Compositions

Sheet music for a work currently a national finalist for the 2025 American Prize in Composition. Five movements, 45 minutes duration. Variations is a conversation among sections of the orchestra with frequent and unexpected turns of harmony. The Scherzo is vigorous with violent interjections by opposing instruments. Two Trios, one featuring brass and percussion, the other featuring strings alone, separate repetitions of the Scherzo. Cavatina and Canzone are rather slow, song-like movements, the first in a major key, the second in minor. The Finale is the longest and most elaborate movement, in sonata form ending with a grand coda for the entire orchestra.

Four movements composed in 2024 for classical orchestra. 40' duration.

Four movements for symphony orchestra composed in 2026.
Total performance time: 50minutes.

The first movement begins with short meditative phrases in the solo strings that will reappear from time to time throughout the piece. A faster main section contrasts arpeggiated, skipping rhythms with smoother, more stepwise themes.The second movement, Chaconne, is a stately dance form dating from the Baroque period presenting a rather simple eight-bar theme repeated over and over with variations and rather modern harmonic modulations.The third movement, a festive Jig, features running scales punctuated by the winds and brass. The entire orchestra is involved in a complex fugal texture. A slower and calmer section ensues that gradually builds to a climax whereupon the meditative music from the first movement returns.The fast Jig returns, leading without pause into the fourth and final movement, Finale. Heret he brief meditative phrase intoned by the solo cello at the opening of the Symphony is now taken up by every instrument of the orchestra in close imitation and a grand spirit.

A modern brass quintet in four movements composed in 2023. Total duration 18 minutes. The first movement (Ricercare) recalls brass music of the Italian Renaissance. The second movement (Andante) begins with a gentle theme featuring the second trumpet. A middle section recalls the first movement. Then the gentle theme returns in the tuba. The third movement (Scherzo) useslivelydialogue. In theTrio, French horn and trombone share an expansive theme. The fourth movement (Rondo) is humorous in character and makes use of rapid tongue and finger technique. Each volume contains a full score and set of parts in one binding.

Sheet music to a work from 2022 in five movements, approximately 29 minutes duration. An opening Gavotte in Baroque style is followed by a tuneful and bucolic Theme and Variations that uses instruments in various combinations. The third movement, March, is forceful, highlighting the entire ensemble. A middle section is quiet and plaintive, using the instruments in pairs. The fourth movement, also a Theme and Variations, begins with a simple tune that invites a variety of colors and moods to its variations. At the swirling climax, the first movement Gavotte returns. One volume Includes the full score and set of parts. 

Octet is five brief movements played without pause. The first presents a stately theme that recurs periodically throughout the piece. In the second section, scampering figures pass quickly between instruments while the stately theme reappears. The third movement is flippant and jazzy. Players snap their fingers and play in “swing” style. As in jazz combos, the contrabass is prominent. The fourth movement presents a more dignified theme with five variations, the last ending in a mood of nervous unease. This leads without pause into the fifth and final movement, an extended eight-part fugue. At its climax, the opening stately theme returns triumphantly after a long absence.
One volume contains a full score (43 pages) and set of eight parts in one binding.

Seven movements for classical guitar composed in 2022. The work echoes ancient lute suites with modern coloration. The first movement, Prelude, shifts between subdivisions of two and three amid a sixteenth note melody. The second movement is a da capo fugue with adventurous harmonic shifts. A brief Echo movement features two parts in close imitation. The following Pavane is like a lullaby but gives way to a livelier middle section featuring a running bass line. A vigorous March follows with a chromatic middle section. The Romanza is a simple song with triplet accompaniment. The work concludes with a challenging Rondo with an exuberant culmination. Total duration30'.

Pharoah's Daughter - a trio for flute, piano, and narrator - sets to music the Bible story of an Egyptian princess who discovered and protected the infant Moses. Memorable tunes are given to the principal characters (Pharaoh, the princess, Miriam, and even a pet elephant) and entertaining narration combine in this 13' work for audiences of all ages. Composed in 2014, Pharoah's Daughter celebrates immigrants, children, and the power of the weak to overcome. One volume (35 pages, 8.5" x 11") includes piano score, narration, and solo flute part bound together. Parts can be distributed to players by photocopying or purchasing additional volumes.

Three movements (Allegro, Adagio, and Allegro con brio) played without pause. The first movement contrasts tuneful music for the whole ensemble with romantic passages played by solo instruments. The second movement is a meditation over which a dotted rhythm prevails. A middle section features the piano. The final movement, a vigorous fugato in duple time, alternates with a romantic melody in triple time. The piece concludes exuberantly. Duration approximately 18 minutes. One volume includes full piano score and solo string parts in one binding.

Simple Suite gives players in their first years of study fun, original music with piano accompaniment that develops a singing style.

Three movements (Prelude, Barcarolle, and March) are originally for Bb clarinet and piano. One volume includes piano score, solo Bb clarinet part and alternate solo parts for violin and Eb alto saxophone. All are in one binding. Parts may be separated by photocopying or purchasing additional volumes.

