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PROGRAM NOTES
Paranoid Cheese
Violin & 2 Marimbas
Duration:
24'
Year:
2001
Program note:
“Paranoid Cheese” is scored for violin and two marimbas, and is one of the most challenging marimba works of mine to date. The music itself is ultimately melodic music, though it is completely based on harmonic movement. This holds true even when the music seems to be entirely rhythmic. The harmonies define the melody, and as the melodic material moves through musical lines, it is always following a path laid forth by the harmony in the background. Even though the violinist seems to be alone, we are always surrounded and influenced by those around us, teaching us, and helping us along the path.
-MM
Parking Violation
Oboe & reverb
Duration:
14'
Year:
1999
Program note:
Parking Violation is in five short movements, each one representing a different location in New York City where I have received a parking ticket, and the emotions that might lay behind it. Inspiration can be virtually anywhere. For example, movement III – 42nd St. & Greenpoint Avenue was particularly sad being as it was so close to home. In Movement IV – 96th St. & Broadway, I was running late, and was forced to illegally park for just one minute, run to my destination, then run back to my car, only to find that hated red-orange piece of paper on my windshield. The soloist plays this movement under one breadth. In all of the movements, I have tried to write music that is very clear, simple, and direct. It was written with amplification in mind, so that all of the tones would sustain. In writing this work, I have certainly learned one very important lesson in music: never drive your car in New York City.
-MM
Parkland
Vibraphone
Duration:
14'
Year:
2018
Program note:
I composed Parkland directly on my good friend, Peter Ferry’s, marvelous Vibraphone: all of the music came from the instrument itself. The Vibraphone is a stunning instrument that to me, writes music almost by itself simply by striking its resonant metallic bars. It provided the perfect tone to deliver the type music I wanted to create; I tried to capture the sound that the instrument was instinctively telling me. I composed Parkland during the immediate aftermath of the February 14, 2018, school shooting that took place at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in Parkland, Florida. As a parent, there is no subject that I feel more strongly about than gun control. A childhood friend of mine lives in the area of Parkland and went through the horror of knowing her son was in the school during the shooting. Texting her that he could hear the shooters footsteps outside the closet he was hiding in was the nightmare that all parents in the United States fear. This tragic event had a lasting impact on not just the school, but the entire Parkland community as well as the country and world. I wanted to write music that was a memorial to the victims of the Parkland community; my idea was to try to create something beautiful out of the horror of that day. It is music that is direct, largely quiet, and one that lives in a stretched-out moment of time that combines ethereal fear, solitude, sadness, patience, and resolve into a tribute to a community that was forced to bear a burden they should never have had to witness.
-MM
Phoenix
Woodwind Quintet (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon)
Duration:
5'
Year:
2017
Program note:
Phoenix, for woodwind quintet, is music that continuing gets reborn into a new work. A simple harmonic exchange in the opening is immediately infected with a short motive. As the harmonic sequence gets developed, the seed grows and also develops until it has created a new sound world, based on the previous one. This happens yet again, as the music continues to reinvent itself throughout the work.
-MM
Platter of Discontent
Flute, Clarinet/Bass Clarinet, Violin, Cello, Marimba, Piano
Duration:
18'
Year:
2004
Program note:
Platter of Discontent was written in Syracuse, NY and Bucharest, Romania and was commissioned by the Society for New Music and the National Endowment for the Arts. Like most of my works, I have tried to communicate directly with the listener through the musicians on stage. Each instrument fundamentally relies on one another and together they form a larger musical sound, much like pieces in a puzzle form a larger picture. For me, inspiration can come from almost anywhere, but often comes from people and their stories. Platter of Discontent is no different in this respect. It is music inspired (and titled) by the bold yet funky Kristi McKay, a woman exemplifying courage. Where others might have fallen, Kristi fought back and formed an amazing and inspirational picture from broken pieces of her own puzzle. Each movement of Platter reflects in some way on a different element of her incredible story. Yet, since this music was written specifically for the Society for New Music, I knew who the players were going to be and I could take advantage of that fact to help realize this goal. Hence the final movement ‘Freedom of the Eggs’ piano virtuosity was written specifically for the monumental playing of Steve Heyman, Cristina Buciu’s dark and sensuously beautiful playing specifically motivated the violin solo in ‘Paranoid Cheese,’ both core members of the SFNM. These elements combine in a way that I hope pay tribute to both the wonderful and virtuosic Society for New Music on the surface of the music as well as the inspirational person underneath the music.
