| Theme from the Fifth Symphony (Beethoven) (arr. 2006) | 1:00 |
| piano | |
| A student of two weeks asked me if I would teach him this "song". So I devised the shortest, easiest possible version I could. It uses high, middle, and low registers of the keyboard, and sounds pretty impressive to an early student, even though it's so easy to play. | |
| Takeda no komoriuta (Japanese folksong) (arr. 2006) | 1:30 |
| piano | |
| An arrangement of a pretty Japanese children's song, playable by a second-year (or a precocious first-year) piano student. The trickiest part is changing your hand position a few times during the piece. | |
| This Little Light of Mine (American folksong) (arr. 2006) | 1:00 |
| piano | |
| A fun and easy arrangement for a first-year piano student. | |
| After the Moon-Walk (2002) (mp3) (rm) | 4:00 |
| soprano and piano | |
| A setting of a beautiful poem by Hilda Morley, from her collection The Turning. Originally written to be an encore, but the piece would work also well in the middle of a recital. Suitable for highschool-age and up. | |
| —Available on the CD A Mental Picnic | |
| Bellerophon (1996-1998) (mp3) (rm) | 6:30 |
| pipe organ | |
| An early piece, introspective and melodic. Suitable for young organists. | |
| CASEVS VRBI (1997) (mp3) (rm) | 4:00 |
| SATB chorus and piano | |
| Text by Virgil, from The Eclogues. A companion piece to "Uiuite Siluae", this is some extremely happy music. The title means "Cheese for the city". Premiered by my highschool's chorus, the Richard Montgomery Madrigals. | |
| Come Picnic on Mars (2002) (mp3) (rm) | 3:00 |
| baritone voice and piano | |
| A setting of a delightful poem by Diane Ackerman, from her collection Jaguar of Sweet Laughter, this highly cheerful song tells of a fanciful space journey. The vocal part is fairly easy to learn, the piano part fairly challenging. BTW, this poem contains the line "We will pack a mental picnic..." | |
| —Available on the CD A Mental Picnic | |
| Di/Convergence (1996-1997) (mp3) (rm) | 6:30 |
| piano | |
| The tangled and shifting relationship between two musical themes determines the ever-changing course of this piece. | |
| —Available on the CD New Music from Chappell's Kitchen | |
| "Dinosaur" Prelude and Fugue (2006) | 6:00 |
| tuba quartet (two euphoniums, two tubas) | |
| A majestic prelude based on symmetrical harmonies and a lively, syncopated fugue combine to evoke the grandeur of ancient life. Suitable for musicians in highschool and college. | |
| Imperial Frog Anthem (1999) (mp3) (rm) | 3:00 |
| two clarinets in B-flat or A | |
| A fun duet, mainly on original material but also quoting a jazz standard which is an anagram of the piece's title. Suitable for musicians in highschool and college. | |
| —Available on the CD A Mental Picnic | |
| It's Halloween! (2006) | 3:00 |
| Children's chorus (2-part) and piano | |
| The kids get to sing about ghosts and goblins, and
dance around like skeletons and witches. They'll love it.
A setting of an original poem. | |
| Linguistic Sunflower Parade (1997) (mp3) (rm) | 5:00 |
| string quartet | |
| An early work with an appealing sense of innocence (something like the Kronos Quartet's Pieces of Africa album). Suitable for young string quartet players. | |
| —Available on the CD A Mental Picnic | |
| Marsupial Dreams (2000-2001) (mp3) (rm) | 4:30 |
| woodwind quintet | |
| A melodic, playful piece suitable for young woodwind quintet players. | |
| —Available on the CD A Mental Picnic | |
| Nautilus (2004) | 4:00 |
| marimba (4 octaves) | |
| The first in a series of pieces loosely inspired by the beauty and diversity of aquatic life. Suitable for highschool and college-aged performers. | |
| Soap Bubbles (2002) (mp3) (rm) | 6:30 |
| flute, oboe, and clarinet in B-flat | |
| A charming little piece inspired by a painting of Vanloo's, depicting three children playing with a soap bubble. In the programmatic-music tradition, each instrument represents a different character. Suitable for highschool and college-aged musicians. | |
| —Available on the CD New Music from Chappell's Kitchen | |
| Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (traditional American, arr.) (2000) (mp3) (rm) | 3:00 |
| SATB chorus a capella | |
| My interpretation of a classic spiritual, incorporating what I've learned from arrangers like William Dawson. Suitable for amateur choirs. | |
| Sympsony no. 1 (2000) (mp3) | 2:30 |
| violin and piano (four hands) | Currently not for sale [negotiating copyright] |
| A fun showpiece blending Danny Elfman's theme from The Simpsons with Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. Perfect for an encore to a violin or piano recital. This was later expanded into Sympsony no. 2 for violin and chamber orchestra. Everyone gets a kick out of this one, which happens to be suitable for young musicians. | |
| Two Sketches (2004) | 5:00 |
| two 4-octave marimbas | |
| I: Lines. II: Colors. Two fairly easy pieces, the first developing long interweaving melodic lines, the second exploring luscious rolled chords. | |
| Uiuite Siluae (1997) (mp3) (rm) | 2:30 |
| SATB chorus (divisi to SSATBB) and piano | |
| Text by Virgil, from The Eclogues. A companion piece to "CASEVS VRBI", this is a sorrowful piece with lush harmonies. The title means "Farewell now the woods". Suitable for amateur choirs. | |
| Warp Speed, Mr. Sulu! (2003) (mp3) (rm) | 5:00-7:00 — FREE! |
| audience | Right-click and choose "Save As..." |
| My first experiment in audience participation - everyone reads from the score, which is a numbered list of things to sing and speak (some predetermined, others requiring more imagination). It's very simple to follow, requires no rehearsal, and is fun for everyone involved. | |
| —Available on the CD the undiscovered country | |