My thoughts about Piano Music (2004)

Throughout my adult life I have always appreciated music written expressly for the piano. I began to study the piano when I was sixteen. The piano nurtured in me both a love for music itself and the art/craft of composition. I compare artful piano music with artful string quartet music. Both require from the composer his or her best efforts. Both require intimacy and an endless proficiency of craft. What is of particular interest to me, with regards to the character in piano music, is pervasive melody, a distinct metrical/harmonic appeal and a lyrical, expressive/percussive dichotomy. I do not intend to dissuade my interest in the piano as a vehicle for the expression of contemporary classical art music. These days, it would seem impractical and inopportune to express one's aesthetic ideologies in relic forms such as fantasy prelude and the sonata. Nevertheless, "anything goes" in 2. fantasy. There are no promises made concerning form or content. Preludes are short, sweet and savory. The responsibility of writing a skillful sonata is more painstaking than it would appear. This collection of fantasies, preludes and sonatas comprised in Piano Music is not intended to perpetuate either a traditional or unorthodox approach, but to compel in me, a resolute ambition to create piano music which reflects my nature, my love for the piano and my commitment to that which inspires me.

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