Godzilla Devours Reno

Sightread by the University of Texas Symphony Orchestra
Jason Hong, conductor

Symphony #2 (movements 1+2)

Performed live by the Crane Harp Ensemble

Modal Fixture for Harp Quartet

performed live on 2/5/15 by Pale Blue Wind Ensemble 
Michael Arnold - solo trumpet
Jason Missal - conductor

pdf of score and trumpet part available here:
http://www.michaelmikulka.com/trumpetconcerto.html

Concerto For Trumpet And Wind Ensemble

Sightread by the University of Texas Wind Ensemble
conducted by Steven Knight

score and parts available for purchase at http://www.michaelmikulka.com/canyonedge.html

“From the Canyon Edge” was composed in March 2015 for Amy Emelianoff and the students of Newark Academy.  It is written in a rondo-like form, and primarily contrasts a rough and aggressive theme with one of delicate beauty.

The middle of the piece contains a rugged fanfare with jarring harmonies. These melodies reminded me of the striking beauty, danger, expansiveness, and stark natural features of Palo Duro Canyon, which I had recently visited. 

Pedagogically, this piece aims to familiarize students with three mildly challenging rhythmic ideas which are repeated throughout:  starting passages on offbeats (particularly the “and” of 1), metric displacement (such as in the theme at letter C), and the passage in the “fanfare” section with two 16th notes followed by a rest (in which students may be tempted to rush the 8th note rest).

From the Canyon Edge reading

Live performance by the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic

Movement 1:  Flurries - New Brunswick, NJ
Movement 2:  Nighttime Snowfall - Mount Pleasant, MI
Movement 3:  Blizzard - Kittatinny Lake, NJ

Snowfalls

"Cento" for full orchestra, reading session by the UT Symphony Orchestra: Alejandro Gutierrez, conductor

A cento is a poem comprised entirely of poems by other authors, and Cento is a musical representation of that concept: The entire melodic content is derived from famous orchestral compositions.

The main purpose of Cento is to draw attention to the way we subconsciously remember music. When I hear an unaccompanied melody, I tend to provide it with a harmony. Often, when I finally hear a performance or recording of the piece, the harmony will be different than I had expected. Other times, I will commit a piece to memory on short notice, and it will be in my head for months or years when I have a chance to see the music again, and discover I have been playing a wrong note or rhythm. Other times, I will hear a performance with a wrong note or rhythm and find that I like that version better, and I will play pieces in different keys to hear the difference.

One recurring motive in Cento comes from the slow movement of Dvorak’s 9th symphony, which I first experienced in simplified form in a piano book. The book made a mistake and halved the note values of a certain passage. When I first heard the orchestral recording of Dvorak 9, I immediately noticed the disparity, but decided that I liked the pentatonic line better at twice the speed, which is how it occurs in Cento. The ascending runs at the end of the composition are a reference to Kingfishers Catch Fire by John Mackey: after hearing that piece, I can’t hear the ending of the Firebird any other way.

The melodies are quoted from the following compositions:

Rite of Spring: Stravinsky
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun: Debussy
Tristan und Isolde: Wagner
Spartacus: Khachaturian
Thais: Massenet
Don Juan: Strauss
Symphony #7: Beethoven 
Symphony #9: Dvorak
Capriccio Espagnol: Rimsky-Korsakov
Pictures at an Exhibition: Mussorgsky/Ravel
The Firebird: Stravinsky
The Planets: Holst
Symphony #4: Tchaikovsky

Cento (reading session)

Selected excerpts from each of the 20 duets:
Zach Morgan, horn
Michael Mikulka, horn

This is a set of 20 challenging duets with no page turns required: they have been composed in various contemporary styles, and take the traditions and quirks of the horn into account. 

Duets can be purchased at www.michaelmikulka.com

20 Advanced Two-Page Horn Duets

Suite for Tuba, Trumpet, and Piano 
by Michael Mikulka
(Excerpts from movements II, III, and IV)
I: Intrada
II: Vocalise
III: Scherzo
IV: Intermezzo
V: Finale

http://www.michaelmikulka.com

Suite for Tuba, Trumpet, and Piano (Excerpts)

Suite for Brass Octet
by Michael Mikulka

I. Intrada
II. Bicurious
III. Soliloquy
IV. Scherzo Marziale
V. Chant and Evolution
VI. Finale

Live performance by the Lone Star Brass Orchestra 5/30/17
http://www.michaelmikulka.com/

"Suite for Brass Octet" is composed of 6 short movements: 

-Intrada is a quartal introduction in a miniaturized ABCBA form. 
-If the second movement isn’t bitonal, it’s at least Bicurious. 
-Movement 3 is a lyrical Soliloquy for solo tuba. 
-The Scherzo Marziale is an amalgamation of the aforementioned styles: it quotes the trio of my band piece “Marche Slava”, which itself includes a quote of “Stars and Stripes Forever”. 
-Chant and Evolution explores the reshaping of an original “Gregorian Chant” melody. 
-The Finale is bold and fast-paced and brings back themes from the other movements.

Suite for Brass Octet: Lone Star Brass Orchestra

Music to Drift Away With
composed by Michael Mikulka

Piccolo: Kenzie Slottow
Flutes: Allison Asthana*, Katie Berry, Kari Boyer*, Margaux Filet
Oboes: Jordan Dale*, Joshua Owens
Clarinets: Yin-Ling Liu*, Daniel Toscano Rodriguez, Ryan Stockhausen, Alan Bowden, Thomas Rodriguez, Pamela Horst
Bass Clarinet: Julie Vest
Bassoons: Caroline Miller*, Daniel Schulze
Alto Saxophones: Darwin McMurray*, Victor Rodriguez
Tenor Saxophone: Chris Hunley
Baritone Saxophone: Megan Elks
Horns: Jessica Lin*, David Bontemps, Parker Kauffman, Ashlyn Phillips
Trumpets: Casey Martin*, Miki Sasaki, Michael Arnold
Trombones: Joshua Hernandez*, Adam Williams, Luke Berringer
Euphoniums: Matt Kundler*, Drew Bonner
Tuba: Sander Schierer
Timpani: Cy Miessler
Percussion: Francis Favis, Dan Syvret, Anthony Cantu, Edric Salazar, Charlie Stevens

Music To Drift Away With

Concerto for Flute and Chamber Orchestra

I) Brash and cheerful
II) Delicately at first, with passion
III) Playfully maniacal
IV) Contemplative and forlorn
V) Aggressively, manic


recording of premiere performance on 4/26/13:

Timothy Hagen, flute
UT New Music Ensemble (Ben Stonaker, conductor)

Michael Mikulka

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