-MM
Postcards of Dreadlock
Piano 4-hand
Duration:
18'
Year:
2009
Program note:
Postcards of Dreadlock is a stand-alone four-hand piano version of the second act of Mellits’ operetta M/W. The music relies on rich thematic and harmonic development incorporated into a repetitive acoustical canvas. It is music that is tonal within modes but eschews traditional tonality. The repetitive nature of the music propels itself into spiraling dances, always with a forward motion, into sometimes dark and sometimes bright areas of a spectral musical canvas. The transformation from operetta to 4-hand piano took place in three different locations, which each movement subtitle representing the place of inspiration and transformation.
-Andy Baker, ISS
Prometheus
6 Clarinets, 2 Bass Clarinets
Duration:
24'
Year:
2019
- Clarinet Octet edition -
Program note:
“Prometheus” is a Clarinet Octet edition of “String Quartet No. 4: Prometheus,” arranged for Clarinets by Jonathan Russel. It is in seven short movements:
I: lento, tranquillamente
II: moderato
III: allegro e aggressivo
IV: adagio
V: andantino
VI: tempo rubato
VII: allegro groove
Each of the seven movements explore different ways in which the instruments collaborate to form their own collective sound world all within a loose imagination of the idea of fire (as it is named after the Titan, Prometheus, who granted mankind the element, having stolen it from the gods, who were not thrilled). For example, Movement V, is a representation of the fire that is formed in a glowing fireplace, keeping love warm. The last movement “allegro groove” is a funky ecstatic fire, completely unaware of the utter devastation it leaves in its path. It is based on a canon of fire formed at the opening. The music of each movement of “Prometheus” explores how the instruments can collaborate and form unique musical sound worlds. It is within this interaction that the inner sound world is discovered and emerges. Within the gift of fire in each movement, sometimes small and glowing, sometimes great and hot, sometimes subdued, each instrument maintains its own voice within the overall sound realm that combine to form the complete sound texture. Both driving rhythm as well as forward moving melodic lines are the epicenters of the musical material.
-MM
Radu
4 Cellos
Duration:
15'
Year:
2010
- Full Cello Quartet edition -
Program note:
Radu was composed in memory of Radu "Billy" Buciu (1947-2009). “Uncle Billy,” as we all knew him, was not only my father-in-law’s brother, he was also one of the most musical people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing, without being a professional musicians himself. It is safe to say that Uncle Billy knew more about the interpretation music than most musicians I know. A remarkable human being, to say the least. His passion for music was unparalleled and seeped its way into every conversation I had with him. He argued with much passion of different interpretations of music and was a truly inspiring individual. Radu is in three movements, with each movement representing a different version of hope that Billy always had, even when dealing with the inevitable outcome of his battle with cancer. I am most sure my beloved Uncle Billy is listening and will find a way to give me his opinion on my/his Radu.
-MM
Radu: III
Solo Cello & Solo Bass Clarinet with 3 Cellos & 1 Bass Clarinet
Duration:
5'30"
Year:
2010/23
- Solo Cello/Bass Clarinet with Cellos/Bass Clarinet edition -
Program note:
Radu was composed in memory of Radu "Billy" Buciu (1947-2009). “Uncle Billy,” as we all knew him, was not only my father-in-law’s brother, he was also one of the most musical people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing, without being a professional musicians himself. It is safe to say that Uncle Billy knew more about the interpretation music than most musicians I know. A remarkable human being, to say the least. His passion for music was unparalleled and seeped its way into every conversation I had with him. He argued with much passion of different interpretations of music and was a truly inspiring individual. Radu is in three movements, with each movement representing a different version of hope that Billy always had, even when dealing with the inevitable outcome of his battle with cancer. Radu was originally written for four cellos, however, I have extracted the final movement and arranged it for solo cello and bass clarinet, plus three cellos and one bass clarinet on digital playback, as Radu: III. I am most sure my beloved Uncle Billy is listening and will find a way to give me his opinion on my/his Radu.
