for string quartet + baritone

"How late I came to love you, O Beauty so ancient and so fresh,
how late I came to love you!
You were within me, yet I had gone outside to seek you.
Unlovely myself, I rushed toward all those lovely things you had made.
And always you were with me, I was not with you.
All these beauties kept me far from you -
although they would not have existed at all
unless they had their being in you.
You called, you cried, you shattered my deafness.
You sparkled, you blazed, you drove away my blindness.
You shed your fragrance, and I drew in my breath and I pant for you.
I tasted and now I hunger and thirst.
You touched me, and now I burn with longing for your peace."

St Augustine, Confessions 10.27
[translation by Kenneth Leech, used with permission]

Movement III of III

Johnathan McCullough, baritone
Shannon Lee, violin
Laura Park, violin
Ren Martin-Doike, viola
Andres Sanchez, cello

Premiered 12/09/13 at Field Concert Hall (Curtis Institute of Music)


You Shattered My Deafness - III.

The place is Juarez, Mexico. 

Over the last 20 years, hundreds, maybe thousands, of women have disappeared.  They are kidnapped, raped, tortured, and killed.  Because they are female. 

This is a piece based on the perspective of what one woman was doing before she disappeared.  Poem by Jeanne Minahan. (Used with permission).

Premiered March 31, 2014 at Curtis Institute of Music with Curtis Symphony Orchestra. Kensho Watanabe, Conductor.

The Courier's Last Letter

I know you can't find me. Look. Look. No more.
I am the envelope torn open, ripped,
window-flung, on the side of the road.  To dead
for the Dead Letter Office. Underground. Unread.

I wanted to arrive intact. No more
mishandling. Earn a bundle - carry a stash.
Find you a room with a door, mailbox, a house.
A yard with no needles, a lawn, green grass.

So much is harmless. We all need money.
One customer, one route, one haul, they said.
Pony express. But the shipment's not free.
Ink smells of blood. Now God must deliver me.

They said it was like carrying the mail.
Write to me: I was my own last letter.

The Last Letter for Soprano + Video + Soundtrack + Orchestra

Racing to get to that light at the end of the tunnel...

Chasing Light -- for orchestra

One of hopefully many more.

Born Lau, Viola
George Fu, Piano

Reflections No. 1 -- viola + piano

Abi Fayette, Violin 1
Angela Chan, Violin 2
Sungjin Lee, Viola
Zach Mowitz, Cello

Commissioned by the Barnes Foundation and Curtis Institute of Music for the Aizuri Quartet, Stripped is a nine minute one-movement work based on a temporary exhibit in the Barnes Foundation -- "Strength and Splendor: Wrought Iron from the Musée Le Secq des Tournelles, Rouen."  

I thought a lot about how these metal objects were stripped from bigger structures, and viewers are forced to view them in their original simple forms and discover the beauty in them.  My goal for Stripped was to slowly reveal beauty out of ugliness and incoherence. 

Additionally, on a personal note, I wrote this piece during a time of loss.  It struck me that in a similar way, when someone is suddenly stripped from our lives, we are left to remember the beautiful and wonderful things about them. Stripped is a small personal tribute to my friend, Alex Greene.

Stripped -- string quartet

in memory of Alex Greene and Ben Darneille

nozomi imamura, trumpet
steven franklin, trumpet
eric huckins, horn
daniel schwalbach, trombone
andrew doub, tuba

premiered april 4, 2016. 
conner gray covington, conductor.
curtis institute of music.

Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele
JS Bach, BWV 654

Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele,
Laß die dunkle Sündenhöhle,
Komm ans helle Licht gegangen,
Fange herrlich an zu prangen;
Denn der Herr voll Heil und Gnaden
Läßt dich itzt zu Gaste laden.
Der den Himmel kann verwalten,
Will selbst Herberg in dir halten.
-- Johann Franck, 1649 --


Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness,
Leave the gloomy haunts of sadness;
Come into the daylight’s splendor,
There with joy thy praises render
Unto Christ whose grace unbounded
Hath this wondrous banquet founded.
Higher o’er all the heav’ns He reigneth,
Yet to dwell with thee He deigneth.
-- translation by Catherine Winkworh, 1863 --




Blur for brass quintet + orchestra

in honor of Ms. Jeanette Lerman Neubauer's birthday 
premiered April 20, 2016 at the Curtis Institute of Music
jean-michel richer, tenor
gloria ferry-brennan, violin
chen cao, cello

CONUNDRUM
A woman seeks the highest truth.
A light shines, seducing.
Light.  Shining light.
Where is revelation?  
Pure truth.  Pure light.
Come close to see.
The highest truth is without image.
But without image, how can the truth be known?
The light blinds.  The woman fails.
She turns to words for solace.
Words seduce.  
The highest principle is without words.
But if there are no words, how can the principle be known?

Lyrics by Jeanette Lerman

Based on a Zen koan allegedly found on a Buddhist sculpture, quoted in English, and discovered by the author on the Internet.


Conundrum -- tenor + vln + vcl + loop pedal

Commissioned by Composers and Schools in Concert, REVOLT OF THE BRAVE was premiered in Louisville, KY by the 2016-2017 Frederick Law South Academy 8th grade String Orchestra and the University of Louisville Symphony Orchestra in March 2017 under the batons of Kimcherie Lloyd and Courtney Schisler.

The piece is inspired by feminine strength and perseverance.  Current society does not often associate the idea of strength with women, but it is a very natural quality among us all.  The same could be said of a string orchestra.  Strength shows itself in many forms, and string instruments also offer an incredibly wide color palette and require an immense amount of discipline and perseverance to be played well.

Revolt of the Brave is a strong, rhythmic piece written for grade 2+.  The piece explores some extended techniques (percussive taps, slaps, stomps) and provides an opportunity to refine intonation in the key of D-minor.  While the piece is strong enough to stand on its own, an orchestral accompaniment is available (as in the recording), which features the string ensemble as soloist.

Revolt Of The Brave for Grade 2+ String Orchestra and Full Orchestra

Kanika Ambrose, librettist
Will Liverman, baritone
Reese Revak, piano

written for 2018 Tapestry Opera's LibLab Residency

Late at night. Vincent and his wife, Marjean are seeking asylum from Haiti. Their home was destroyed in the earthquake. They stop behind some trees near the border. From a distance, Vincent sees the lights around a tent city and realizes they’re close. Excited, Vincent calls back to Marjean to let her know how close they are to freedom.

"To those fleeing persecution, terror, and war..." for baritone + piano

Commissioned by Network for New Music. Premiered in 2019.

Thomas Kraines, cello
Burchard Tang, viola
Mark Livshits, piano

Reflections No. 2 -- viola + cello + piano

Late night. The home is dark. Light casts down the hallway, projecting from the gap around the closed bathroom door. Charlie, a young boy, grabs his uncle Robert's hand and drags him to the toilet. They stand over the bowl, looking in. Charlie looks at Robert expectantly.

Daniel Solon, librettist
Aaron Crouch, tenor
Will Liverman, baritone
Reese Revak, piano

Written for Tapestry Opera's LibLab workshop ins 2018.

The Farewell Poo for tenor + baritone + piano

JABBERWOCKY, text by Lewis Carroll

Zachary James, bass baritone
Charity Wicks, piano
Rene Orth, producer/composer

Streaming on Spotify and all streaming platforms
Music video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEDERuiIgnw

reneorth

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