The Music of Ursus Demens

Her Scars — A Ballet in 11 Scenes Scene 1 — Moon Rise, Scene 2 — Demon Dance, Scene 3 — Water Ablutions, Scene 4 — Creature Dance, Scene 5 — Demon Dance II, Scene 6 — Katas, Scene 7 — The Demon King Enters, Scene 8 — Battle!, Scene 9 — Healing, Scene 10 — Funeral, Scene 11 — Moon Set The ballet is scored for a chamber ensemble consisting of: • Solo Flute (doubles on Alto Flute) • Double Reed Nonet • String Nonet • Percussion Octet

San Antonio Sunset is one of the first solo piano pieces I ever wrote. The earliest hand written copy I have is from 1980 . I have revised it several times in the last twenty years; at one point being more than double its original (and current) length. But in the end the current version is almost identical to the original 1980 version. San Antonio is a shot (2 minute) Tone Poem, which I like to call a Tone Haiku for solo piano.

Obsidian Waves and Missing Thoughts is a short (3 minute) piece for solo piano that I wrote as an example of the composition technique of quartal harmony, the building of harmonic structures based on the interval of a fourth instead of the traditional tertian construction.

A piece written response to 12Tone’s [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTUt... ] challenge to write a piece based on his Sideways Scale: E F G A# B C C# D E What I ended up with is short three minute atmospheric “tone haiku” for solo piano. I eschewed using triads from the scale, preferring to use open fifths, fourths, tritones, and minor second clusters from the scale.

Kazekikeba (I Hear the Wind). It is for Voice, piano, Alto Flute, Cello, and Bass. The words are by the Japanese poet Shotetsu (1381-1459). 風きけばみねのこのはの なかぞらにふきすて おつるこえごえ。 I hear the wind in the mountain trees and the voice of the leaves blown through the air then let go falling.