Performed by NZSO, conducted by Matthias Bamert, 1 October 2005, Town Hall, Auckland. Live recording by Radio New Zealand Concert. Used by kind permission of Radio New Zealand Concert.

NYO: Strauss – Excerpt from Also sprach Zarathustra

Grateful - Live

Thirteen miniature journeys, each a complete world in ninety seconds.

In this new album, Samuel Hamish Gray continues his exploration of spontaneous composition — music created entirely in the moment, unpremeditated yet intricately formed. Each piece was conceived, performed, and completed in a single take, bound only by one strict parameter: a duration of exactly one minute and thirty seconds.

Within that constraint lies astonishing freedom. The result is thirteen concise piano works — cinematic, lyrical, sometimes fragile, sometimes dramatic — each a distilled emotional narrative. Gray’s playing moves from shimmering introspection to bold, cinematic resonance, his improvisations sculpted by instinct and refined by long experience in both classical and jazz idioms.

Listeners familiar with his Sirius Suite (2025), a meditation on loss and love, will recognize the same immediacy and tenderness, but here the focus is on compression: each piece a single breath, a fleeting vision, a self-contained journey.

Gray is known for his fully spontaneous solo piano performances in Norway, New Zealand, and beyond, and for his forthcoming long-form work Norgesvenn (2026), recorded as one continuous arc. These new miniatures reveal another side of his artistry — concise, pure, and perfectly balanced between composition and improvisation.

Perfect for reflective playlists, film and documentary use, or simply quiet listening, each piece can stand alone, loop seamlessly, or fade into thought — small universes of sound, carved from silence.

Untitled IV

Chamber symphony "(SIN)fonietta" (2015), performed by chamber orchestra "Sinfonietta Riga", conducted by Normunds Šnē. Recorded at Riga Great Guild, 14.11.2015 

(SIN)fonietta (2015)

Composer: Vahid Jahandari
Performers: Ehsan Shahsavan, Homayoun Sabzevari and Masoud.

I composed 'I Sang, Death' for Tar trio in November 2014. The title was borrowed from a verse by the Persian poet Ahmad Shamloo (1925-2000) in his poem:

'I sang, Death
More turbulent than life
I sang, the life
Greener than ever'

The general form of the piece is rooted in minimalist music, and the harmonic relations predominantly draw from Iranian modes such as Chahargah, Esfahan, and others.

"I, Sang Death" for tar trio

"Yellow Hasn't Become Red for No Reason"
for setar, Persian udu and electronics
Composed by Vahid Jahandari

2-channel acousmatic music

Based on the poem by Persian poet, Nima Yooshij (1895–1960):
"Yellow hasn't become red for no reason
the red hasn't cast its colour
upon the wall for no reason”

The piece was premiered at LATEX 2016,
A Festival of Electronic Music by Student Composers and Performers from Louisiana and Texas

Hosted by the University of Texas at Austin
On November 4, 2016 at Jessen Auditorium, Austin, TX

Participating Schools:
The University of Texas at Austin
University of North Texas
Rice University
Louisiana State University
Tulane University

Setar: Fared Shafinury

Butler School of Music
College of Fine Arts
The University of Texas at Austin

Yellow Hasn't Become Red For No Reason

Eastern Visions - excerpt

This piece purposefully conflicts different musical genres by juxtaposing them to create a multifaceted musical effect, full of poly-rhythms, multi-harmony, and different melodies which appear in different scales simultaneously – just like a joker who has different aspects to his personality and being. All of these themes are an original composition by the composer.

The music begins with a thoughtful, introspective and non-pulsing feeling, in an imaginary atmosphere. Suddenly, a strong short gesture disrupts the atmosphere but the original feeling continues to be conveyed thereafter. This characteristic occurs several times throughout the remainder of the first section of the piece. With the full orchestra in playing, monophonically, the main theme, which we hear reappear later in different functions. The theme is represented by a muted trumpet that sounds close to what a joker might sound like, were he given a voice. This same tune appears in different parts of the piece – in different colors, functions, and tempos, but in the same rhythm to keep its feature and nature. Much like a joker possesses and conveys different aspects of human emotion and states of being, the main theme – similarly – is presented in different colors, instruments, scales, impressions, etc.

Reminiscent of a circus, where different shows or scenes happen right after one another, this piece contains various textures that also come together; however, in this piece, they tend to not be completely separate but have more of an identity of blending in to one another. The listener can hear variations on a marching band parade as well as sentimental ballet dancers throughout the piece. Throughout “Chronicles of a Joker”, the listeners also perceive a majestic and glorious melody, which leave them with a sense of excitement and appreciation, as if they were a member of the audience at a circus show.

"Chronicles of a Joker" for wind ensemble

"Stars Fall Down In The Sky"

"Postludium. Ice" Latvian national symphony orchestra, conductor Karel Mark Chichon

Loslassen - Stellen sie sich vor...

Loslassen - Bruder und Schwester

I write classical/post-classical chamber music and play the piano. I also make lo-fi indie rock ('baroque chamber pop') under the name Sam Gray Singing. 
I grew up in New Zealand, where most of my family still lives. I lived in Norway for a decade and am now based in Austria. 
Pencil portrait by Sampo Marjomaa.
www.samuelgray.net

Untitled IV

Samuel Gray

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