-MM
Red
2 Marimbas
Duration:
16'
Year:
2008
Program note:
Red is comprised of six short movements, each relating to each other much like a baroque suite. The overall structure of all six movements together forms the pacing and strategy of the music. Both Marimbas remain interlocked to one another and create a musical fabric by combining their sonorities in tightly woven patterns. There is no moment in the work where one instrument could survive without the other. Together, these two ‘brothers’ work hand in hand to form a single musical mind. Red was composed entirely in Bucharest, Romania, in the summer of 2008. I was experiencing tremendous and unusual writers block at the time. After struggling with ideas, I met my hero journalist and National Public Radio celebrity, Andrei Codrescu, one night on the streets of Bucharest, completely by chance. I wrote the entire piece in the following week, thus ending my block.
I: Moderately funky (quarter note = ca. 112)
II: Fast (quarter note = ca. 200)
III: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 128)
IV: Slow (quarter note = ca. 65)
V: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 120)
VI: Fast, obsessive, red (quarter note = ca. 232)
-MM
Red
Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone
Duration:
12'
Year:
2008/18
- Saxophone Quartet edition -
Program note:
“Red” was originally composed for Marimba Duo and is arranged here for Clarinet Octet by Damian Cheek. The music is comprised of six short movements, each relating to each other much like a baroque suite. The overall structure of all six movements together forms the pacing and strategy of the music. The Clarinets remain interlocked to one another in two halves and create a musical fabric by combining their sonorities in tightly woven patterns. There is no moment in the work where one instrument could survive without the other. Together, these two halves, or ‘brothers’ work hand in hand to form a single musical mind. “Red” was composed entirely in Bucharest, Romania, in the summer of 2008. I was experiencing tremendous and unusual writers block at the time. After struggling with ideas, I met my hero journalist and National Public Radio celebrity, Andrei Codrescu, one night on the streets of Bucharest, completely by chance. I wrote the entire piece in the following week, thus ending my block.
I: Moderately funky (quarter note = ca. 112)
II: Fast (quarter note = ca. 200)
III: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 128)
IV: Slow (quarter note = ca. 65)
V: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 120)
VI: Fast, obsessive, red (quarter note = ca. 232)
-MM
Red
4 Clarinets & 4 Bass Clarinets
Duration:
16'
Year:
2008/20
- Clarinet Octet edition -
Program note:
“Red” was originally composed for Marimba Duo and is arranged here for Clarinet Octet. The music is comprised of six short movements, each relating to each other much like a baroque suite. The overall structure of all six movements together forms the pacing and strategy of the music. The Clarinets remain interlocked to one another in two halves and create a musical fabric by combining their sonorities in tightly woven patterns. There is no moment in the work where one instrument could survive without the other. Together, these two halves, or ‘brothers’ work hand in hand to form a single musical mind. “Red” was composed entirely in Bucharest, Romania, in the summer of 2008. I was experiencing tremendous and unusual writers block at the time. After struggling with ideas, I met my hero journalist and National Public Radio celebrity, Andrei Codrescu, one night on the streets of Bucharest, completely by chance. I wrote the entire piece in the following week, thus ending my block.
I: Moderately funky (quarter note = ca. 112)
II: Fast (quarter note = ca. 200)
III: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 128)
IV: Slow (quarter note = ca. 65)
V: Moderate, with motion (quarter note = ca. 120)
VI: Fast, obsessive, red (quarter note = ca. 232)
-MM
Release
4 Horns
Duration:
5'
Year:
2017
Program note:
Release
Release, scored for four French Horns, was written as a memorial. Though it is an elegy, it also contains the flavor of hope. It opens with a calling of death, but as it moves through its short few minutes to the end, it describes a release of pain, a release of ache, and ultimately a transference into respect and thankfulness. We live on and remember those who taught us, made us who we are, and help shape our future.
