music from a former life

My thesis project in grad school was a 45-minute "sound opera" (this was circa 1993-95). The idea was to create a long-form piece of music that integrated all the sounds that might be used to tell a story, including written and improvised dialogue, singing, found tape, interviews, sound effects, ambiance, musical instruments (cello, clarinet, percussion), and whatever else would fit into the kitchen sink. The results were mixed.

In retrospect, I think the narrative aspects didn't really work (my sense of story was pretty underdeveloped at the time). I've since tried to salvage some of what I consider to be the more successful aspects of the piece, like some found tape of my grandfather (which was used in a Lost and Found Sound piece, in a much more personal story), and the music, which I've been cannibalizing ever since (most notably in the score for Shades of Gray).

In a fit of nostalgia, I went back and mixed a few excerpts of the music into individual soundfiles. These are a few of my favorite musical fragments from the piece...

the trouble with key of g (excerpt 1)

the trouble with key of g (excerpt 2)

the trouble with key of g (excerpt 3)

This is all to point out that, if you'll look to the right of this blog page, I've added a list of work samples for your listening pleasure. You'll find some of my radio pieces there at the top, followed by some music (including the aformentioned nostalgia), and then a place for videos.