Summitless Mountains

Program Notes Is it worthwhile, The pursuit of such radical thingsas summitless mountains? —  Teddy McCoy* This work for solo bassoon initially emerged from a very different work: a 35-minute cantata-style work called Presence for eighty guitars, five singers, plus a solo guitar and solo bassoon. About halfway through that work, the bassoon breaks away into … Read more

Nadiya (violin/bassoon)

Program Notes  Nadiya (p) means ‘rivers’ in Hindi. In this work, I imagine two different streams intersecting — pushing and pulling against one another, tripping over each other, flowing into each other to create mellifluous, cascading melodies. The piece is in a composite of two Hindustani raags: Jog and Vachaspati — both have a light … Read more

The Light is the Same (quintet version)

This is the original version of The Light is the Same, for woodwind quintet. Program Notes Religions are manyBut God is oneThe lamps may be differentBut the Light is the same Like many people, I spent the last half of 2016 trying to make sense of what was happening in our country and in our … Read more

Zinfandel (bassoon version)

Program Notes One of my very first pieces of music was a solo flute piece called Chardonnay, written in 2000. Ten years later, when the commission came for this piece, it was with the stipulation that it be called Zinfandel. At this rate, I’m hoping to write a solo woodwind piece every ten years, named … Read more