A transcription cover of Satoru Kōsaki's (神前曉) main theme from the anime series BEASTARS. My goal with this transcription and recording was to test how far I could push my trusty shure SM7B as an instrument mic (it's primarily intended for vocals). While the result far exceeded my expectations, I’ll be looking into a stereo setup soon, though I remain astonished how well the SM7B has held up over the years. Additional mixing creds to Seth Villamil.

BEASTARS -classical- (transcription):

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   In my Jazz Quartet pieces, "Consolation" and "Pseudonym," I explored the art of guided improvisation through lead sheets. Both pieces share a fascination with the diminished four-note chord as a source of harmonic movement. However, unlike in my Brass Quintet, while diminished harmony is indeed used as inspiration, I deliberately avoided the diminished scale here. Instead, the diminished chord served as a foundation for harmonic progressions and leaping melodies, and I was deliberate not to fall into the habit of octatonic voice leading. Lastly, on a compositional note, these are the only two pieces in my graduation recital not composed entirely within a Digital Audio Workstation.
   "Consolation” (ballad) drew inspiration from diverse sources, including John Coltrane's "Naima," the film scores of Jerry Goldsmith ("Chinatown") and Daniel Pemberton ("Motherless Brooklyn"), the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl title theme, and even the simple word imagery of the word "bogus." Here, I aimed to create a textural soundscape, encouraging the double bass to utilize bowed passages and the saxophone player to explore extended techniques and pitch bending. The piano is instructed to play simple four-note chords over an alternating Ab A pedal, gradually straying from overtones typically found in the harmonic series of these two pedals.
   "Pseudonym" (uptempo) was a playful homage to some of my favorite musical influences. The opening lick was inspired by the anime "Great Pretender," while the free jazz spirit echoed the sounds of "Gundam Thunderbolt." Traces of Ornette Coleman, Hiromi Uehara, and even the "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" theme can also be found woven into the fabric of the piece. Admittedly, this piece may have simply been an indulgence in my favorite licks and progressions, particularly a sequence of four dominant seventh chords arpeggiating the notes of a diminished seventh chord.

"Consolation" (Ballad):

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"Pseudonym" (Uptempo):

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   In my String Trio, I embarked on a dual mission: to delve into the world of guitar writing, a realm completely distinct from composing for other instruments, and to further hone my skills in writing for violin and cello. The Waltz, titled “Valse Rêverie,” was envisioned as the first movement of a larger suite, and employed both quartal harmony and pentatonic melodies to create its musical world. The imagery that guided this composition was a winter scene in a central city park – a frozen lake, perhaps including the graceful reflections of dancing figure skaters. Several musical influences informed this work. Ravel's Piano Trio in A minor provided a foundation, while Yasunori Nishiki's score for the video game Octopath Traveller offered a touch of contemporary inspiration. Additionally, the guitar works of Heitor Villa-Lobos, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, and William Walton served as guiding lights for exploring the guitar’s unique potential within the trio's texture.

String Trio - "Valse Rêverie":

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   Derived from material used in my previous work, a quintet for brass, this Wind Quintet continues my exploration into contrapuntal styles, prioritizing horizontal melodic development in a modal framework while disregarding traditional key signature. In contrast with my brass piece, my goal here was to compose something tuneful and singsong-like, perhaps as a result of my previous work's dip into atonality and dissonance. Overall, the composition draws much inspiration from the English composer Malcolm Arnold and his penchant for evoking imagery of the sea. As for the individual movements, I, "Prelude,” was influenced by the works of Holst, especially his "Song of the Blacksmith.” And in II, "The Valley,” the bounding arpeggiations drew much inspiration from Justin Hurwitz's work on the film "La La Land," while the opening solo and trio sprouted from my childhood recollections of watching the film "Kiki's Delivery Service." In the latter of which, the scenes overlooking the town by the shore and the scenes featuring a laggardly dog were most inspiring.

I - "Prelude":

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II - "The Valley":

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My Wind Quintet, "The Valley," was originally written for brass and as a prelude to my Brass Quintet. The following was the initial sketch.

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   My Brass Quintet was written for my graduation recital at the University of Lethbridge under the influence of Silicon Valley grindset culture. It is my first multi-movement work with three movements in total. Programmatically, “Source” (I) begins with the indulgent optimism of a startup founder hot on the heels of securing their first angel list seed, only to thereafter be mauled and torn down by a bearish dip in morale. Nevertheless, their time spent in what has been referred to as “The Dip” (II) sparks an unyielding thirst for self-improvement; thus, twelve self-help books later and armed with the koanic mantra 'real artists ship,' the founder ignores all pivots and finally begins sprinting in a straight line. Now equipped with a rejuvenated sense of purpose and drive——likely fuelled by mushroom-infused decaf——the founder transcends their reality distortion field, switching from zero to one, and rides the bull to a triumphant victory per their “Exit Strategy (III).”

