| A Short Amusement |
A modest little thing, the first piece I wrote for classical guitar |
| Tune for Conor |
A love song to my brilliant, beautiful, and graceful son |
| Five Small Pieces No. 1 |
One of several expressionist pieces I wrote while studying composition in Vienna (with Gunther Kahowez). Jagged, spare lines, concise. In the manner of Anton Webern. |
| Five Small Pieces No. 2 |
Second of the set of five. Quiet, semi-minimalist. Anticipation of something that never happens. |
| Five Small Pieces No. 4 |
Expressionist style,
with varied sentiments expressed, ending in gentleness. What happened to No. 3? I have scores available for No. 3 and No. 5 but have never recorded them. |
| Study No. 1 |
First of a set of 10 short studies in a modern style. |
| Study No. 3 |
A study, #2 of 10, mostly in two parts which constantly overlap. The focus is on holding one voice while changing the note for the other voice. |
| Study No. 4 |
This study, #4 of 10, focuses the player on various statements of a short theme, in different voices on the guitar. They might overlap, or be inverted. The entrances are marked by capital letters. |
| Study No. 5 |
This study is for practicing slurs, which consist of hammer-ons and pull-offs for the left hand. A rather whimsical feel to it. I didn't title or sub-title these studies. If I had done so, this one would be named something like "Marionette." |
| Study No. 7 |
This study, #7 of 10, focuses the player on thumb work. The thumb is used on different strings and ranges, and has to be articulated well but should not dominate the sound: the melody should still be clear and lyrical. |
| Study No. 8 |
This study, #8 of 10, needs a focused continuous forward motion, through several different types of textures. |
| Study No. 10 |
This study, #10 of 10, uses the bass (thumb) for much of the melody. As with the other studies in this set, the player also needs to be (or become) comfortable with dissonance. |