In addition to the other page on this site which hosts examples of classical music from Utah’s past, I am using this extra page to archive and share some of the original music I have composed. It will take a while for me to decide which of my projects are even worth sharing, since many of these are only available as previews done on synthesized instruments rather than as live concert or studio recordings. Some aim to be serious classical compositions, while others were composed for more utilitarian purposes, such as background music for PSAs on social media, or even just as experiments in various styles. I don’t expect anyone to like all of them, or like them equally, since I don’t even claim that.
Many of my original creative works posted here are considered “completed”, as they were crafted for a specific concert or project, and once that has passed, so does the urgency to keep tinkering with or updating it. Moving on to other, newer projects. A few are merely sketches for ideas that are not yet fully worked out. A very few, however, are still works-in-progress. But any piece here may be revisited or re-used someday, if the spirit moves me ...
The list will slowly evolve as I work out which selections to add, and whether to simply list the basics, such as title and instrumentation, or to also add links to recordings and descriptive “program notes” as well.
CHAMBER MUSIC (classical music for small ensembles)
String Quartet:
Inside Voices (2020) Original music with a montage of adopted stock video, in the style of the “COVID-19 PSA” which was so ubiquitous at the time – spring 2020 – when quarantines roamed the land. I like this one, as it blended several different creative impulses at a time when life was tough. See the finished video on YouTube.
Topaz (2019) Tone poem inspired by memories of the WW-II era Internment Camp for Japanese Americans, which was in west-central Utah. Scored for string quartet, but with hints of a mournful Japanese flute called a “Shakuhachi”, and some suggestions of brass and percussion in a few aggressive, militaristic passages. This is one I really want to re-visit and get nicely recorded someday with live instruments.
Misc. chamber music:
Click (2020) Trio for wordless voice, harp and cello. Short, understated piece to accompany a teaser video for an arts event that is now long-passed. Hear it on my YouTube.
Planxty Rum Doodle (2020) Trio for piano, violin & flute. Frisky, neo-celtic piece. The title was inspired by a very clever novel spoofing a troubled trek to the highest mountain in the world. “Planxty” is a term used in old Irish music to mean some like, “Thanks to …”, when the composer wants to show appreciation to a friend or sponsor. Hear it on my YouTube channel.
Werewolf Variations (2019) For Contrabass (orchestral “String Bass”) and piano. Variations on the rhythmic pattern of a short poem used repeatedly in the script of a classic Werewolf movie from the early 1940s. Performed on the Salty Cricket concert series, where a decent cell phone video was made at the live performance. It captured the aggressive spirit of the piece so much better than my synthesized demo version. Will post it someday.
Fanfare for Philo T. Farnsworth (2018) Trio for two trumpets and trombone. Celebrating the pioneering technical vision of this local (Utah/Idaho) inventor, whose efforts resulted in modern television technology. And in case you were wondering, YES, I came up with the title first because the repetitive sounds amused me. Then came music to fit the title. One technique I used throughout this piece was to have dissonance – chords with clashing notes – which quickly resolve into more standard harmonies. Performed live on a Salty Cricket series concert, but this video uses just a demo/preview recording with synthesized instruments. (The video was done to promote events that are now long passed, and are not related to the music. I simply added my music here because the timing was right when I was looking to add music to a promo video for an Arts Council which I sometimes help with Social Media projects.)
My Heart and I (2017) An “Art Song” for Soprano, piano and cello. The lyric is part of a poem from an 1860s Salt Lake City author whose character in the poem considered herself something of a “fallen woman.” Not in a romantic sense, but because she had lost then regained her religious faith. Performed in a Salty Cricket series concert, and I recently found the live concert recording which I had thought was lost. Until I get around to posting the live-audio version, here is a synthesized demo version for piano and vocal, with the singer’s part is done by a weird sort-of-vocal sound. My favorite part of this is the cello passage toward the end of the piece, but it is unfortunately mixed too low here. “My Heart and I“.
Brillig (2016?) Setting of the classic quirky poem “Jabberwocky”, composed for a mixed “Pierrot” ensemble of 5(?) instrumentalists plus a narrator/singer. Yeah, I probably should have simply used the title “Jabberwocky” instead. Performed on a Salty Cricket series concert, but this demo recording was made using synthesized instruments and a pre-recorded voice. The live performance featured a much more energetic singer/reader whose antics matched the wild tone of the poem and the score. It was truly amazing to attend the rehearsal and performance for this one, and hear how really talented musicians nailed it!