-MM
Requiem for a Hummingbird
Wind Ensemble
Duration:
3'
Year:
2012
Program note:
I used to have a backyard where hummingbirds would sometimes stop by looking for a drink. I think my next-door neighbor’s house became the local pub for hummingbirds. They are remarkable birds, living their life at a pace far beyond what we can comprehend. They are continuously hours away from starving to death, yet have remarkably long life spans for organisms with such high metabolisms. They must constantly be on the hunt for more nectar, and they somehow always succeed in finding it (partly due to the help of my neighbor). Watching them was the perfect distraction for me from writing music. Composing music is a very slow process and it takes an enormous amount of time. Hummingbirds do not have this luxury of time. They are quick and perfect flying machines, can hover endlessly, and are the only bird that can fly backwards. No one ever notices these beautiful creatures doing amazing flight patterns because the poor birds are always in such a hurry to find the next nectar pub. As I would slowly write music note by note, the hummingbird would fly by me operating at a level of efficiency far beyond me, inspiring me. Hummingbirds have no time for sadness, they are past that. They are in a constant state of ecstasy. If I was a hummingbird and my hummingbird friend was not able to find enough nectar within a few hours from the last and closed its eyes finally, I think I would write a funky requiem for it. The pace of music has to slow just a bit to be funky, and this is about as sad as a hummingbird can get, which is pretty happy.
Requiem for a Hummingbird was commissioned by Cynthia Johnson Turner and the Cornell University Wind Ensemble in support of the Society for New Music.
-MM
Spam
Flute, Clarinet/Bass Clarinet, Violin, Cello, Piano
Duration:
14'
Year:
1995
Program note:
Everything happens twice in Spam. The music constantly brings itself back, repeating ideas twice but always changing it the second time. Shifting and self-reversing instrumentation continually sets the musical material off of itself, hiding and then bringing to forefront musical ideas. With a backdrop of contrasting and deceptive instrumentation, the music itself is ironically quite direct. I am attempting to speak musically at a personal level. The most important thing I want to achieve in Spam is to communicate directly with the listener, through the musicians. We are all a team: composer, performer, and audience.
Splinter
Soprano Saxophone, 2 Alto Saxophones, Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone
Duration:
17'
Year:
2024
- Saxophone Quintet edition -
Program note:
I composed “Splinter” in 2014, originally, for the reed quintet “Splinter Reeds.” The unique combination of this relatively new ensemble formation provided me with a wonderful palette of instruments that blend very well together, and transferred well into other editions, including this one. I was able to create sounds by using a fusion of instruments, often playing together and forming lines of sound within their combination, and sometimes being on their own as well. The different lines of the instruments themselves fit together likes pieces of a puzzle. Together they form the overall tapestry of sound by each supplying a branch, or leaf, to the overall musical tree. “Splinter” is in eight short movements and work together much like a baroque suite. Trees can be magical to me: each movement, or “splinter,” can be seen coming from and inspired by a different type. “Weeping Willow,” for example, bends and sways in the wind while “Black Ash” is musically losing its leaves (it is one of the first trees to lose it’s leaves in the fall).
Splinter
4 Clarinets & 1 Bass Clarinet
Duration:
17'
Year:
2014/20
- Clarinet Quintet edition -
Program note:
I composed “Splinter” in 2014, originally, for the reed quintet “Splinter Reeds.” The unique combination of this relatively new ensemble formation provided me with a wonderful palette of instruments that blend very well together, and transferred well into other editions, including this one. I was able to create sounds by using a fusion of instruments, often playing together and forming lines of sound within their combination, and sometimes being on their own as well. The different lines of the instruments themselves fit together likes pieces of a puzzle. Together they form the overall tapestry of sound by each supplying a branch, or leaf, to the overall musical tree. “Splinter” is in eight short movements and work together much like a baroque suite. Trees can be magical to me: each movement, or “splinter,” can be seen coming from and inspired by a different type. “Weeping Willow,” for example, bends and sways in the wind while “Black Ash” is musically losing its leaves (it is one of the first trees to lose it’s leaves in the fall).
