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As a composer, I have received commissions for both choral works and works for solo voice. A student of Avner Dorman's at the Sunderman Conservatory of Music at Gettysburg College, I strive to tell a deeply influential story with my music through an intricate, yet still accessible, harmonic palate. Having grown up as a church musician, I tend to gravitate towards religious texts, though I also find inspiration in poems with lots of expressive imagery. My music has been described as “hauntingly beautiful.”
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Compositions |
Our Father
$2.50
The Our Father came to fruition because I realized one day that while there plenty of beautiful settings of the Lord's Prayer in Latin and in other languages, I hadn't heard many settings of the English text. I decided during the church service that Sunday morning that I would set the English Our Father.
This eight-part song, set to the Lord's Prayer, begins with a simple theme, blossoming towards "Heaven." In this piece, I set out to create something which exuded the ultimate joy of the text, while still recognizing the occasional pain that is felt throughout the prayer.
This eight-part song, set to the Lord's Prayer, begins with a simple theme, blossoming towards "Heaven." In this piece, I set out to create something which exuded the ultimate joy of the text, while still recognizing the occasional pain that is felt throughout the prayer.
Lux Aeterna
$2.50
In January of 2018, Dr. Robert Natter, Director of Choral Activities at the Sunderman Conservatory at Gettysburg College, approached me about writing a piece for their Spring 2018 Tour, he asked me to set the Lux Aeterna text, fitting with with the "Light and Darkness" part of their theme of Transitions. When I knew I was setting the Lux Aeterna text, I had decided that this needed to be a piece dedicated in memory Zach Misleh. Zach was a classmate of mine at DeMatha Catholic High School who lost his life at the age of 19, in June of 2017.
This piece is for a moderately advanced choir. Predominantly featuring a four-part to six-part split, it is more accessible than some larger, more complicated choral works. The piece shows the wide range of emotion one goes through while grieving a loved one. The text is a well-known Communion Antiphon which comes from the Requiem Mass, and was written for the Gettysburg College Choir's 2018 domestic tour.
This piece is for a moderately advanced choir. Predominantly featuring a four-part to six-part split, it is more accessible than some larger, more complicated choral works. The piece shows the wide range of emotion one goes through while grieving a loved one. The text is a well-known Communion Antiphon which comes from the Requiem Mass, and was written for the Gettysburg College Choir's 2018 domestic tour.
Flying at Night
$2.50
Flying at Night was conceived during a time in which I had very intense writer's block while working on a Mass for a cappella choir. I woke up one night, bothered by my lack of inspiration, and began scouring the internet for poems on themes around night, hoping one would grab my attention. When I came across Flying at Night, I knew this was the text I was looking for.
This piece is for advanced choir. Based on a beautiful poem of Ted Kooser's, it incorporates text painting and a beautiful wash of tonal color. It contrasts dense, colorful climaxes with soft, simple sections, delving into the language of Kooser's Flying at Night.
This piece is for advanced choir. Based on a beautiful poem of Ted Kooser's, it incorporates text painting and a beautiful wash of tonal color. It contrasts dense, colorful climaxes with soft, simple sections, delving into the language of Kooser's Flying at Night.
Christus Factus Est
$2.50
This piece, heavily inspired by Arvo Pärt's Tintinnabuli, is a simple, yet extremely moving and reflective work for orchestra. Christus Factus Est was originally written for TTBB choir. Hence, the rhythms all come from the text, meaning the Christus Factus Est could be superimposed onto all of these parts. Upon orchestrating the piece for orchestra, I found that it worked much more effectively for strings than for choir, and left it as it was.
It alternates two moving lines over two drones between the voices, giving each part melodic movement. The end of the piece culminates with a combination of both themes played together with their corresponding harmonies in the second voices.
It alternates two moving lines over two drones between the voices, giving each part melodic movement. The end of the piece culminates with a combination of both themes played together with their corresponding harmonies in the second voices.