John Muir’s Lilies (2014) My first notated piece of music, this trio for flute, viola and harp was performed live in a Salty Cricket series concert. The title references the man considered the father of America’s conservation movement, and is based on sections of one of his books in which he related a visit to Utah early in the 20th century. Here is a rough sounding version using “synthesized” instruments online at my YouTube page, but it sounded so much sweeter in concert.
Profundo (2015) Mash-up of 27 musical theme snippets from various genres, all in about 7 minutes, played by a trio of LOW instruments, including tuba, bassoon and string bass. Performed live at a Salty Cricket concert, and again live in studio for a KBYU radio production on local arts. Fairly forgettable, but with a few fun touches – such as transitioning from “Old Man River” to the “Jaws” theme. It was available online from the KBYU archives for a few years, but seems to be gone now. I usually try posting video entries for this page to my YouTube channel, and sharing that link here. But frankly it would probably get a copyright strike on YouTube and be blocked due to all the recognizable tunes included. (Even though this should be considered legitimate “Fair Use” as Parody, in my opinion.) So instead, maybe I can have it play directly from my own web page storage . . . Click it and see!
OTHER INSTRUMENTATION
Empress Fanfare (for brass band) – Named after a century old restored live theatre venue in Magna, Utah. My demo recording with synthesized brass instruments sounds quite “tinny”, so I choose to wait until I can update this one before sharing.
Patria (alternate title “Ventura”?) – Patriotic “Parade Music” scored for band. Written for a 2018 video montage about my small town’s Fourth of July parade. I like the piccolo flourishes, but should have mixed it to be more prominent in the recording. Video on YouTube.
Drone music – A churning, dense soundscape to play against a montage of lighter-than-air visuals from video shot by drone photography expert Scott Taylor. Video on YouTube.
Jesse vs. Christmas (Christmas Bombast!) – Jesse Vs. Cancer is/was a podcast by comedian Jesse Case sharing his experience going through and recovering from a time of quite serious cancer treatment. He composed his own original podcast theme music, then invited listeners to work up their own quirky adaptations of it and send it in. My submission took the form of an overblown orchestral Christmas Fantasia, interpolating Jesse’s humble original theme with the Hallelujah Chorus & Carol of the Bells. Mea Maxima Culpa. Because of my fervent belief that “Anything worth doing is worth OVER-doing”, here is the intentionally overgrown synthesized mess that Jesse shared on his podcast, in a video from my YouTube page.
Halloween Midsummer – This was started with the intention of using it to help promote a local Halloween-themed festival. The people managing the festival were running short on time to finish their promotional video, so I wrote some original dark/menacing music to add to their visuals, just in case it was needed. But, just in time, they *did* supply their own finished video with music, so my “filler” project was shelved – but it was still fun to write. We all go a little mad sometimes… It is lurking on my YouTube page.
Wixley – Suite of incidental music for a proposed radio drama project. Would love to see it produced someday, perhaps as a Reader’s Theater piece. Sort of a “Twilight Zone” type of fantasy based on a short story about a crafty-but-crazy inventor, written by celebrated Magna author Clair Huffaker. Composed in one feverish day, then stashed away to be revived only if the audio drama project ever happens. Unrecorded, but maybe . . .
Highway 12 Bar Blues – Breezy jazz/blues theme written for a video about driving one of the most scenic stretches of road in central Utah. This is one which is really only a sketch so far, and deserves to be fleshed out before sharing.
Magna Noir – A short Jazz/Blues theme to use in various projects, such as underscore for credits/title sequences. It is included as music for the opening titles in this video on YouTube
Old Bridge – Loopable transition or intro music. Ominous, for situations suggesting that change is coming, and might not be welcome. Barely 30 seconds long. For this one, click below!
Others who shall not be named . . . OK, named, but not yet close to being ready for sharing.
~ Three Men in a Boat. Suite inspired by the classic English comedy novel. Mixed ensemble, but must include bagpipes, since they are featured in the story.
~ Landscape. For Brass Quintet and Piano.
Sample posters from past concerts of the now retired Salty Cricket Composers Collective as part of their efforts to promote locally sourced, artisanal, bespoke, free-range and hand-crafted classical music. They organized a concert series in Utah which featured all-original compositions, with a different combination of instruments performing at each event. The performers were working professional musicians, sometimes drawn from the Utah Symphony. Anyone could submit a score to be considered for performance, so long as it was a fit for the combination of instruments pre-scheduled for each concert. Most composers selected had advanced degrees in composition, but they also scheduled some students and amateur musicians like me – several of my own music selections on this site were composed for and performed on this series, which ran (rough dates) from 2010 to 2020. I volunteered to design these posters mostly as souvenirs for the participants and for online advertising for the concerts. (Someone else did the Cricket logo – which you could have guessed because it is the best part of each poster.)
