Written for alto and baritone saxophone in 2022.
Recording performed at Art Vavich's senior recital on November 12 2022 at Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TX.
Performers: Anateresa Hipolito (alto sax) and Carter Vernon (bari sax).
Premiered at the SFA composition and saxophone studio recital on April 12 2022 at Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TX by Anateresa Hipolito (alto sax) and Becca Odom (bari sax).

In Spring 2022 the SFASU composition studio collaborated with the SFASU saxophone studio. Each composition student was assigned a set of saxophone students to write for and these students learned and performed the pieces. Moonlit Tides was my assignment, inspired by a picture of a swing hanging from a tree branch on the beach, overlooking a moonlit ocean.

Moonlit Tides

Road Movies

China Gates

Konoyo

tim hecker 'this life'

Written for piano in 2017
Performer: Mary Katherine Schober.

Purchase sheet music at https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/cycles-of-life-digital-sheet-music/21565058

Cycles of Life

IV. With One More Morning

Cycles of Life - IV. With One More Morning

III. River Sprites

Cycles of Life - III. River Sprites

Drudging Through Exhaustion

Cycles of Life - II. Drudging Through Exhaustion

I. Experiences & Evolutions

Cycles of Life - I. Experiences & Evolutions

Written for string quartet in 2018.
Performers: Westheimer String Quartet featuring Sean O'Neal (violin I), Zachary Montasser (violin II), Alexa Thomson (viola), and Daron Kirsch (cello).

Purchase sheet music at https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/remembering-the-lost-digital-sheet-music/21566491

Remembering the Lost

Written for flute and piano in 2018.
Performers: Jillian Francis (flute) and Mary Katherine Schober (piano).

Purchase sheet music at https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/the-moon-and-her-harvest-digital-sheet-music/21566557

The Moon and Her Harvest

Composer and pianist Art Vavich (he/they) got his start in music at age nine, when his first music teacher told the class about a free notation program and he was the only one who cared enough to try it out. His compositional work focuses on enriching people's lives through art, whether that be through a fun toe-tapping tune or am introspective work. Vavich’s current repertoire largely consists of traditional chamber music but they have also created works with handbells, actors, and electronics. In the future, Vavich would love to create more music that blurs the lines between classical and popular, in addition to creating explicitly queer works.

In 2022 Alice Codieck of the First United Methodist Church (FUMC) in Nacogdoches, TX commissioned Vavich to write a solo handbell and piano arrangement of a traditional hymn. The resulting work “The King Shall Come” was performed twice that same year: It was premiered at FUMC by Codieck and pianist Andrew Par and then performed at Vavich’s senior recital, this time by Codieck and Vavich. That same year Vavich also collaborated with actor Maggie Jordan to write Beyond the Grave, a work for actor and piano that tells a story through four poems by Thomas Hardy. It was premiered shortly after its creation at the show Stories of Fantasy and Tragedy in Nacogdoches by Jordan and Vavich, then subsequently performed by the pair at Vavich's senior recital.

As a pianist, Vavich has experience in solo performance, jazz band, and collaborative piano. He has helped to premiere many newly composed chamber and choral works, including larger chamber works such as one written for Pierrot ensemble. Vavich was also the pianist for the Alvin Community College Jazz Band for two and a half years and their band played in both the 2017 and 2018 Gulf Coast Intercollegiate Consortium (GCIC) jazz festivals. In his role as a collaborative pianist, Vavich has played for the funeral services of Catholic and Baptist churches and accompanied solo vocalists in both classical and jazz works.

Vavich got their BA in Composition at Stephen F Austin State University studying with composers Dr Stephen Lias and Robert J Coe. Previously, they studied composition independently with Dr Chad Robinson for two years, founder of the non-profit Texas New Music Ensemble (TNME), which Vavich also worked for during their studies. Vavich also got his AA in Piano Performance at Alvin Community College studying with composer and jazz pianist Dr Stephen Termini and pianist Carol Holst.

Moonlit Tides

Art Vavich

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