After having written quite a few heavy, aggressive works for saxophones, I wanted to express some different kinds of ideas on the instrument. Two players work together and against one another with varying degrees of precision: sometimes reflecting, other times reacting.

This performance is by George Weremchuk and Timothy Rosenberg at the University of Central Florida, 1 March 2016. 

The score is available in PDF here: https://gum.co/lineargeo

Linear Geometry (2015)

This work experiments with different ways of grouping and combining groups of the eight saxophone players. The ensemble is divided primarily into two quartets. Pitches and rhythms disagree between the two groups. As the work progresses, players in the same group begin to work together to build larger structures. Eventually, the groups coalesce into a single, large group that reaches a conclusion sharing material as a unit.

This performance is by the Hippocrene Saxophone Ensemble, for whom the work was composed, at the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference at Texas Tech University in March 2016. 

Score and parts PDFs available here: https://gum.co/ungroup

Ungroup (2016)

Soon to be Echoes opens with a simple, blank canvas of sound. An unexpected spark of inspiration in the woodwinds leads to a distant horn solo, heard as if in a memory. The memory is carried into the present by the ensemble, and then echoes hopefully forward into the future. The idea from the past is preserved and stewarded by the group as a whole. It informs our future, but does not determine it.

This is a rehearsal recording from the commissioning ensemble. 

Soon To Be Echoes (2012)

Live performance by Chris Baird and UCF Percussion, directed by Thad Anderson. 

Chris Baird, steelpans
Robin Thompson, piano
Nicholas Chase, Devon Costanza, Theodore Jackson, & Chris Marsh, percussion

14 October 2016
University of Central Florida

Concerto for Steelpan and Chamber Ensemble, mvt. 1

perf. Alterity Wind Quintet
15 Oct 2017 
at the Timucua Arts Foundation

Carrie Wiesinger, flute
Beatriz Ramirez-Belt, oboe
Natalie Grata, clarinet
Kat Sleeper, bassoon
Kathy Thomas, horn

A stumpery is a type of garden which features the upturned roots of dead trees. The roots of a tree are very beautiful and intricate, sometimes even more than the rest of the tree; but, this is completely invisible for most living trees. In this piece, players tangle around one another like the roots of a tree. The space left by the tendrils is emphasized by reverberations, similar to the sustain pedal of a piano. Independent lines branch out from one another and grow back together. The outer shape of the root persists while the individual strands weave into and around one another. 

davidmacdonaldmusic.com
alterityco.org
timucua.com
cfcomposers.org

Stumpery (2017)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/riwptukribw6yjk/I%20WANT%20NOTHING%20-%20Full%20score.pdf?dl=0

I WANT NOTHING

Inner/Outer Monologue (2007), solo tenor saxophone, duration 8’, premiered April 18, 2008 by Jonathan Nichol at the North American Saxophone Alliance conference at the University of South Carolina.

I like to think of this piece as a person who has a hard time keeping his thoughts to himself. It begins with a quiet intensity, which is interrupted by raucous outbursts bubbling up from below. Gradually these outbursts grow and overtake the calm exterior. The calmer voice reasserts itself, but the reprieve is short-lived. The gentle exterior is no match for the more bombastic personality.

This piece was written in collaboration with saxophonist Jonathan Nichol. Jonathan and I experimented with many different sounds to express the striking contrasts that are available to the tenor saxophone, from the most fragile and transparent to the harshest and most aggressive.


Inner/Outer Monologue (2007)

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

3. Aster (Plato, 428-348 BCE)

Star gazer, my star, if only I were the sky,
I would watch you with ten thousand eyes.

Alive, you shone among us like the morning star;
now, like the evening star, your mantle lights the dead.

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 3. Aster

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

5. Eclipse (Archilochus, 680-645 BCE)

Nothing can surprise me now, nothing can astonish 
or alarm me now the god of gods has galled the midday 
into night and trimmed the light of the westering sun. 
Surely anything can happen now, anything at all, 
so brace yourselves for the sight of milk cows grazing 
the dolphin-crowded seas, of sure-footed dear 
and mountain goats crossing the talus of a cresting wave.

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 5. Eclipse

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

1. Invitation (Anonymous, Hellenistic period, ca. 323-31 BCE)

Why was I born? Where did I come from?
How did I happen to be where I am?
Knowing nothing, how can I learn anything?

I was nothing, and yet I was born, 
and before too long I'll be nothing again, 
nothing at all, of no value whatever.

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 1. Invitation

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

2. Nocturne (Sappho, ca. 620-570 BCE)

Midnight. The moon 
has set, and the Pleiades. 
The hours pass 
and pass, yet still I lie alone. 

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 2. Nocturne

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

4. The Dance (Sappho)

The moon rose late, 
and breathless girls, 
each taking her place 
around the altar.

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 4. The Dance

Greek Lyric Poems (2007), baritone, alto flute, and piano, text from Greek Lyric Poetry (trans. Sherod Santos), duration 15’, premiered May 4, 2007 by Joe Baunoch, baritone; Marissa Olin, Flute; and Kawai Chan, piano at Michigan State University.

6. to Oblivion (Anonymous)
I was nothing, and yet I was born, 
and before too long I'll be nothing again, 
nothing at all, of no value whatever. 

And such is the lot of everyone. I say, 
therefore, brim the mixing bowls with wine, 
for only in oblivion is oblivion braved.

Greek Lyric Poems (2007) - 6. to Oblivion

David's music has been performed at venues around the world, including Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall. He is from St. Louis, Missouri and received a B.M. in composition and trumpet performance from the University of Missouri - Columbia and a M.M. and D.M.A. in composition from Michigan State University. He has studied composition with Ricardo Lorenz, W. Thomas McKenney, and Stefan Freund. 

David has been honored by the BMI Student Composer Awards, the Sinquefield Family Foundation, and Michigan State University Honors Competition. He has been commissioned by the Hastings College Symphonic Band, h2 Quartet, and others.

David is one of the founders of [SoundNotionTV](http://soundnotion.tv), a podcast network featuring audio and video shows about music and the arts. He serves on the board of directors of [Null-state](https://www.nullstate.org/), a non-profit organization promoting research and education in computer music. Previously, he served as president of the [Central Florida Composers Forum](http://cfcomposers.org/), Director of Digital Media for the [Timucua Arts Foundation](https://timucua.com/), and founder and co-Artistic Director of SCENE&heard, a new music concert series at the [(SCENE) Metrospace](http://scenemetrospace.com/) gallery in East Lansing, Michigan.

He teaches composition, theory, and technology at Wichita State University. He has previously taught at the University of Central Florida, Grand Valley State University, and Michigan State University.

email: davidjohnmacdonald@gmail.com

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