Composer
Program Notes (from the bassoon version of Zinfandel) One of the very first pieces of music I ever wrote was a flute solo called Chardonnay, 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 one … Read more
Program Notes A drishti is a focused gaze, usually on a single point. The word became known in the West through the practice of yoga: as the body moves through a series of postures, the drishti remains a constant. It is the grounded center that allows everything around it to move and transform. In this work, the … Read more
Program Notes excerpted from Seattle Symphony premiere notes: For Reena Esmail, Seattle Symphony’s Artist in Residence this season, RE|Member is a chance to explore what the world has gone through: “When I first spoke to Maestro Dausgaard about this piece, we thought it would be opening the 2020 season. We spoke about that feeling of returning to … Read more
Program Notes This miniature for trumpet takes its name from the landform you see in the distance in the video above. Pedernal is an iconic mesa outside of Santa Fe, near Ghost Ranch — the home and studio of American painter Georgia O’Keefe. I have visited Pedernal many times in my life — it is … Read more
Program Notes I. We Look for You (Evensong – Raag Hamsadhwani)II. The Year’s Midnight (Matins – Raag Malkauns)III. The Unexpected Early Hour (Lauds – Raag Ahir Bhairav) This set of three carols, on new texts by poet Rebecca Gayle Howell, traces a journey through the solstice, the longest night of the year. The texts follow … Read more
Program Notes Ram Tori Maya is a bhajan by the ancient Indian saint-poet, Barabas, set to a melody by Ninu Majumdar. It speaks about how worldly distractions can prevent us from focusing on what is the most important and most sacred to each of us, and invites us to find that spirit within ourselves, and … Read more
***This work is not yet completed*** Program Notes Recording Special Performance Requirements Audio Guide Premiere/Performances Press/Reviews
Program Notes A “pathway of desire” is an architectural term for an unplanned trail that has been eroded into the ground through repeated use — such as a rut in a lawn where the dirt is exposed because people cut across it constantly. It’s not the paved, prescribed path — but it becomes discernible because … Read more
You have reached the main landing page for Take What You Need. For specific versions, see the sidebar of this page. Take What You Need is more than just a piece of music. It is a warm, safe, equitable space, where musicians and community can connect with one another, where stories can come forward, and … Read more
Program Notes The Tipping Point is explores the return of light. It is set in Raag Vibhas, a Hindustani raag (p/d) that is characteristically performed at daybreak. Amy Fogerson’s text is rooted in the solstice (as metaphor for a larger social struggle between darkness and light) — exploring the return of light in yearly cycles. … Read more
Program Notes This arrangement intertwines “America the Beautiful” with a melody in Raag Desh (from the Hindustani classical tradition of India). Desh means ‘country’ in Hindi (the reason why South Asians often refer to themselves as ‘desi’ – meaning ‘of the country’. It implies a unity that precedes Partition, and acknowledges that there was a … Read more