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About Me
I am a composer, author, editor, teacher, and technologist. My work engages the advancement of arts and technology from both humanist and experimental perspectives. I am available for commissions, master classes, writing & editing, teaching & presentations, seminars & performances, and music digital engraving.
My music has been commissioned more than 300 times and performed by my own ensembles and over 100 orchestras, chamber ensembles, choruses, and soloists around the world, as well as innumerable student groups and those who have anonymously downloaded and realized scores and performance artworks. My installations have appeared in numerous galleries and museums, and I have performed at venues in the U.S. and Europe. My musical scores are part of the historical Notations21 project and exhibit.
I have composed for orchestras & bands,
chamber ensembles & choruses, and
duos & individuals.
Please contact me for compositons sessions (in person or online).
Please visit my résumé for more detail about my life and work.
Please visit my YouTube channel for performances and related videos.
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On June 1, 2015, I will be limiting my engraving services for most score work. I will continue to take a small number of scores, preferably unusual notation and without hard deadlines. I am now accepting a limited number of additional students for mentoring/challenging in composition.
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Composition Sessions, In Person or Online
You can study composition with me. Composers (or those just beginning the path) find working with me refreshing and exciting. Please look at my scores and listen to my music, and then contact me and we'll talk about your interests and challenges and dreams as a composer.
I am on SoundCloud
After much resistance -- why wouldn't folks just come here to my website? -- I decided to put selected compositions on SoundCloud. So there it is. And thank you for visiting!
Looking for the NEW edition of my "Country Stores of Vermont"?
Find it at CountryStoresOfVermont.org
Music of My Youth
As a child, Hungarian records were found in the house. When we actually got a record player, I could explore them. And here they are for your listening. By the way, there is a bucketload of other news to be reported on this page, but it's been a little busy. For now, do a quick peek at various events past & present.
Brand New Electroacoustic Recordings!
Get them here!
New Erzsébet Opera Recordings!
My Erzsébet Opera Project was a long time coming and a big deal for me. You can also get the CD or DVD premiere recordings here!
Beautiful Print Publications You Will Love!
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O: Eleven Songs for Chorus SATB with text by Gary Barwin from Lulu.com. These vivid settings of eleven poems by Gary Barwin are mysterious, funny, tender, inventive, rich in association, and eminently singable. From the skittering conversation of "The Birds," to the alternate Medieval world of "Sparrows' Song" and the rhythmic footsy of "Small Apes and White Feet," these songs strike a balance between thoughtful reflection and quirky off-kilter humor.
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Erzsébet: A Monodrama is the opera's score from Lulu.com. This large volume is the full orchestration in a beautiful presentation with Lisa Jablow as Erzsébet on the cover. The opera is complete and premiered; a DVD will be offered here shortly! Complete background on the opera and information on downloading information, purchasing T-shirts, programs, etc., as well as future performances can be found on The Bathory Opera Website.
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Three Performance Pieces is available from Lulu.com. Three beautiful performance scores from the 2007 "We Are All Mozart" project. One is a set of 99 performance pieces, the second a set of seven sections for French horn, and the third a set of 13 graphical scores for tenor guitar. Several of the latter are part of the "Notations21" gallery series.
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Erzsébet: A Monodrama is the opera's libretto available from either Amazon.com or Lulu.com. The opera is complete and premiered, and a DVD will be offered here shortly! The libretto includes the full text along with images in a beautiful commemorative volume. More info at The Bathory Opera Website
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Country Stores of Vermont: A History and Guide is available from The History Press. It's a really good book, with fantastic pictures and great stories as well as ten fantastic tours of Vermont. You can get it cheaper at Amazon.com -- but please try to get your copy from our local Vermont bookstores and country & general stores. Autographed copies also available..
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Read All About Me, Me, Me!
Kyle Gann wrote a complimentary profile about me (I'm "a shadowy figure" -- yeah!) in Chamber Music Magazine in November. It was a very nice piece which you can read here (PDF).
Opera Lyrics Font
I've created a TrueType font based on 19th century opera scores. It has all the typical characters and a few more, but is missing still a few of the special characters. I'll improve it over the next few months, but if you're interested, here it is: Opera-Lyrics-Smooth. If you distribute it, please keep in mind that this version (1.65) will occasionally be updated. Click image for full-sized chart.
Build 4 U!
