Intrada,
opus 117
A short work Ideal as a prelude for any recital, this is part of
a four movement sonata. Currently this movement is the only one that has
been released. It is in a key of Bb (2:36)
Sinfonia
V opus 113
Really should have been titled Sinfonia IV, unless
I have just lost a work, which is possible. This work is
constructed using the pattern of the overtones within one
of my I ching scales in the key of E where the music cycles
out and down over the pattern, each as the pattern is concluded,
it is then repeated at half time with more inner content
to each wave. This is a very difficult work to put together,
but the ultimate expressive possibilities of the piece make
it quite wonderful. (5:47)
Sonata for
Horn & piano Opus 23
A work from the mid 1980’s. I was writing sonatas for all
the brass instruments. The surviving part of this sonata is what was the
3rd and 4th movements. I now consider it complete in just two parts, but
still keep the Sonata name. The first part is a nice flowing work in three
followed by a labored work with contrasting twos on threes but with nice
use of open to stopped slides and fun trills.
Mocking
Bird Sonata opus 68
One of my more popular works, Written
my first year at the Bear Valley Music Festival in
August 1992, When I stayed in the house of
my friends the Deikman's. This
work is in four movements presented on
this cd with the long repeat in the first movement,
which is most likely a little too much. The
Mockingbird call is quite enjoyable and it
fits the horn well. The middle two movements
were written on a visit to Western Massachusetts
and contain some interesting use of retrograde
and complex sounding poly-rhythms. The fourth
movement, I see as a American work way better
than Gordon Jacob’s Concerto!
Wailing
for Horn piano & tape, opus 86
Wailing was written for two reasons, I wanted to write something loud featuring
the horn, and I need to explore some sadness that I felt going through a divorce.
This work was written with the natural (hand) horn in mind although it has
not received a première on the original instrument, I have performed
it on modern horn with computer, no piano.
Movement 1 is a study into the contrast between the scale C, Db, D#, E, F, Gb,
Ab and scale B,C,D,E,F,G,Ab. The second scale I is used in four modulations with
roots on B, G#, F, and D. The polyrhythms 3:4 and 8:9 are featured prominently.
I am sure this work houses thoughts on contrasting open and closed sounds on
the horn.
Movement two explores a more minimal concept. Using the chart on the next
page of the possible orders of five tones, I went through and constructed
the piece by presenting the first tone of each row, then the first two , three
four and the five, then I believe I want back decreasingly. This is obvious
with the increasingly fast rhythms & the type of polyrhythm.
In the third movement. I am moving away from my sadness and have written a minuet,
trio form using the contrast of the open and closed tones on the horn to construct
the melody, within certain scale limitations.
The fourth movement is a parody on the horn “carillon” theme from
L’Arlesienne of George Bizet in two different keys. Once again there
are sections of the open tones and sections of the closed tones all put into
a fabric of accelerating and decelerating modes.
CD1 - Rebel with
a Horn