Pacific Composers
Featuring original works by Pacific student composers: Marcus Rudes, Don Parker, Davis Robinson, Kamron Qasimi, Vanessa Lopez, Connor Hsu, and Edmund Bascon
Composition Faculty
Andrew Conklin, program director
Hendel Almetus
Eric Wood
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
7:30 pm
Recital Hall
Quartet for Baritone Saxophones (2025) Marcus Rudes ‘276’
Marcus Rudes, Tristan McMichael, Kyle Saelee, Ves Turk, baritone saxophones
Nocturne (2025) Don Parker ‘265’
Don Parker, guitar
Elegy for Clarinet (2025)
Vanessa Lopez, clarinet
Bass Clarinet Trio No. 1 (2025)
Davis Robinson ‘263’
Kamron Qasimi ‘274’
Edmund Bascon, Tommy Galvin, Andrew Seaver, bass clarinets
Mélodie for Solo Piano (2025) Vanessa Lopez ‘252’
Davis Robinson, piano
Moonlit Dance (2025)
Connor Hsu ‘284’
Ves Turk, alto saxophone
Tristan McMichael, tenor saxophone
Marcus Rudes, baritone saxophone
Four Naught (2025) Edmund Bascon ‘274’
William Giancaterino, Radley Rutledge, trombones
Matt Young, bass trombone
Seth Morris, tuba
Notes by the composers
PROGRAM NOTES
Rudes: Quartet for Baritone Saxophones
A common theme in my work this year has been revisiting my earliest pieces of music and taking them to new heights with a more developed toolbox of compositional devices. Quartet for Baritone Saxophones is built around material from the very first song I wrote back in 2019. Its original vocal melody and Gymnopédie-style piano figure are the core motives that glue the piece together, allowing the music to evolve organically—developing in ways that reflect both where I started and how my musical language has grown.
Parker: Nocturne
A solo piece for guitar making use of drop C tuning with dark and dissonant harmonies.
Robinson: Elegy for Clarinet
This piece uses a melody I came up with over the pandemic. This was originally a solo piano piece. I had written various works with this melody using various instrumentations, including a fugue which I titled Hommage to J.S Bach. For months, I had conspired writing for a solo instrument that only plays one line. I narrowed out my options and came out with clarinet, for its versatility in range and timbre. As I was writing this, I found this was more daunting than I realized, as I could not get rid of the idea of something to accompany the melody. After hours of working with my professor and some outside work with our clarinetist playing this tonight, I feel we've got something that I feel proud presenting as my first piece for a solo-line instrument. To me, this melody invokes feelings of sadness, emptiness, and yearning, but also hope and warmth; warmth for love that is there, and yearning for love that used to be there; a world of mine turning to ice, but not just yet, so long as I keep yearning.
Qasimi: Bass Clarinet Trio No. 1
This Bass Clarinet Trio is one that I think effectively summarizes the learning and growth I’ve gone through in the past year as a composer. Not too long ago, I was struggling to write music that was less diatonic and harmonically simple while still producing a coherent and enjoyable sound. This piece was a breakthrough in the sense that it was the first success I feel I really had with a fresher harmonic palette.
Additionally, you’ll hear various influences throughout such as AfroCuban rhythms and some jazz language—both topics which I’ve had the opportunity to learn a lot more about this year. Another ‘challenge’ so to speak was becoming more intimately familiar with the bass clarinet. That posed no problem—the performers that I wrote it for were eager to answer
PROGRAM NOTES
my questions, which helped immensely as well. As far as imagery goes, when I first started writing the piece, I tried to emulate the sort of music you might hear when initiating a battle in a video game, particularly in the faster sections. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you enjoy!
Lopez: Mélodie for Solo Piano
Mélodie for solo piano is a piece I wrote in July of 2023 for Davis Robinson— the pianist who will be premiering this work today. I had always wanted to write a solo work for piano due to the beauty and versatility of the instrument. However, it wasn’t until after I met Davis that I finally decided to write one. This piece depicts the various emotions I was contending with at the time, as well as the way Davis supported me during this difficult period of my life.
Hsu: Moonlit Dance
This is my first time working with woodwind instruments, and I quite enjoyed working with new instruments. This piece is performed by a trio of saxophonists, using the alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones. The form is a rondo form, or an ABACA form, with each A returning with something new. The melody tends to jump from player to player, giving each performer a chance to be in the spotlight.
Bascon: Four Naught
Four Naught is a quick little piece written for low brass quartet. It makes heavy use of the Afro-Cuban 'Tresillo' rhythm, and incorporates a lot of syncopation reminiscent of a big band chart. Also borrowed from big band are the harmonies and unison rhythms found in section soli. At the end of the middle section, I pull what I believe to be a sneaky little trick, shifting from even quarter note triplets into the unbalanced 3+3+2 of the tresillo to return to the opening material. This happened by pure coincidence, but I choose to believe that my subconscious masterfully planned for it all along. For a lot of my music, I have some overarching concept or programmatic meaning as a starting point. This piece is different, because I started by writing a cool melody and just kept it going, with no central emotion or idea. One could say it was all Four Naught...