Orchestra Works

Upcoming premiere at the Spring 2026 Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic Composers Concert.

Composer Note:

Scherzo & Adagio was written for the Spring 2026 Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic Student Composers Concert. Given the occasion, I decided to use the piece to commemorate my composition studio professors from six memorable and formative years of undergraduate and graduate study. This commemoration takes multiple forms in Scherzo & Adagio, but one that I would like to highlight is the recurring melody first presented by the flutes and oboes. The pitches of this melody are a (very convoluted) musical cryptogram of my five studio professors' names in reverse chronological order: Nancy Galbraith, JoAnne Harris, Joel Friedman, Andrew E. Simpson, and Stephen Gorbos. The angular melody first presented by the trumpets "spells out" my own name in a similar fashion, and I set these two ideas in succession and then in dialogue to reflect how much I owe to studio lessons once a week for 12 semesters with these talented professors.

At the same time, there's something ambivalent, tense, or even menacing about all of this material, which dies mysteriously into a slow, contrasting section. Whatever types of mentors we have, when we consider the gifts they have shared with us, we might suddenly doubt whether we have the ability to live up to our mentors' hopes. But one possible response to this kind of doubt is to reaffirm our commitment to personal growth, which is depicted in the slow section's gradual build to an even more intense, truly celebratory return of the earlier melodies. After that, the piece fades away cheerfully and playfully. Many, if not all of the "important" moments and realizations in life occur in the midst of the "ordinary" ones, but it is just as possible for us to appreciate life as a whole as it is for us to appreciate an entire piece of music with many contrasting moments. 

Premiered by Maestro Aidan Feeney and the Catholic University of America Chamber Orchestra at the CUA Fall 2024 Chamber Orchestra Concert.

Composer Note:

Prayer of St. Francis was composed for Maestro Tartaglione and the Catholic University of America Chamber Orchestra in memory of Thomas Kanzelberger, a CUA student who passed away in June 2024. With solemn, somber material that seems increasingly despairing, the first section explores the idea that praying for personal peace in the face of tragedy can feel hopeless. In the second section, however, the mood becomes brighter as an insistent trumpet call heralds a soaring, majestic "Gloria" theme; while dark emotions do briefly return, the "Gloria" theme ultimately triumphs. The opening material closes the work, but this time "personal peace" is no longer resignation in the face of tragedy but quiet, serene confidence in God's will and plan for salvation.

As the Prayer of St. Francis asks of us, where there is despair, let us sow hope; where there is darkness, light.

Presented in MIDI.

Composer Note:

This symphony's first movement opens with a harsh and menacing setting of the text "Et in Terra Pax" ("And on Earth Peace"). Different ideas and emotions attempt to establish themselves, but the brutality of the main idea always seems to triumph. Can peace be found on Earth?

The second movement is inspired by the text "Adiuva Incredulitatem Meam" ("Help My Unbelief"). In contrast to the first movement, each word is set to a unique musical idea. The main theme, a lyric setting of "Adiuva" in solo violin, is tragic, with a sense of longing. Next, double reeds present a dissonant, murky setting of "Meam" above which a chromatic clarinet duo setting of "Incredulitatem" emerges. While the darkness of these ideas is not fully resolved, the movement does seem to end peacefully, as if in hope that doubt does not destroy faith.

The third movement's fierce opening is answered by a "scornfully" cheerful setting of "Ne Nos Inducas in Tentationem" ("Lead Us Not into Temptation") that bustles along but always seems to run into trouble, tumbling over itself and leading into dark, "dismal" ideas based on the doubtful material from the second movement. An "off-kilter," hazy waltz from the rst movement is followed by an oppressive, brutal march that crashes terribly. The fierce opening returns, but dwindles away as the movement ends with a reminder of "Et in Terra Pax's" main theme.

"Memento Mei Cum Veneris in Regnum Tuum" begins with a cold, windy texture, from which horns herald a noble main theme that sets the text "Gloria in Excelsis Deo" ("Glory to God in the Highest") based on a gure that has reappeared throughout the symphony. This theme appears three times, increasingly powerful and triumphant. After each of the rst two variations, a slow, mournful setting of the text "Memento Mei Cum Veneris in Regnum Tuum" ("Remember Me When You Come into Your Kingdom") responds, both times sinking into despair. The third variation of the theme ramps up to extreme intensity but fades away as the windy opening returns. For a long moment, desolation pervades the work, but a solo horn call closes the symphony with a final gesture of hope.

Premiered by Maestro Ovidiu Marinescu and the Vidin Sinfonietta at the 2023 International Musicians Academy.

Composer Note:

Night Ride Before a Duel imagines a duelist on a midnight horseback ride. Before tomorrow’s physical conflict, a battle occurs between the duelist’s courage and fear. The piece follows a modified sonata form. The exposition begins with Night, a hazy theme into which the main theme, the Duelist, rides on tense strings and winds. The Memory theme enters as a playful dance reminding the Duelist of home and giving them new conviction, but the crude and garish Fear theme halts all momentum.

The development sees Night’s return, but this time the emerging theme is that of a winding River that the doubt-filled duelist follows. This River’s calm nature quells all motivation in the Duelist, who begins a tranquil dance that is once more interrupted; Fear seems to mock the Duelist by presenting the Memory theme, but distorted and menacing. The Duelist stares down into the water and a distorted reflection stares back with the melody presented upside-down.

This sight is enough to charge the Duelist into riding on even more resolute in the Recapitulation. Alongside the winding River, the Duelist is filled with doubt once more, but after Night fades in briefly, the Duelist rides on, leaving every Fear behind. 

Premiered in PA by Adam Gillespie and the Westmoreland Youth Symphony Orchestra Philharmonic in the WYSO Fall 2024 Concert.

Composer Note: 

Composed for the Westmoreland Youth Symphony Orchestra, Wolf Rocks Expedition is a fantastical depiction of hiking one of the beautiful trails found in Laurel Summit State Park, Pennsylvania. The piece begins with rising minor sixths, the "wolf" motif which appears throughout. A brief sense of foreboding is answered by the piece's main theme, a heroic and cheerful melody that moves with purpose like a hiker eager to brave this new trail.

This celebration of adventure is interrupted by uneasy material; perhaps the hiker has spotted a snake and is now walking more carefully. Though deciding to continue on, the hiker is unsettled by this experience and now proceeds uncertainly, with the main theme feeling off-kilter. Suddenly, gathering clouds unleash a terrible storm, and the hiker must seek cover in this torrential downpour. As the rain lets up, it leaves behind silence...and lots of mud.

At first, the hiker can only muster the energy to gingerly trod through this mucky trail, but as the sun comes out and the hiker begins to dry off, the situation doesn't seem nearly as bad. With the hiker confidently setting forth once more, the main theme returns, building in speed and intensity as the end of the trail is near. The piece reaches a triumphant conclusion: the hiker has finally completed this noble expedition and gazes out upon the world from the top of Wolf Rocks.