Contemporary chamber music to a heartbeat pace.
Sibelius midi realizations pending ensemble recording.

Island Empire - I

Island Empire - II

Island Empire - III

Speak Of Mirages

The Notebook

Ad Libitum

Music written for piano quartet with consideration to Simon Fraser University Contemporary Arts 2014. This is the Sibelius midi realization.

Tell Me a Story - Movement III

Tell Me a Story - Movements I & II

Music written for Bb and Eb Clarinet, Bassoon, Trombone, and Percussion: Vibraphone, Snare Drum, Marimba, Bass Drum, Tambourine, and Triangle with consideration to Simon Fraser University Contemporary Arts 2015. This is the Sibelius midi realization.

Await the Wild:

I. (0:00 - 2:11) Seek the Enclave: Wylde seeks to understand musical creation and is told to seek the enclave in order to receive musical attainment. It is a scary and daunting task, but Wylde is prepared for it.

II. (2:11 - 3:16) Welcome, Wylde: He finds the enclave of music, and is welcomed by its inhabitants happily.

III. (3:16 - 4:46) Enjoy!: Wylde, now within the enclave of music is instructed to enjoy himself during his stay for attainment.

IV. (4:46 – 5:52) Wylde's Transformation: After an extended rest from the festivities Wylde's understanding of musical enjoyment begins to transform and take on new shape, for the better or worse?

V: (5:52 – 7:57) Attainment: Wylde has received his attainment of new musical understanding and is now free to leave the enclave. Will he go back to his home or stay in the enclave?

Await the Wild

Music for Bb Trumpet, French Horn in F, and Trombone. This music was written with consideration to Simon Fraser University Contemporary Arts 2015. This music has been read, however it lacks a full performance and premier. This is the Sibelius midi realization.

Infinite Ethics:
(0:00 – 2:28)	  I. Substantive Components
(2:28 – 5:35) 	  II. Formal Components
(5:35 – 8:42) 	  III. Criteria
(8:42 – 11:10)           IV. Desiderada
 
“Aggregative ethics implies that such a world contains an infinite amount of positive value and an infinite amount of negative value. You can affect only a finite amount of good or bad. In standard cardinal arithmetic, an infinite quantity is unchanged by the addition or subtraction of any finite quantity. So it appears you cannot change the value of the world.” (Bostrom)

I am lucky to have had the opportunity to write music for a horn trio in my final year of my undergraduate degree for music composition at SFU. This paper inspired me to use Infinite Ethics as a theme for the composition that I was to do for the fall semester of 2015. The above quote along with the paper gave me a lot to think about when writing music. If it is true, and that we cannot change the value of the world, then why write music?

I decided to borrow Bostrom's named components where he investigates aggregative ethics, and adequacy criteria in his paper. I felt that this would help align myself with some of his ideas, name the movements, and also create a framework that I could manipulate on my own. There was no concrete vision for realizing the whole piece because I wanted the music to be intuitive. I wanted the music to reflect an evolution of thought, and be proof of my attempt to work out ideas to the end. 

Source:
IN F I N I T E   ET H I C S
Nick Bostrom
Faculty of Philosophy
Oxford University
[Published in Analysis and Metaphysics, Vol. 10 (2011): pp. 9-59]
[This is the final version. Earlier versions: 2003, 2005, 2008, 2009]
www.nickbostrom.com


Infinite Ethics

I am a West Coast Canadian composer. I am writing and editing music, as well as arranging recording sessions with live musicians. It is an exciting time to be a composer.
-bjc 

Joe Choice

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