General

Perform this music. If you see anything you like, perform it. If you don’t see anything that works for you but you like what you see, ask me to write something new for you. But definitely perform this music.

See also

Lyles Scale of Compositional Agony

A Christmas Carol (1980/2014)

William Blake’s Inn (2007)

Symphony in G [unfinished] (2008)

Ayrshire Fiddle Orchestra (2011) (Resignation score [pdf, letter]| mp3 (3:39)

Seven Dreams of Falling (in progress)

Stuff written for church choir (pre-2003)

Benediction #2 (“The Lord bless you and keep you”) [SATB]: a benediction that sounds as if it has been in the choir’s repertoire for years | score [pdf]

I was glad [SAB, piano]: a lilting round, perfect as a call to worship. | score [pdf]

Fragments of a Mass in C

Kyrie | score [pdf] | mp3
Sanctus | score [pdf] | mp3
Benedictus/Hosanna | score [pdf] | mp3
Agnus Dei/Dona nobis pacem | score [pdf] | mp3 

Note: With Finale recently pulling the plug on its own life support, I’ve been trying to update all my music files before moving to another app. Finale has never updated its own files with any kind of reliability, so some of the mp3s are pretty clunky. The final Agnus Dei/Dona nobis in particular refused to add an organ to the score without ruining the dynamics, so I have not provided that mp3 update, but a live performance of the piece with organ should be glorious.

O Alleluia [SAB, soprano solo, piano]: a Christmas canon, based on a melody by Henry Purcell. | score [pdf] | mp3

Psalm 81, “A loud shout raise to Jacob’s God” [SATB, piano]: a call to worship with a loud, joyous opening, leading to a quiet affirmation | score [pdf] | mp3

Psalm 91, “I Shall Say of the Lord” [SAB, piano]: gentle, quiet, ruminative piece | score [pdf]

Psalm 125, “They that trust in the Lord” [SATB, piano]: a declamatory opening softens into an ethereal, contrapuntal statement of God’s protection. | score [pdf]

They that wait upon the Lord, [SATB, organ]: interesting polyrhythmical treatment of Isaiah’s “soar like eagles” text | score [pdf]

Trumpet in Zion [SAB, soprano solo, piano, 4 timpani]: text from Joel 2; very scary, almost cinematic piece; written for Ash Wednesday | score [pdf] | mp3

Other choral stuff (or post-2003)

When the boys get together: a fun piece for middle school boys’ chorus, spoofing their unwillingness to use their treble voices; available in E-flat, F, and G | score [pdf]

Shall We Go?: [SAB, piano] Same piece as Psalm 91 above, but with the original words by Georgiana Craven Salter. | score [pdf] | mp3

Frog Songs: A Song Cycle

A song cycle of strange texts with music to match.

What a wonderful bird the frog are! | score [pdf], SATB version [pdf]| mp3
Life
| score [pdf] | mp3
See the happy moron
| score [pdf] | mp3
He and She
| score [pdf] | mp3
Real life
| score [pdf] | mp3

Sonnet 18 [TTBB, two cellos]: a gentle, thoughtful setting of Shakespeare’s “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” | score (2005) [pdf] | SATB arrangement | YouTube performance

Sir Christémas: SATB chorus, organ, and percussion (2011) | score [pdf] | mp3

Not Really Bad: an opening number for a recent middle-school theatre workshop focusing on character development, with the theme of “villains” (2014) | score [pdf] | mp3

Your Beauty: a piece written for a young friend for his senior recital (2014) | score [pdf] | mp3

Dear Diary: an opening number for the summer’s middle-school theatre workshop, this time working with the concept of “unreliable narrator” along the lines of Jeff Kinney’s delightful series, The Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2015) score [pdf] | mp3

Alleluia [SATB, organ, tom-toms]: score [pdf] | mp3

One of the most difficult pieces I have ever written: Accompanied by an ostinato in the drums, a chorus begins a quiet unison in 7/8 time. Soon that unison begins to shift and splinter and accelerate, until the chorus and organ are consumed by a violent storm of sound. It stops abruptly, and the voice of God speaks: “Be still and know…” Finally, the alleluias return, but gentle and warm.

Instrumental Music

Suite from a Children’s Opera(2004)

1. Overture

2. A Cold Life

3. Requiem for a Violin

4. It’s Here!

5. Ballet

6. Young Love

7. Valentine

8. Music!!

9. Coda

Pieces for Bassoon & String Quartet (2010)

I. Waltz | score [pdf] | mp3

II. Threnody | score [pdf] | mp3

III. Dialog | score [pdf] | mp3

Six Preludes (No Fugues) (2010)

I. Prelude (no fugue) No. 1 | score [pdf] | mp3premiere performance

II. Prelude (no fugue) No. 2 | score [pdf] | mp3premiere performance

III. Prelude (no fugue) No. 3 | score [pdf] | mp3 | premiere performance

IV. Prelude (no fugue) No. 4 | score [pdf] | mp3  | premiere performance

V. Prelude (no fugue) No. 5 | score [pdf] | mp3  | premiere performance

VI. Prelude (no fugue) No. 6 | score [pdf] | mp3  | premiere performance

Dance for Double Bass Duo & Marimba (2007) | score [pdf] | mp3

Cello Sonata No. 1 (2011)

I. Moderato | score [pdf] | mp3

II. Adagio | score [pdf] | mp3

III. Andante (Elegy) | score [pdf] | mp3

Ginny’s Valentine [piano] (1998) | score [pdf] | mp3 | mp3 live performance

Horsefly Rag for piano (2014): written for Mike Funt, who wanted something around which to develop a clown piece based on a drawing by Moholy-Nagy called “Diary of a Fly” | score [pdf] | mp3

Five Easier Pieces (2015) ( a companion to, and a partial apology for, Six Preludes (no fugues))

I. No. 1 (Invention) | score [pdf] | mp3

II. No. 2 (Waltz) | score [pdf] | mp3

III. No. 3 (Étude Héroïque) | score [pdf] | mp3

IV. No. 4 (Tango) | score [pdf] | mp3

V. No. 5 (Sonatine) | score [pdf] | mp3

Getting Through Getting Over (2018) (a ballet score, for piano, clarinet, violin, and cello; based on the Cello Sonata, with additional material; premiered by Southern Arc Dance, Mar 17, 2018)

I. Up Against the Wall | score [pdf] | mp3

II. Perpetuum Mobile | score [pdf] | mp3

III. For Two | score [pdf] | mp3

IV. Gravity | score [pdf] | mp3

V. Flow | score [pdf] | mp3

Azure Stone (2023) (piece for solo violin and piano) | score [pdf] | SoundCloud

 

Ten Little Waltzes (2024, in progress)

  1. Invitation | score [pdf] | mp3
  2. Tranquillo | score [pdf] | mp3
  3. For Corbett | score [pdf] | mp3 
  4. Cheekily | score [pdf] | mp3

Random stuff

Bring a torch [handbells & soprano/flute] | score [pdf] | mp3

Stars on Snow (new age piece) | mp3

GALAXY Piece I | mp3