-MM
Splinter
Saxophone Octet (SSAATTBB)
Duration:
17'
Year:
2014/18
- Saxophone Octet (2 Baritones) edition -
Program note:
I composed “Splinter” in 2014, originally, for the reed quintet “Splinter Reeds.” The unique combination of this relatively new ensemble formation provided me with a wonderful palette of instruments that blend very well together, and transferred well into other editions, including this one. I was able to create sounds by using a fusion of instruments, often playing together and forming lines of sound within their combination, and sometimes being on their own as well. The different lines of the instruments themselves fit together likes pieces of a puzzle. Together they form the overall tapestry of sound by each supplying a branch, or leaf, to the overall musical tree. “Splinter” is in eight short movements and work together much like a baroque suite. Trees can be magical to me: each movement, or “splinter,” can be seen coming from and inspired by a different type. “Weeping Willow,” for example, bends and sways in the wind while “Black Ash” is musically losing its leaves (it is one of the first trees to lose it’s leaves in the fall).
-MM
Splinter
Oboe, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Bassoon, Bass Clarinet
Duration:
17'
Year:
2014
Program note:
I composed “Splinter” in 2014 for the reed quintet “Splinter Reeds.” The unique combination of this relatively new ensemble formation provided me with a wonderful palette of instruments that blend very well together. Thus, I was able to create sounds by using a fusion of instruments, often playing together and forming lines of sound within their combination, and sometimes being on their own as well. The different lines of the instruments themselves fit together likes pieces of a puzzle. Together they form the overall tapestry of sound by each supplying a branch, or leaf, to the overall musical tree. “Splinter” is in eight short movements and work together much like a baroque suite. Trees can be magical to me: each movement, or “splinter,” can be seen coming from and inspired by a different type. “Weeping Willow,” for example, bends and sways in the wind while “Black Ash” is musically losing its leaves (it is one of the first trees to lose it’s leaves in the fall).
-MM
Splinter
Saxophone Octet (SSAATTBB)
Duration:
17'
Year:
2014/18
- Saxophone Octet (1 Bari., 1 Bass) edition -
Program note:
I composed “Splinter” in 2014, originally, for the reed quintet “Splinter Reeds.” The unique combination of this relatively new ensemble formation provided me with a wonderful palette of instruments that blend very well together, and transferred well into other editions, including this one. I was able to create sounds by using a fusion of instruments, often playing together and forming lines of sound within their combination, and sometimes being on their own as well. The different lines of the instruments themselves fit together likes pieces of a puzzle. Together they form the overall tapestry of sound by each supplying a branch, or leaf, to the overall musical tree. “Splinter” is in eight short movements and work together much like a baroque suite. Trees can be magical to me: each movement, or “splinter,” can be seen coming from and inspired by a different type. “Weeping Willow,” for example, bends and sways in the wind while “Black Ash” is musically losing its leaves (it is one of the first trees to lose it’s leaves in the fall).
-MM
String Quartet No. 2: Revolution
2 Violins, Viola, Cello
Duration:
13'
Year:
2004
Program note:
My “String Quartet No. 2: Revolution” was commissioned by, and is dedicated to, the Kronos Quartet. It was completed in late 2004. It’s four movements each explore ideas and processes that embrace the idea of each voice working together to create a whole far better than just the sum of its parts.
I spend significant time in Romania each year and have developed a love affair for its people, culture, food, and way of life. Each movement of “Revolution” has direct connections to the country that has adopted me as one of its own. The first and last movements (Groove Canon & Groove Machine) are both inspired by machinery, something I am fascinated with. In Romania, I have found some of the most beautiful, old, and still working pieces of machinery that I have ever seen. The trains are particularly amazing, quite large and heavy, and almost entirely metal. They feel very “real” to me and are inspiring. Some of the music contained in these movements was written for imaginary machines similar to, and inspired by, these trains.
I found myself writing much of this work with my infant daughter either in my arms or playing nearby. She was completely fascinated by any toy that made a musical sound, as most children are, and therefore my working environment was often filled with the sound of lullabies, cute melodies, and repetitive short musical ideas. These toys were mini machines of their own and provided the thematic material for the entire second movement, “Mara’s Toys.”
The third movement, “December 1989” is a direct response to the Romanian Revolution of Christmas, 1989. I once met a man who fought vigorously in this bloody and tragic outbreak of freedom. We talked all night long as he told me stories of the people who risked their lives and died so that their country could be free. I learned first hand of the ultimately tragic but victorious event that changed Romania forever, and composed this music as a direct response. The central melody is based on a communist patriotic song written for Romania’s ruthless leader Nicolae Ceaucescu, that I warped and changed to find the beauty within the ugly.
