This piece is inspired by five Black Americans who have influenced me and my identity as a composer-Bessie smith, Maya Angelou, Ronald E. McNair, Cornel west and Herbie Hancock. Each movement is meant to embody the work and personality (as best as I can gather) through music. I want to not only pay homage to these giants, but offer a character study through music of their works.
Go Down Moses arrangement for University of Michigan Symphony Band
This work is inspired by the countless artists around the world whose self-expression allows their audiences to redefine and reexamine art. Is it art or vandalism? Co-commissioned by the Arizona State University Symphony Orchestra, Oberlin College and Conservatory, and the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music made possible by the Frank Ticheli Guest Artist Endowed Fund.
Hellfighters' Blues is a short orchestral work based upon the life and work of leading Black American musician and bandleader James Reese Europe. The work was commissioned by BBC Radio 3 for the Last Night of the Proms 2024, and co-commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra and Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.
Here I Stand, a dramatic oratorio, focusses on the once famous African-American singer, actor, activist, and thinker, Paul Robeson.
The theme that he and his librettist have chosen — acceptance of same-sex marriage within the black church — is a challenging one.
Journey is inspired by a poem by Narendra Kuppan. Composed with support from the National Orchestral Institute + Festival
Let America be America again.
As young boy, I worked with my grandfather during the summers paving driveways in Rocky Mount, Virginia. He was a task master. Things had to be done the right way and with haste when he asked for it in his own playful way. This piece, in its whimsical character, draws on inspiration from the colloquial phrase, Lickety Split, coined in the 1860s, meaning to do something quickly or in a hurry.
Amazing Grace was written over 250 years ago by John Newton, and has become easily recognized by those around the world from all faiths and walks of life. This work uses fragments of the melody to explore the idea of ‘grace’.
A mellow jazz composition...
This work, premiered in 2022, is the second American solo flute concerto by a Black composer. In a time of cultural and civil change, this piece helps in creating a more diverse and inclusive environment for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) musicians, and a richer repertoire for the orchestral community.
"The second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' No other commandment is greater than these." Mark 12:31 NLT
The uncles arrive in Chicago after dark at their sister’s apartment to pick up their niece Conchetta. Big city music. Conchetta is thrilled to go “home” to see her relatives—her grandmother, her aunts, her “play aunts.” She sings about the rough world of the big city and longs for the small town life in Tennessee.
Art songs have long been an interest of mine. The vocal works of Maurice Ravel, Richard Strauss and Arnold Schoenberg have always seem to ignite my passion for composing music
This piece traces the evolution of black people in America through the lens of the black woman.
text by Langston Hughes
Profiles is a short orchestral study in three separate movements based on the late visual art of Romare Bearden. Most of Bearden’s work reflects African American culture in urban cities as well as the rural American south. Although Bearden was born in Charlotte, NC, he spent his most of his life in Harlem, New York. With its vibrant artistic community, this piece aims to highlight the rich energy and joyous sceneries that Harlem expressed as it was the hotbed for African American culture.
Requiem for the Enslaved explores the sacred and historical, and honors the lives of those bought and sold. Original text by Marco Pavé.
An original composition using the Sanctus from the Latin Mass.