People have remarked for years about the imaginative character of our little New England cape, full of hand-made furniture, cabinets, closets, shelves and other interesting items. Now you can have these, too because I will build it 4 u!
Yes I am...
On Facebook and Twitter.
Getcher Bumper Sticker!
Join the nonpop "Buy Local" campaign! If you're a composer or supporter of new nonpop, you can get a bumper sticker for five bucks at CafePress, item number 80570307, or even better you can download and print it yourself. The CafePress one is only 10 inches wide, but you can use the full-size image to print a big one on 11x17 paper and trim it to standard 3.75" x 15" bumper sticker size.
Openings for Engraving and Editing
I have openings for new music engraving clients and book editing clients. Here are samples of my music engraving work, and you can find the results of some of my book editing work at the admittedly very old Transitive Empire site. Here's how to contact me.
People Have Asked...
...why I give away my music. Here is the answer.
What's in the Older News section? Stuff you can use...
- My music as ringtones for download
- My library of musical scores for sale
- Ionic "Performer" 1973 Synth VSTi for download
- Wooden Kind remix with Lee Noyes
- Crosscut (2009) piano concerto announcement
- Composition for Tape & Soloists (1969) score available for download
- Eventide (2006) studio recording for download
- Availability and samples of Vermont photography
- Country Stores of Vermont (2008) announcement
- Progress of and announcements about We Are All Mozart (2007)
...and much more back to 2000.
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2015 Performances and Events
- Late 2015 (TBA), New York / New England: Starry Night, Tïrkíinistrá, other works and a new work performed by Panayiotis Demopoulos. TBA
- Late 2015 (TBA) São Paulo: Dance of the Fénix. Sphaera Rock Orchestra directed by Alexey Kurkdjian. TBA.
- Late 2015 (TBA) Córdoba: Noitça (Byrd's Ghost). Ensemble Fractus TBA.
- November 29, New York City: New Piece TBA Composers Concordance Multiband Festival. Spectrum, 5-10pm.
- October 9, Glasgow: Yer Attention, Please. Kevin Bowyer, organist. TBA.
- October 15, New York City: Mem-Lamed-Hey Pitches at an Exhibition. MC Gallery, 8pm.
- August 22-23, Plainfield, Vermont: Kalvos & Damian 20th Anniversary Celebration Broadcast #3, 60x60 WGDR/WGDH. 3-5pm.
- August 22-23, Plainfield, Vermont: Kalvos & Damian 20th Anniversary Celebration Broadcast #2, concert WGDR/WGDH. 7:30-10pm.
- August 22-23, Plainfield, Vermont: Kalvos & Damian 20th Anniversary Celebration Broadcast #1 WGDR/WGDH. 1-5pm.
- August 19, Montpelier, Vermont: Capital City Band, conductor; classic band music. State House Lawn, 7:30pm.
- August 16, Bennington, Vermont: WBTN-AM, interview conducted by Thomas Toscano. 9am.
- July 8, Montpelier, Vermont: Capital City Band, conductor; classic band music. State House Lawn, 7:30pm.
- July 1, Princeton: Air on Classical Discoveries with Marvin Rosen. 11:15am.
- May 30, Montpelier, Vermont: 50th Anniversary Concert. Jesse Feinberg, piano. Unitarian Church, 130 Main Street, 7:30pm.
- May 11, Schoten, Belgium: Aurora Cagealis. Stéphane vande Ginste and his student ensemble. GAMW Schoten, 8:30pm.
- May 9, North Montpelier, Vermont: Scalar Rainbows. Alison Cerutti, piano. Rich's Hollow Concert Series, 2850 Route 14 North, 4pm.
- April 24, Burlington, Vermont: What to Do, Farmer Gray? with Jane Boxall, marimba at St. Paul's Cathedral, 8pm.
- March 17, Johnson, Vermont: Absynthe. Ericka Salter Senior Recital Dibden Auditorium, 7pm.
- February 24, Schoten, Belgium: Aurora Cagealis. Stéphane vande Ginste and his student ensemble. GAMW Schoten, 8:30pm.
- February 20, Pasig City, Philippines: Debreczeni Csardas for string orchestra. Eleva Chamber Players on 98.7 DZFE. 12pm (local time), 11pm February 19 (EST).
- January 25, New York City: ...daar zaten wij for solo voice. Beth Giffith, soprano, as part of the Vox Novus "15 Minutes of Fame" Project. Jan Hus Church.
