Composer
*note: the SSAA version on this page is the same music as above in a different arrangement. There is also a 12-voice treble version which is much longer. If you are looking for the more popular version, this is it. Program Notes This is one of those stories that has the aura of a myth, … Read more
Program Notes Something that looks brave on the outside doesn’t always feel brave on the inside. Sometimes what that feels right to us on the inside can separate us from the flow of everyone and everything around us. And yet, we are still compelled to take that first step away from the familiar, well-trodden path … Read more
NOTE: This is the page for the SSAA (treble choir) version of This Love Between Us. For the SATB (original) version please go to This Love Between Us. Program Notes This Love Between Us is a piece about unity. Its seven movements juxtapose the words of seven major religious traditions of India (Buddhism, Sikhism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, … Read more
Program Notes I love writing music for young people. This vibrant Hindustani bhajan is a beautiful portrait of Krishna dancing. My arrangement is designed with young musicians from both cultures in mind, with the aim to draw them towards one another, one step at a time. Recording Please note: this recording is the original string … Read more
Program Notes Sunaao is a set of three pieces designed to introduce young choirs to the Hindi/Urdu language. Aao beckons us to share our musical traditions with one another, exploring changing open vowels. Khattar Pattar uses a distinctive style of Hindi/Urdu onomatopoeia to describe how we sometimes let our thoughts run out of control. Behta … Read more
Program Notes Every restraint is an opportunity for a composer. During the pandemic, I thought about what it meant for choral singers, who are used to the feeling of singing together, to be isolated. What follows is a set of short, two-minute madrigals (yes, the title is a play on ‘florentine madrigal’) that trace the … Read more
*please note: while this is the original version of the work, it is also the least performed one, because it is quite fiddly! If you want the more streamlined version, it’s here. Program Notes This is one of those stories that has the aura of a myth, but sometimes these little miracles happen to each … Read more
NOTE: This is the chamber version of the work — it is scored with no divisi so that as few as four solo singers can sing it. While it can technically be performed with piano (from the piano/vocal score), it works best when accompanied by string quintet, flute and harp. Program Notes The genre of … Read more
Program Notes I wrote TaReKiTa as a gift for a choir called Urban Voices Project. They are a choir of people who are currently or have recently experienced homelessness on Skid Row in Los Angeles. They are so dear to me, and one day I just decided to teach them about Indian rhythm. They enjoyed … Read more
NOTE: This is a reduced version of the work — movements 1, 3 and 4, rescored for women’s choir and flute obbligato. It is designed to be more mobile and flexible, and was rearranged for the commissioning group’s touring ensemble. Program Notes The genre of women’s choral music is very special to me. The first … Read more
Program Notes Earth Speaks is a large 45-minute choral work that explores different perspectives on our earth through the lens of three Pasadena institutions. It was commissioned by Pasadena Master Chorale in 2015. Embedded in this multi movement work is a movement for treble choir, which sets the text of Ohlone poet Stephen Meadows. The poem, … Read more