Concertimento

Triads of the Blue Mysteries These 16 triads were found on a bus going South. Tight, thorny little notes, hovering in the atmosphere forming the basis of salvation - the Great Mystery of transformation. What is this mystery of the blues, a form that evolves and dissolves into soil and air. It is the breath of the blues, whose blues? Perhaps the "blue" of the collective, the simmering below the surface mind. 4X4=16 chords, divided by three voices simply complex. Artifical Blues or Blues Beyond - a small crunch of laughter. The air is Blues because of the refraction of the sky's light, thus the modern blues is a distanced reflection of things past - a nostolgia train moving towards the future. Connecting three little notes, 1,2,3....blues go Boom! Tones for discover and direction- a new blue - "eat of my body that I give to you". And each instrument has it's own unique blues - blue flute & blue marimba! Metal blues, one of my original concepti

QUILT CONCERTO - the name of this new work for four horns. Originally, I was interested in creating a quartet with mixed sounds rather than one family of sounds - i.e. string quartet or in particular saxophone quartet for this new type of comprovisational work. Also the works of Jimmy Guiffre have always been a touchstone for my work and I love the ideas of jazz from lines without the standard rhythm section. This Horn Quartet was like a section group if you pulled down the rhythm section tracks. So all of the propulsion and movement had to be generated using other devices such as post-minamalism, hocketing (pre-baroque?), and spontaneous riffage! During this period - 2008 - I received two commissions - one from DUMBO Arts festival to present two concerts under the Manhattan Bridge and second from Chris McIntyre and Tilt Brass Group. So between these two pieces I developed a third piece, Quilt Concerto, to practice my new techniques and also through sheer inspiration at these processes

Sometimes a work requires a different set of rules, a philosophy if you will. This piece Concertimento #9 is one of those pieces, subtitled: "Quartor pour l'assemblage des formes et sons" Scored for a quartet of flute, trombone, harp and chimes! First I developed circular tonal systems( see picture) from which I drew inspiration. Second was the use of quote from the Genevan Psalter (1562) which was a setting of Psalm 19: "The Heavens Declare the Glory of the God" Third was the use of Buddhist chant song harmonized in block formation - i.e. Westernized into a different shape of pattern yet still containing the original meditative intent. But the final work was an assemblage of these elements into a whole functioning work. I finished two versions, one for slightly expanded orchestra. And now as I examine the pieces I'm very tempted to make a third effort. As I've said before I believe that composing is often times an improvisational effort especially in p