This summer, I played a lot of piano. I sat down one day and recorded this piano track, and improvised over it on trumpet. After a bit of editing on the trumpet part, this was the result. Enjoy as these two sounds, these two “waves”, dance together and crash against each other

Crashing Waves

I wrote this track to learn Logic Pro— I was inspired by the announcement of Kamala Harris running for president and felt called to use the words of great poets and activists

Be the Light

'A Melody for Hope' is the final movement from 'Anicca and Prema', performed in 2021. And, believe it or not, was written at an airport in Las Vegas a week before. Meant to be a song of faith and hope, it’s sung like a choral by all performance and audience members alike. The refrain, 'the sun will rise again', is meant to instill faith and hope; that amidst even the most difficult hardships, we will rise if we close our eyes and remember that 'the sun will rise again'.
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Ryan O'Connell Trumpet
Cate Byrne, Violin
Brittany Bryant, Vocals
Solomon Caldwell, Bass
Miguel Landestoy, Piano
John Dalton, Drums

A Melody for Hope

Plastic City was written by myself, violinist Cate Byrne, and vibraphone player Henry Wilson in the Fall of 2021, and edited in the Spring of 2022. While we performed, audience members viewed statistics about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that was projected behind us. Our intention was to create a soundscape that a) created a musical commentary that spoke directly to the jarring realities of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and b) allowed listeners to more deeply reflect on these realities while they learned from the information projected. 
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Violin - Cate Byrne
Trumpet - Ryan OConnell
Vibraphone - Henry Wilson

Plastic City

I walked into an echoey space at an ashram and recorded this one-take, improvised trumpet solo… enjoy :)

Song for the Beloved

I’m an improviser and composer that’s been playing music since I was four years old. While my formal degrees specialize in trumpet performance, I’m fascinated by how different sound colors interact with each other to create various textures and forms. My music tends to be more contemplative as I explore the connections between sound and spirituality. In addition to trumpet, this has also led to greater experimentation with the colors of the piano, tabla, and flute.

A Melody for Hope

Ryan O'Connell

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