Morse Code Pop uses a syncopated theme that mimics the sound of a Morse code signal. The composer is not fluent in Morse code, however, and so any specific messages that may result from the motivic material are not intended... Many thanks to Valerie Vidal and Elizabeth Owsijuk for their musical talents, enthusiasm and dedication in preparing this work for its premiere.

Morse Code Pop (2003) - for alto & baritone saxophone

Whirl is a musical representation of the word "whirl" (to rotate or spin fast, to move rapidly in a circular manner). To create the aural perception of whirling, many figures are constructed with rapid ascending/descending scales and feathered beaming.  Extremely aggressive and driving rhythms create the energy that sets things spinning. Whirl is published by Carl Fischer.

Whirl (1999)- for wind ensemble

Push, is defined* as follows: 1. To exert outward pressure or force against something; 2. To advance despite difficulty or opposition, press forward; 3. To expend great or vigorous effort. This work utilizes a two-note motive, a rising figure, and a lyrical melody to musically represent the word “push”. These materials are used to set many different moods: driving and aggressive, funky, jazzy, lyrical and “techno”, but always exhibit a strong sense of the “push” regardless of the character they are displaying.

Originally scored for wind ensemble, the orchestral version of Push was commissioned by James Tapia and the Syracuse University Symphony Orchestra and was the winner of the Minneapolis Pops Orchestra's 2011 New Repertoire Award.


PUSH (2001/2003) - for orchestra (or wind ensemble)

Inspired in part by the energy and immediacy of contemporary pop music, Spin (2011) uses a number of elements to suggest the sensation of spinning: a circle of fifths harmonic progression, canonic passages, modal figures that loop around the tonic, and uneven rhythmic patterns. Throughout the work variations of the calm and slow moving opening theme are alternated against, and eventually combined with, extremely aggressive, driving, and energetic material.

Spin (2011) - string quartet

Morse Code Pop uses a syncopated theme that mimics the sound of a morse code signal. The composer is not fluent in morse code, however, so any specific messages that may result from the motivic material are not intended…

Originally composed as a duet for alto and baritone saxophone for Valerie Vidal and Elizabeth Owsijuk, the work was subsequently arranged for soprano and alto saxophone duo, at the request of Elizabeth Rosinbum and Jessica Voigt for a performance at the 2015 World Saxophone Congress in Strasbourg, and saxophone quartet, at the request of Dan Gelok, the saxophone professor at the University of Houston, Moores School of Music for a performance at the 2016 Texas Music Educators Association Conference.

Morse Code Pop (2016) - saxophone quartet

Pilas are public spaces in rural Central America where people go to wash clothes and socialize together. Significant relationships are built here, thus making pilas an important location in their community. Sandra Tirey and Jan van Lohuizen’s newly built home, dubbed “Geezerville”, reflects the ancient roots of pilas in a modern way, through their creation of mutual spaces to be shared with their neighbors. In the same way that their home will become the central meeting space for their community, LAS PILAS combines several ideas that coalesce in the end to form a unified whole in celebration of Geezerville’s birth.

LAS PILAS was commissioned by Sandra Tirey and Jan van Lohuizen and premiered by MUSIQA.

Las Pilas (2013) - string trio

THREE SONGS FOR THE DAY OF THE DEAD were commissioned by the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra (Houston, TX) for their annual concert to celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). The first two songs, As She Looked Around (2012) and Death Goes Before Me (2013), were written for bass-baritone Timothy Jones, and the last song, Exultation (2011), was written for soprano Karol Bennett and arranged for bass-baritone for this cycle. A version of this work scored for baritone, clarinet, violin, and cello is also available.


TEXTS – Three Songs for the Day of the Dead

I. As She Looked Around (1847) – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
an excerpt from Part II, section 5 of “Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie”

And, with light in her looks, she entered the chambers of sickness.
Many a languid head, upraised as Evangeline entered,
To gaze while she passed, for her presence
Fell on their hearts like a ray of the sun on the walls of a prison.
And, as she looked around, she saw how Death, the consoler,
Laying his hand upon many a heart, had healed it forever.

II. Death Goes before Me (1920) – Yvor Winters (1900-1968)

Death goes before me on his hands and knees,
And we go down among the bending trees.
Weeping I go, and no man gives me ease
I am that strange thing that each strange eye sees;
Eyes of the silence, and all life an eye,
Turn in the wind; and always I walk by.
Too still I go, and all things go from me
As down far autumn beaches a man runs to the sea.
My hands are cold, my lips are thin and dumb.
Stillness is like the beating of a drum.

III. Exultation (1860) – Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Exultation is the going
Of an inland soul to sea,
Past the houses, past the headlands,
Into deep eternity!
Bred as we, among the mountains,
Can the sailor understand
The devine intoxication
Of the first league out from land?

Three Songs for the Day of the Dead - III. Exultation (text: Emily Dickinson)

THREE SONGS FOR THE DAY OF THE DEAD were commissioned by the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra (Houston, TX) for their annual concert to celebrate Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). The first two songs, As She Looked Around (2012) and Death Goes Before Me (2013), were written for bass-baritone Timothy Jones, and the last song, Exultation (2011), was written for soprano Karol Bennett and arranged for bass-baritone for this cycle.

A version of this work scored for baritone, clarinet, violin, and cello is also available.

Three Songs for the Day of the Dead - II. Death Goes Before Me (text: Yvor Winters)

Three Songs for the Day of the Dead - I. As She Looked Around (text: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)

Chaw refers to something that is chewed or the act of chewing something that is not to be swallowed, such as a wad of tobacco. The American Minstrel song "Ching-A-Ring-Chaw" (1833), one of the songs Aaron Copland arranged in his "Old American Songs", is "chewed up" in order to create this energetic and virtuosic work. The original tune, presented in the violin at the start, comes in and out of focus throughout. Chaw was written for Music from Copland House, who premiered the work in February of 2012.

Chaw (2012) for flute, clarinet, violin, cello & piano

The innovative and highly energetic music of Rob Smith is frequently performed throughout the United States and abroad. He is an Associate Professor of Music Composition and director of the AURA Contemporary Ensemble at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music.  Boosey & Hawkes, Carl Fischer, Southern Music, C-Alan Publications, and Skitter Music Publications publish his music.

Rob Smith, composer

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