-MM
String Quartet No. 3: Tapas
2 Violins, Viola, Cello
Duration:
14'
Year:
2008
- String Quartet edition -
Program note:
“String Quartet No. 3: Tapas,” for two Violins, Viola, & Cello, is in eight short movements all working together to a large extent like a baroque suite. The individual lines fit closely together much like the pieces of a puzzle, each instrument relying on each other to fill in the spaces. My task was to create a work that allowed for short “tastes” of different musical ideas that still worked together creating a larger whole. The music itself should speak directly, creating a sound world unique to itself. Tapas was commissioned by “Musique en Roue Libre” and is dedicated to the French cellist Fabrice Bihan. The original version for string trio was premiered in August 2007 in Hendecourt-les-Cagnicourt, during a two-week festival of the music of Mellits and Brahms.
String Quartet No. 4: Prometheus
2 Violins, Viola, Cello
Duration:
22'
Year:
2011
Program note:
“String Quartet No. 4: Prometheus,” was commissioned for the Debussy String Quartet, and was premiered by them in Arras, France, in 2011. Each of the seven movements explore different ways in which the instruments collaborate to form their own collective sound world all within a loose imagination of the idea of fire (as it is named after the Titan, Prometheus, who granted mankind the element, having stolen it from the gods, who were not thrilled). For example, Movement V, is a representation of the fire that is formed in a glowing fireplace, keeping love warm. The last movement “allegro groove” is a funky ecstatic fire, completely unaware of the utter devastation it leaves in its path. It is based on a canon of fire formed at the opening by the violins. The music of each movement of the quartet explores how the instruments can collaborate and form unique musical sound worlds. It is within this interaction that the inner sound world is discovered and emerges. Within the gift of fire in each movement, sometimes small and glowing, sometimes great and hot, sometimes subdued, each instrument maintains its own voice within the overall sound realm that combine to form the complete sound texture. Both driving rhythm as well as forward moving melodic lines are the epicenters of the musical material.
String Quartet No. 5: Waníyetu
2 Violins, Viola, Cello
Duration:
14'
Year:
2015
Program note:
"String Quartet No. 5: Waníyetu," is comprised in seven short movements. It was written during an especially cold Chicago winter, and I settled on this subtitle because waníyetu is the native American Lakota word for “winter.” It was commissioned by the Mankato Symphony Orchestra's “Music on the Hill,” in memory of Ken Gertjejansen. Mankato, Minnesota, in the northern part of the Midwest of the US, can experience extreme winters; it is also home to members of native American Dakota. I wanted to write music that pulled inspiration both from the Native American people that have their ancestry home in Mankato, as well as from winter, waníyetu, itself. All of this to say, each movement is inspired in some way by winter: the first movement is quiet stillness, an early morning frozen landscape; in the second movement, a snowstorm ensues—commencing with just a few falling flakes and then quickly escalating into a fully developed storm. The third movement is that first calm walk in the snow, the storm of last night remains a distant echo, and all is serene again. And as there is no greater inspiration than children, the fourth movement is my depiction of my children playing in the first snow of the season. The fifth movement: slow motion in heavy snow. The piece ends with movements six and seven: six with a massive blizzard in the middle of an eternal polar vortex, and finally movement seven, the playful joy following the storm.
Swirl
Soprano Saxophone Duo
Duration:
6'30"
Year:
2024
Program note:
“Swirl” was written in loving memory of my good friend, colleague, my all-things saxophone guru, José Riojas (1982-2020). José had suggested I write a Soprano Saxophone duo for him and our mutual friend Paula Van Goes. Even the title, “Swirl,” was José’s idea. After his sudden and untimely passing, Paula put together a consortium of loving musicians and friends for the creation of “Swirl.” The two lines of “Swirl” are forever intertwined and interconnected. They rely and embrace each other, much like we all relied and embraced our dear super-hero friend. The resulting sound is one of inseparableness and symbiotic inter-connection. The two saxophones form both melodic and harmonic content always together, allowing the music to unfold and swirl to the heavens as one.
-MM
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