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   "Source" marks what I would consider my first deliberate attempt at applying formal structure to a composition during pre-production. The work was conceived in a fugato style, alternating between soft contrapuntal sections and grande chordal sections. My intention was to follow a traditional AABA structure using the B section as a complete tonal and timbral shift, however, I realized much to my dismay that the B section I was writing was becoming a different piece entirely! I have since split the sections into two pieces (see my Wind Quintet). "Source" is the reduction of nearly 9 minutes of material.

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   Inspired by Seth Godin's book of the same title, Brass Quintet - "The Dip" is an exploration into chromatic counterpoint beginning in a fugato style before further developing into the textural capabilities of brass instruments and their extended techniques. Programmatically, the piece begins in a state of distraught emotion, singing dissonantly however growing steadily more optimistic and consonant before reaching the mid-section, where the emotional perspective shifts towards a bearish dip in morale. The titular dip is signalled by the downwards pitch-bending of all five brass instruments, submerging ever-further into dejection before settling into a textural sea-scape. There, the piece ruminates with trilling and tremolo textures in an ever-growing frenzy before reaching a point of solemn reconciliation, signalled by the interval of a major 7th—typically regarded as dissonant, though seemingly consonant given the context. From then on, brass multiphonics are introduced, locking into pure harmonics and planing steadily to create a vast landscape of rekindled awareness. The score eventually requires the players to sing portamento lines above the dictated fundamental of their instrument, creating beating effects between the resonance of their voice and lips. Supported by this multiphonic landscape, a moment of triumph once again begins to unfold via a rising consonance, however, it is yet again struck by the memory of the previous dip in morale. While the memory is surely never to fully fade, this time the dip is marked with greater acceptance of the karmic duality, and the piece pushes through to conclude with a restatement of one of the fugato subjects. The subject is accompanied by a sighing concession indicated by having air blown through the instruments, and thereafter dies into a somber morendo.

   Inspired by Seth Godin's book of the same title, "The Dip" is the first chamber piece I have fully notated while attending the University of Lethbridge. This piece marks my beginnings of getting familiar with brass instruments and also exploring their extended techniques (singing multiphonics, blowing air, etc.). “The Dip” also marks my stylistic exploration of horizontal writing by paying little attention to vertical harmony and focusing moreso on interval character. The piece was also an exploration in chromatic counterpoint, motivic development, and long-form structure. At seven minutes, the duration of this movement surpassed my previous works two-fold.

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   “Exit Strategy” is characterized by sharp staccato accents, off-kilter rhythms, and octatonic riffs with roaring glissandi. Of the three movements in my “Brass Quintet”, it expresses the least harmonic consonance in a collection which decays further and further into harmonic collapse——you could say the frenzied dissonance paired with the title are apt allusions of my panicked escape from finally completing a piece over one year in the making! (description continued below the score)

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   While writing “Exit Strategy” I became familiar with Prokofiev’s Piano Sonata No. 7 which relies heavily on the repetition of a single rhythmic motive. The idea of committing to a single rhythmic motive is ultimately what helped inform the structural foundation for “Exit Strategy.” As for the formal structure, and as with Prokofiev’s Piano Sonata, the structure of “Exit Strategy” is symmetrical. In fact, the symmetrical structuring here is the first example of a piece I have written using a pre-prescribed form from which I haven’t deviated; in this case, modified rondo: intro ABA CD[AC] ABA outro.
   Note, In contrast, The first two movements of my “Brass Quintet” were born of singular melodic cells and developed in a fugue-like or generative manner with ill-defined endpoints. Overall, pre-defining the end of the third movement seems to have bolstered my will to finish in a more predictable and timely fashion than with the first two.
   As for the sections within the structure of “Exit Strategy,” the thematic and emotional moods were designed more or less to alternate. Atonal discourse amongst the five brass soloists is contrasted by bouts of leaping heroism and melodic reconciliation. The middle D section functions as the main timbral shift, featuring a scurrying baba yaga-esque bass-line as muted horns jeer and caw from above.
   To conclude, “Exit Strategy” finalizes my year-plus-long stint of applied study in the realms of tonal counterpoint, parametric counterpoint, formal structure, atonal writing techniques, non-functional harmony, timbral orchestration, brass instruments, and on and on. Perhaps the most important lesson in completing my Brass Quintet has been learning to commit to finishing a project in its entirety, and constructing a long-form piece without relying on repetition but rather employing developing variation.

Influences:
  * Prokofiev - Piano Sonata No. 7
  * Anthony Plog - 3 Miniatures for Tuba and Wind Ensemble
  * James M. David - "Secure. Contain. Protect." Mvt. 3 - Jeremy Wilson & David M Rodgers
  * György Ligeti - Six Bagatelles (1953)
  * Jorg Widmann - Concerto for Trumpet & Small Orchestra, ad absurdum - Sergei Nakariakov

   My arrangement of the Super Mario 64 classic “Bob-omb Battlefield” was done while undergoing a score study of Charlie Rosen's arrangement of the same piece for the 8-Bit Big Band. This arrangement functioned as my application for the University of Lethbridge's Jazz Ensemble Composer in Residency program. The piano in the recording was performed by insaneintherain (aka Carlos Eine), and the remaining instruments were performed and recorded by yours truly.

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