Collaborations

Turning Leaves, Scene 1
(L to R: Peter Christian, Kiera Kradzinski, Cameron Mast, and Natalie Gilbert)

Back in November, my chamber opera “Turning Leaves” was performed on my senior composition recital at West Chester University. It was a stripped-down version, with only the singers and piano, and the music was unmemorized. We did use some sparse scenery (a table, some books, and a fake tree!), but for the most part, it was an unstaged concert performance.  The performers dressed in clothes suggestive of their character’s personality, and we relied on the music, text, and performance to communicate the story with limited movement.

Turning Leaves, Scene 2
(Natalie Gilbert)

The plot is set in 1886, and follows the immigrant Bauer family as it grapples with a rift created by compulsory education laws. The children begin to read, but the illiterate parents clutch to ideas of oral tradition and personal interaction, which is all they had ever known.

If you haven’t heard this music yet, check it out here, or watch the video recording below!  There are additional photos from this great performance on the “Turning Leaves” page.

Turning Leaves, Scene 3
(Cameron Mast)

The libretto was written by my friend Andrew Wigman, and performing here are Natalie Gilbert, Kiera Kradzinski, Cameron Mast, and Peter Christian (with myself on piano). Thank you to you all, as well as for the tireless support and patience of my friends and family.  Performing this on the recital made for some tight deadlines and even later nights!

In addition to this, the chamber opera was recently selected as a recipient of a WCU Student Research and Creative Activities Award, and I will be delivering a brief presentation of the conception and historical research of “Turning Leaves.” It should be very exciting to share this story and music with new people!

The rest of my senior composition recital is now on YouTube as well, so check it out here! “Fissure”, “Imprints & Abstractions”, and “Sŭbra i Zaigra” were also performed.