Three movements composed in 2020. The opening movement (Con brio) is jovial, using pungent articulations and frequent imitations between parts. A second theme in the bassoon's high register is rather sentimental by way of contrast. The second movement (Adagio drammatico) is Baroque in style, recalling sonatas of Vivaldi and others of that period. The piano serves as continuo while the bassoon spins an elaborate aria above and below, full of rhythmic variety and wide leaps. The third movement (Allegro pastorale) is calm throughout. The bassoon suggests woodlands and Arcadian feelings here. Reference is made to themes of the first and second movements before the sonata ends quietly. One volume Includes piano score and solo bassoon part in one binding. Duration 12 minutes.

An American cello sonata composed in 2011 in an accessible style.The first movement is a solemn introduction that gives way to a graceful Allegretto in a somewhat Baroque style. The third movement is a tender song for the cello that proceeds without pause to the fourth movement, a lively three-part jig. 12’ duration. Includes piano score and solo cello part in one binding.

Four movements, 21 minutes duration. A slow introduction leads to an involved sonatamovement that recalls the Baroque style. A solemn meditation follows,culminatinginareappearance ofthe slow introduction. The work concludes with a lively jig that venturestodistant keys. One volume includes piano score and solo cello part.

An American string quartet in three movements composed in 2019, 17 minutes duration. The first movement is a in a vigorous and optimistic style reminiscent of Haydn. The second movement is slower, beginning as dialogue between instruments paired in various combinations. A mysterious interlude follows in staccato style. The movement concludes with the opening duets in heightened feeling. The last movement is a fugue that makes use of the "mysterious" section of the slow movement, but in more exuberant mood. This is interrupted by a slower, somewhat ghostly, section that is tossed off in a rousing conclusion. One volume includes full score and four solo parts in one binding.

An American string trio in three movements composed in 2021. The first movement is five variations on an original theme. The overall character is tuneful, and the cello and violin are featured. The final variation, a tender Sicilienne, ends quietly. The second movement is a slow waltz in the minor key but with a more hopeful middle section in the major. The final movement, an extended sonata form, is joyous but with a plaintive second theme that recalls the waltz movement. Towards the conclusion of the movement, some virtuosity is required from everyone, including surprising chord changes, wide ranging arpeggios, and double stops. Total duration 23". One volume includes full score and performance parts bound together. Parts can be distributed to players by photocopying or purchasing additional volumes.

Three movements composed in 2025, total duration 10 minutes. The first movement (Pastorale) is based a simple tune with rather intricate part writing. The second movement (Loure) highlights the English Horn accompanied by oboes. Loure is an ancient slow dance for bagpipe, whose sonority is evoked by three double reeds. The third movement (Gigue) is a lively fugue developed with seriousness but concluding with a surprise.

A setting of five celebrated hymns for woodwind quintet (Land of Rest, How Great Thou Art, Lord I Want to Be a Christian, Lift Every Voice and Sing, Lead Me Lord). Duration:14 minutes. One volume contains a full score and set of parts. 

This volume contains three original works for keyboard. Piano Variations, Opus 4 is a theme with five variations, 14" duration. The rhythm of the first three variations accelerates. The fourth, a Sicilienne, is slower and in a gentle rocking rhythm. The fifth variation is a three-part fugue that uses fragments of the theme throughout. Towards the end, the opening theme reappears briefly.

Prelude and Fugue, Opus 20 uses a pairing of pieces found often in the music of J. S. Bach and many composers. The Prelude features rapid interplay between the hands. The Fugue is slower and stalwart by comparison. Its theme spans an octave and is treated in four parts, challenging the pianist's powers of voicing and technique.

Allston Variations, Opus 1, is the composer's first published composition. It is thirty variations on an original theme that is stated twice, once at the beginning and once at the end. The variations vary widely in form and style (from Baroque to boogie-woogie). The final variation is an extended four-part fugue. The work was written during the composer's residence in Allston, a youthful and culturally rich neighborhood of Boston MA. This richness and vitality are reflected in the variety and loose relation of variations to each other and to the opening theme, a rather plain tune that was, nevertheless, the inspiration for them all.

Thirty Inventions for keyboard players who wish to learn to play well in two and three simultaneous parts. These brief pieces range in keys up to four flats and sharps but are harmonically adventurous and provide ample voicing, articulation, and musical challenges.

Five original solo piano sonatas composed between 2018 and 2021.

Three movements composed in 2024. The first movement is a sonata form in lyrical style. The second movement contrasts a somber theme with a fugal middle section. The movement closes with a return of the opening theme accompanied by the fugue subject. The third movement is a rondo in a minor key, agitated with frequent tremolos. By the end, however, the main theme returns in the hopeful major key and the piece ends in cheerfully.

A four-minute anthem for Children's chorus and orchestra. The English text expresses young people's hopes to learn and grow. Suitable for end-of-semester concerts or celebrations of any youth educational program or institution. Orchestra includes woodwind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, French horn) and strings. Text and music by Steven Wesley Jackson, composed in 2019, revised in 2026. Score and set of orchestral parts are included. Piano reduction also available on Amazon as Opus 10b in a volume titled Iuvenum Lyra published by Mount Auburn Press.