (Oswego, IL); Ryan Cabildo, McHenry Community High School (McHenry, IL); Timothy Kaiser, Oklahoma Baptist University (Shawnee, OK); Scot Schickel, Pontiac Township High School (Pontiac, IL); Victor Anderson, Greg Hensel, & John Sierakowski, West Aurora High School Bands (Aurora, IL); Zachary G. Hilligoss, Metamora Township High School (Metamora, IL)
Performances:
April 20, 2025, West Park High School, Patrick Neff, Roseville, CA
April 17, 2025, West Park High School, Patrick Neff, Sacramento, CA
April 16 2025, McHenry Community High School, Ryan Cabildo, McHenry, IL
April 16, 2025, Saginaw Valley State University Wind Ensemble, Norman Wika, Saginaw, MI
March 13, 2025, West Aurora High School, John Sierakowski, Aurora, IL
March 9, 2025, Southern Oregon University, Alex Gonzalez, Ashland, OR
March 6, 2025, West Aurora High School, John Sierakowski, Aurora, IL
February 20, 2024, Oakland University Wind Ensemble, Pam Klena, Rochester, MI
December 10, 2024, Normal Community High School, Paul Carter, Normal, IL
December 3, 2024, Oklahoma Baptist University Symphonic Winds, Timothy Kaiser, Shawnee, OK
November 21, 2024, Illinois State University Symphonic Band, TJ Mack, Center for the Performing Arts, Normal, IL
METAPHORS (2022/2024)
for chamber orchestra or grade 5 wind ensemble, 5’
the wind ensemble version was finished in December 2024 and the chamber orchestra version was completed in May 2024
Scored for 2222/2200/2perc/hp/str or 2fl, ob, ecl, 3cl, bcl, bsn, aatb sax, 3tpt, 4hn, 2tbn, btbn, euph, tba, bgtr, 5perc
I am not particularly interested in composing electronic or pop music, nor would I say I’m inspired by it much (aside from songs of these genres that I really like). I did, however, notice that I hadn’t touched on my personal taste in my own music. Although electronic music is not my favorite, I do listen to some lo-fi music, and have a strange connection that several of my favorite wind ensemble works are based on electronic music. After taking my first class on electronic music composition, I had to write several electronic works – this is an adaptation of one of them. Originally composed for electric guitar, bass guitar, drum set, and piano, ‘metaphors’ is my acknowledgement of my soft side for electronic and pop music and emulates several elements I liked in the genre.
Honors:
Winner, 2024 One Found Sound Emerging Composer Award (orch. version)
Performances:
April 2025, One Found Sound, Heron Arts, San Francisco, CA
October 6, 2023, Sacramento State University, conducted by Matthew Morse, Sacramneto, CA
May 3, 2023, West Park High School, conducted by Patrick Neff, Roseville, CA
April 15 2023, West Park High School, conducted by Patrick Neff, Sacramento, CA
click here for a perusal score.
[recording coming soon]