TWO BLACK CHURCHES | FOR BARITONE AND PIANO (2020)
Two Black Churches is a song set in two movements composed for baritone Will Liverman and pianist Paul Sanchez. This work is a musical reflection of two significant and tragic events perpetrated at the hands of white supremacists in two black churches, decades apart: • The 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham, Alabama, which took the lives of four girls. • The 2015 Mother Emanuel AME Church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, resulting in the deaths of nine parishioners. The text of the first movement is a poem by Dudley Randall, Ballad of Birmingham, a narrative account of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing from the perspectives of the mother of one victim and her child. Stylistically, this movement includes 1960s black gospel juxtaposed with contemporary art song. At moments, the civil rights anthem, We Shall Overcome, and the hymn, Amazing Grace, are referenced subtly. While there are strophic elements consistent with the poem's structure, the work is also rhapsodic, though serious and weighty in nature. The text of the second movement is a poem written specifically for this composition by Marcus Amaker, poet laureate of Charleston, South Carolina, called The Rain. This poem poignantly reflects the shooting at Mother Emanuel AME Church. Set in the coastal city of Charleston, which often floods, The Rain is a beautifully haunting metaphor on racism and the inability of Blacks in America to stay above water—a consequence of the flood of injustice and the weight of oppression. In this composition, the number nine is significant, symbolizing the nine people who perished that day. Musically, this is most evident through meter and a reoccurring nine-chord harmonic progression. The hymn, 'Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus,’ is quoted in this movement. This hymn was sung at the first service in the church after the shooting, testifying to a community that chose faith and hope over hate and fear.
Movement 1: Ballad of Birmingham - 0:00
Movement 2: The Rain - 10:18
Kutimbua Kivumbi (stomp the dust) | for orchestra (2015)
Second Place Winner of the 2016 American Prize in Composition (orchestral division). Kutimbua Kivumbi is a Swahili phrase that loosely means, “Stomp the Dust.” This composition was inspired by a trip to Kenya where, as a part of a sabbatical, I studied the music of the Akamba people in the Machakos region. More extensive program notes are embedded in the YouTube page.
On a Poem By Miho Nonaka: Harvard Square | for solo flute (2011)
Winner of the 2016 Flute New Music Consortium Composition Competition (solo flute division). This composition – inspired by Harvard Square, a poem by the Japanese poet, Miho Nonaka – is a work for solo flute, composed for and premiered by my friend, Caen Thomason-Redus. It was not my intention to, necessarily, text paint each word of the poem; rather, I tried to evoke the essence of the poem’s meaning. In one word, Nonaka describes her poem as being about ‘resonance.’ A natural term in the music world, the word ‘resonance’, figuratively speaking, can also mean evoking images, memories and emotions, which she beautifully achieves in Harvard Square. This composition is for the virtuoso flutist, utilizing various extended flute techniques. For example, the composition begins with the flute playing bamboo tones, a way for the modern western flute to, by using nontraditional fingerings (which I notated in the score), sound like a shakuhachi flute, a Japanese bamboo flute.
ZOOM! | FOR STRINGS AND PERCUSSION
Commissioned by the United States Air Force Band for their elite string ensemble; Commander & Conductor, Colonel Don Schofield
Program Note:
ZOOM / zo͞om / verb: move or travel very quickly
or, as I like to define:
ZOOM / zo͞om / verb: to be together when apart
Because of a global pandemic, the year 2020 will stand out in history as perhaps the most challenging year we, as a world, will have to endure in our lifetime. But even during this era, there is hope—a universal anticipation of a return to normalcy—an idea I wanted to artistically evoke in ZOOM!. This work was motivated by my desire to construct a composition that embodies a word, phrase, or idea that, in part, defines this season. "Zoom" quickly rose to the top of the list, as much of our lives and interaction with people have become centered around the video conferencing platform of the same name. Musically, most of the composition is energetic, moves quickly, and radiates joy. These attributes echo the literal meaning of the title. The title further reflects the rapid development of vaccines, restoring humanity and adding hope in a time where that sentiment was easily abandoned. The slower middle section evokes the dichotomy of being together while apart: unsatisfying in one aspect, yet, cherished.
distance | duo for cello and marimba (2016)
This work is for the virtuoso cellist and marimbist, and is inspired by a poem by Miho Nonaka entitled, Distance. This piece was composed in memory of my friend, Roger Lundin.
mi sueño: afro-flamenco (2021)
mi sueño: afro-flamenco, a work for solo piano commissioned by pianist Clare Longendyke, is a part of a series of commissions inspired by Maurice Ravel's five-movement piano suite, Miroirs. My work is a musical response to Alborada del gracioso, the dynamic, virtuosic, Spanish-inspired fourth movement of Miroirs—qualities I reimagined in mi sueño: afro-flamenco. I composed this work during the 2020/2021 global pandemic, a challenging time for our world. The title means "my dream: afro-flamenco" which references my pre-pandemic nostalgia and post-pandemic dreams. It represents my longing to revisit Africa and relive my Nigerian musical heritage, to travel to Spain and once again savor the boundless artistry of flamenco performers, and to experience new places, cultures, and music. This piece is a musical dreamscape that infuses my musical language with African and African-American-inspired rhythms and sonorities, and flamenco musical styles. If you are familiar with Alborada del gracios, you will recognize my nod to the quick castanet-like repeated notes and the dyadic glissandi.
Deep River | for treble choir (2014)
This is a live performance of my setting of Deep River for women's choir and piano. The Wheaton College Women's Chorale (for whom the piece was written) is performing the work under the direction of Dr. Mary Hopper
Ritual Dances | for band (2002)
Performed by the Band of the Royal Belgian Navy. Composed and premiered by The United States Army Field Band.
X | for percussion ensemble (2014)
X—not the Roman numeral for 10, or the 24th letter in the alphabet, or the civil rights activist, but the Greek symbol for Christ—is inspired by the text of an old 19th-century Salvation Army hymn, Christ is All. The verses were penned by Herbert Howard Booth, the son of William Booth (founder of The Salvation Army church), and W. H. Williams wrote the words to the chorus. The Salvation Army as a religious and social movement that began in Victorian England and was founded with the purpose of helping and spreading the Christian message to the lowest of society: the homeless, the poor, the drunks, the harlots, etc. In this work, I wanted to musically evoke the hustle and bustle of mid-19th century London, propelled, in part, by the industrial revolution, including the darker side of that era: drunkenness, hopelessness, and despair. This work is rhythmically complex and sonically harsh. As the piece progresses, slowly the beautiful hymn, by which the piece was inspired, enters in and ultimately takes over—serene and peaceful—musically evoking the sacred notion that while we live in a world full of darkness, it’s the love and grace of Christ that is our light, our hope, our peace.
ΨΑΛΜΟῚ ΚΑῚ ὝΜΝΟΙ ΚΑῚ ὨΙΔΑῚ ΠΝΕΥΜΑΤΙΚΑΊ | FOR SOLO PIANO (2011
This is the dynamic and graceful performance of the my work for solo piano, ψαλμοὶ καὶ ὕμνοι καὶ ᾠδαὶ πνευματικαί, performed Iris Cheng
I. Ede Ede (Nigeria) ...an ostinato – attacca
II. Bringing in the Sheaves (U.S.A.) ...a variation
III. Jisasi Fukemino (Papua New Guinea)...an impromptu
This work was composed for and premiered by my friend, pianist Sha Wang Luangkesorn, in 2011, and commissioned by Geneva College.