This is a small selection of things to hear.  I’ll add more as time permits.

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Compositions

May Christ Be At Home In Your Hearts

It starts very softly, then gradually grows. You may need to turn up your volume.  It isn’t compressed.   For SSAATTBB mixed choir, published with Roger Dean Music, a division of Lorenz.   You can look at some of it here as you listen.

Music for the video Adaptive Kenpo

This is title music for a martial arts training video.  The production company liked it so much that they asked for more transition pieces to connect the segments of the instructor hurling hapless extras around the dojo.  The big hits in this title segment coincide, you guessed it, with kinetic events onscreen, mostly punches, kicks, and other moves best left undescribed.  The commission was to create an “updated Asian feel.”  Hmmmm…..

DECADANCE for chamber orchestra

is described here.   The three movements, performed by the Claremont Chamber Orchestra:

I.  Bossa Blue

II.  Courante

III.  Cartoon Choreography

Concerto for Piano and Jazz Band  —  video at the link

Music for Faustus  —  video at the link

Out Of The Fog

This has only been performed once so far, and the acoustics were bad enough that the recording wasn’t usable, so this is just a synth demo made in Logic Pro.  You can read more about it here.

Sheer Self-Indulgence

This was premiered at the Reno NV Jazz Festival by the APU Jazz Ensemble. It features Gino Munoz on flugel/trumpet, and Amy Rowe on piano.  An interesting aspect of this one…  it has a couple of French Horns added to the typical big band, a request of the ensemble director, David Beatty.  The title reflects the fact that I put all my favorite jazz ballad stuff into this one…  so it’s probably harmonically denser than is the norm, but I admit that it was like cooking my favorite meal, and then eating it.

Transformations for Wind Ensemble

From a performance about 20 years ago by the Azusa Pacific University Wind Ensemble

Cape Fear Moods:  I.  Romance

Composed for the 2015 Cape Fear New Music Festival.  You can read more about Cape Fear Moods here.

Cape Fear Moods:  II.  Parade

Composed for the 2015 Cape Fear New Music Festival

Variance: for Clarinet and Piano

Duality for Violin and Piano, three movements totaling about 13 minutes, video and notes at the link.

As time permits, I’ll be adding more here.  Stay tuned!

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Arrangements

God Brings Down The House

From the children’s musical “Samson!”, songs by Eric Rainwater.  I always thought this one was fun, and more than a little sardonic here and there.

Silent Night for choir and orchestra

This is performed by the Azusa Pacific University Choir and Orchestra.  You may have some trouble getting this from the publisher, since it’s been sold and re-sold.  If you’re interested in performing it, let me know and I can make it available to you, either with piano accompaniment or orchestra score and parts.

Jingle Bells

For a live stage show with incredible choreography to accompany it.  It’s not totally clear to me if I have the rights to this chart…  so I’m sort of sneaking it onto the listening list here, and hoping it’s OK with the show producer.  The last time I saw this produced live, they knocked it so far out of the park it was in the next county over.  It’s written to work live with a small pit orchestra, not depending on studio magic and overdubs to happen.

Sweet Little Jesus Boy for choir and orchestra

This is the Azusa Pacific University Choir and Orchestra

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

This is a bit of an oldy.  It was the mid 1980s.  There weren’t really good sampling systems around, and no notation software that was worth the trouble.  The commission was to write an arrangement of Praise to the Lord, the Almighty for piano and orchestra, while trying to suggest a bit of a Prokofiev vibe, for use as introductory music to a Haven of Rest radio program.  This was all written on score paper in pencil.  I passed it off and had nothing to do with the production process itself.  The piano still sounds pretty good, because it’s a real piano.  The synth sounds are dated…  but you might appreciate the arrangement, anyway.  It wasn’t sequenced.  The pianist literally played all this wild to 24 track analog tape, a track at a time.  And mixed.  Given the limitations of the day, he did a brilliant job.  (If I can get his permission, I’ll put his name here later.)

Leaning On The Everlasting Arms

For solo piano and violin, and full orchestra (even though this has a jazz flavor, all the notes are written in the solo parts….  which doesn’t stop an enterprising performer from coloring outside the lines a bit).  This performance features Duane Funderburk on piano and Alex Russell on violin.  The orchestra parts are of only moderate difficulty, since the performers used this on tours where they had minimal rehearsal time with the local orchestras with which they performed.

Lord, I Want To Be A Christian

This is performed by the Azusa Pacific University Choir.

Tinseltown Finale

What happens when a producer for a huge stage show with a cast of zillions tells the arranger to write a Finale that goes through about 12 feel changes (not to mention three set changes) and fits ten songs and a dance break into less than 7 minutes?  Well….   this.  It’s not too far over the top…  or not much, anyway.  This show ran for about a year in Anaheim, CA, just down the street from Disneyland, at the appropriately named Tinseltown Theater.  This is from the cast album.

Sunrise, Sunset

I’m trying to decide if I think this one is advanced elevator music, or if it’s just a nice, warm arrangement of a standard. I guess I’ll leave it up to you to decide.

We Wish You A Merry Christmas (big band)

My apologies if a seemingly disproportionate number of the arrangements on this page are for Christmas music…. but as most working musicians know, that’s the time of the year a lot of work comes.

Lord, Hear Me Prayin

Another of the spirituals.

She Won’t Look Back

From the children’s musical “Night At The Bible Museum!”, songs by Eric Rainwater.  Look, I know this is trivial… but it’s just too much fun, a ditty about Lot’s wife.