Written in 1999 as an exercise to have young guitar players work with materials such as color, dynamics and texture and develop an understanding of how to work in an ensemble. This performance is a combined orchestra of the Guitar orchestra of Seattle (26 people) and the Seattle Mandolin Orchestra (27 people)  This was the world premiere given on the Day of Music Festival at Benaroya hall with the support of the Seattle Classic Guitar Society. We performed this on September 24th 2001.

Day Of Music Fest.

Haji & the Jinn 2001

Written in the aftermath of 9/11 I wrote this as a reflection on what we sing our children and what we grow in their hearts and minds.  The dynamics are extremely important in this piece.  Each phrase should start in almost inaudible mummering and build and build until the last statement is a cry of anguish, before falling, exhausted at giving everything.

Georgian Lullaby

Background note on inspiration for creating this.
IN 1999 I was down in Portland and enjoying the grandeur of Powell Books. I had always had an interest in areas of cultural cross pollination and so buying a book about a region I knew nothing about but imagined a rich cultural and cross cultural history got me to buy https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-253-33206-6
The Hundred Thousand Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia 
Theodore Levin sent me on a long journey of learning as much as I coudl about the Silk Road and Uzbekistan, and the surrounding “Stans”.  A year later I wanted to offer a music reflection and celebration of the rich contiguous cultures that have connected the “Far East” and the “Far West” I began this 25 minute suite with paper clips between the strings
To create a gong sound and a transcription from H.A.M (Historical Anthology of Music) of a 2000 year old Chinese “hymn” that was supposed to have been played on the first instrument manufactured by humans. Gongs
After this solemn opening I then whiplashed in geography to the furthest realm of the West during the heighth of travel on the Silk Road, to the Orkney islands offf od Scotland and gave the same amount of measures to the Hymnn to St Magnus. 1100 AD
Then with a FFF the orchestra starts Caravan 2001 AD an original composition channeling Led Zeppelin, Serge Prokofiev and the masters of the Uzbek Dobra I had heard in my listening adventures 
Over the next sections of the piece I arranged or channeled the music of Uzbek nomads, Guillieme De Machaut, Music form Turkish Thrace, Gregorian chant, Turkish folk songs I adapted from Carlo Domiconi transcriptions, and after a brief confabulation of Seiklos song, the supposed oldest piece of music discovered (at the time I wrote this in 2001) and a segue of taking this melody and treating in a way influenced by Soundgarden I conclude the piece with a Turkish drum and bass piece….from 1200 C.E.

Guitar Orchestra of Seattle