I am an electric violinist with a composition habit.
I'll treat this like a bio:
I currently attend the University of Michigan School of Music, and study under composers such as William Bolcom, Susan Botti, Erik Santos, and Karen Tanaka. I also study violin with Yehonatan Berick. Outside of school, I collaborate with the multimedia music/art collective Thinktank Media. Recently, I received an honorable mention from the 2005 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards for my electric violin piece Devastation Sandwich. This rock-minimalist piece, in which the performer solos while simultaneously operating electronics with bare feet, was the first of its kind to receive an ASCAP award. The piece also appeared at the 2005 Michigan Collage Concert, the 2004 Midwest Composers' Symposium, and was featured in the 2004 production "Michigan on Broadway: A Tribute to Arthur Miller," presented at NYC's Richard Rodgers Theatre.
In the past year, I wrote, conducted, and produced a full orchestra soundtrack for the short film Sleepwalk, a comedy/thriller about a jingle composer who goes nuts. I also was commissioned by the talented Youn Cello Quartet to compose the jazz-inspired Sugar Plum Daddies, which was presented at the Seoul Arts Center in South Korea. In summer 2004 I spent several months in Varanasi, India, training in Hindustani classical violin and tabla at Banaras Hindu University.
I received training first as a classical violinist in East Lansing, Michigan. My composer/performer affair with the electric violin led to the formation of the jazz-rock fusion band The Sexual Pantalones. This rewarding collaboration spawned the progressive rock narrative Crackpants! Shortcut, a commercially released CD inspired by the work of Frank Zappa, Eugene Ysaÿe, and Gentle Giant. My initial compositions involved extensive use of electronic instruments and the MIDI protocol, with whom I share a birthday.
Yes. I like it! This year I have performed as a "solo electric violin ensemble" at the , the , and am always posting as they come. I also tour with a new media improv band called , a creation of the Thinktank Media collective.
In addition to electric violin, my scored compositions are performed regularly at the .
The best moments - when someone comes up to me after the show and tells me about the story they envisioned while listening to the music. Sometimes it's exactly what I saw in my mind as I composed it, and sometimes it's the opposite-- but it's always what I intended. A good friend told me that great music is music that takes you somewhere.
Dmitri Shostakovich, Boards of Canada, Merzbow, Steve Reich, William Bolcom, Deerhoof, Sigur Ros, Rachel's, Joshua Penman, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Michael Jackson, just to name a few.
Electric violin with effects pedals, Cakewalk Sonar, Steinberg Wavelab (R.I.P.), Fruityloops, ProTools M-Powered, Kaoss Pad, acoustic orchestral instruments, vocal ensembles, an electric screwdriver, and soap dropping in the bathtub.