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Essays, Papers, Presentations, Polemics, and Stuff
- The Cheap $31 Folding Jig (2005), build a jig for folding scores and booklets -- only $2 if you've already got a paper cutter!
- Imagination and Exploitation: Some History of Digital Technology in My Music-Making (2004), talk by the composer about computer music, then and now.
- Thoughts on the Small Form (2004), a brief commentary about very short pieces of music.
- The Cheap Under $15 Jecklin Disk (2003), build an impossible-to-find and better-than-professional Jecklin Disk for live recording in an hour or two.
- The Cheap Under $5 Microphone Shockmount (2003), save that $60-per-piece price for commercial products and build a flexible mount in an hour.
- Everybody's Gotta Trust ... But Verify? (2003), polemic about copy protection and corporate delusion.
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Preserving the Future's Past: EA Artists Must Take Care of Their Own Archives (2002), conversation and recommendations about archiving audio artworks.
- Riding the Cheap Electron (2002), paper presented at Dartmouth College about a composer's history with synthesis.
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The Pros and Woes of Being a Self-Taught Composer (2002), article on the topic for New Music Box.
- No Denial of the Bête Familiale (2001), paper presented at Dartmouth College about the role of the computer musician.
- Xenakis: The Continuing Composer -- A Personal Reflection on Iannis Xenakis (2001), article on the influence of Iannis Xenakis.
- The Curse of Love (2000), paper presented at Dartmouth College about eclecticism, copyright, and interactivity.
- How to Get Here from There (Stomach Music to Sourian Slide) or Is There a Reason You've Canceled My Premiere Yet Again? (2000), paper presented at Goddard College about my life and work.
- Road Ahead, Road Behind (2000), original article for Slashdot revealing the creation of No Money (Lullaby for Bill) from Bill Gates's voice.
- Destined for Obscurity Again -- How Partch Influenced Me (2000), article reflecting on Harry Partch..
- The Patron Saint of Mediocrities (1999), paper presented at Bregman Studios of Dartmouth College about my life and work.
- Turning Sausage Back Into The Pig: The Year 2000 Problem in Northfield, Vermont (1999), a look at Year 2000 problems and how they are affecting my local community.
- 'Our Demented Therapeutic Culture' (1998), essay written for Kalvos & Damian on the erosion of cultural daring.
- A Challenge for Richard Branson (1998), a letter suggesting Branson transform the landscape of contemporary music.
- The Churchill Society Debate: A Futile Correspondence (1998), an exchange with the Churchill Society on the state of new music.
- Your Music on the Web: Ways, Means, Rights, and the Old West: New Concepts, Paradigms and Fears (1997), article outlining techniques for presentation and protection on the Web.
- I Don't Know How -- or Why: Night Thoughts on the Process of Composition (1995), including a link to an audio version.
- A Cloak for the Lord of Cats (1995), a short-short story about vampiress Báthory Erzsébet, a true historical figure. This story forms the basis of a scene in a proposed opera.
- You Still Make Me Bleed: Letter to a Casual Critic (1994), fierce letter defining the position on the composer in mid-1990s Vermont.
- It's Time to Bury the Dead (1992), intense article calling for the end of performances of older concert music and a revision in thinking and sensibility.
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Composing a New Language (1992), proposal presented at MedArt International by Barbara S.J. Balch and me to replace lost language skills with musical language developed through interaction and virtual reality.
- Construal of Music Process Architecture (1992), paper presenting personal views and reports on musical composition in Europe.
- Why Do It?: Replies to the Vermont Composers Consortium Questionnaire (1989), answers to strange questions posed by a strange organization.
- The Clinic: A Dream Writ Down (1988), an actual, cold-sweat-inducing dream recorded the next morning as a short story.
- Variations on the Notion of Variation: Questioning the Whys of Composing (1987), internal conversations about the art of composing.
- The Image Behind the Glass (1986), talk to ID Expo in Boston on light pens and touch screens that presages modern palmtops, handwriting recognition, and artificial intelligence features.
- The Impact of the Microprocessor (1982), prophetic and political talk about microprocessor technology and philosophy, presented to the ACM at Rensselaer in Troy, New York.
- The Microprocessor as a Modern Odysseus (1982), similar talk with a personal sidelight about music and the arts, presented to the IEEE in Burlington, Vermont.
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