Projects
Here you will find whatever composition projects I'm currently working on, as well as previous works, in no particular order. Some information about my process and my own reflections of the pieces.
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The school year of '23/'24 has been tumultuous for sure. I spent the Autumn as an exchange student in Cork, Ireland, attending University College Cork. It was an amazing and educational experience, filled with big and small speed bumps on the way.
One of the speed bumps was the education. The teacher of composition was on sabbatical leave during the whole semester, so I instead had to take other music courses rather than to focus on my main point of study. That being said, I got to take a wide range of different kinds of classes that were very exciting!
Though I didn't do much composing, I wrote a suite for my band that encapsulates my time in Ireland. This was played at a concert in May of '24, and will soon be uploaded here.
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In the Spring, I have been writing for brass quintet, performing June 27th '24, and for the school orchestra, which will be performed in October 8th '24.
Over the Summer, I am taking some music courses in music production and sound design for film, and I will write a piece for a flute, perc, perc. trio that was requested by a friend of mine!
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I look forward to the last year of my bachelor's degree, where I will write for a tailored ensemble in the Autumn, and then for the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, a professional orchestra in Örebo!
OPERA
JAZZ BIG BAND
PIANO & ORCHESTRA
PIANO
VIOLA & PIANO
STRING QUARTET
VIOLIN DECATETT
Valëzuar
Albanian for 'Undulating'
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As my second project at Örebro University,
I got to write for a professional string quartet,
this was very exciting! We were free to write
in any style we wanted, and I, as usual, wanted
to focus on rhythm. This time I wanted to
explore metric modulation and to play with the
perceived pulse when changing subdivision.
I also tried to create an interesting soundscape
using harmonics during the beginning and end
of the piece.
I really like how the composition turned out. The music begins with a faint atmospheric whisper, creeping in, arriving, and then fluttering by, disappearing into silence. Fragments of a melody hints at a future theme, but is interrupted by the rigid and determined, rhythmic structure. The melodies and rhythms of the main sections of the piece evoke a lot of emotion for me. It's very dramatic, and the way the subdivision and pulse constantly shifts is precisely the musical expression that makes me loose myself in the music, and also perfectly encapsulates the title of the piece, 'undulating'.
After the dramatic and fast paced waves of the third section, the fourth gives a brief respite and wandering sense. Here we finally hear the fully developed B theme of the piece, the one hinted at in the beginning. After developing further and reaching it's peak, the cadence doesn't quite get resolved as it leads into a light and hopeful variation of the main theme with the roles reversed between the instruments. Building momentum again, we reach a last climax as the music starts undulating between the emotions and themes of the piece, with reminders of the previous sections, before finally descending down to the stillness of the intro, yet with a slightly more positive spirit.
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Written in the Autumn of '22, recorded at a workshop January 9th '23.
A Colour of Deception
I am in the midst of writing an opera called 'A Colour of Deception'. What started as a silly idea with two close friends of mine developed into a whole libretto with three acts. Both the first and third act is already written and have been performed in isolation of each other.
It's essentially a satire of opera, hitting all the typical tropes of love, death, betrayal, greed, etc. and it's been a lot of fun trying my hand on something completely different. There is also some more modern nuances, like breaking the fourth wall, bringing up current events and trends, calling to attention some common opera stigmas, as well as a comedic presence similar to that of 90's British television shows.
The project is ongoing with no particular deadline, but my hopes are that one day this ridiculous journey will end with a full performance, starring my two friends and me in a blaze of glory.
Sebareflexia
Slovenian for 'self reflection'
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In a world where we constantly compare
ourselves with other people, especially through social
media, self reflection is quite difficult, and tends to
weigh heavy on our generation's mental health.
Therefore, this emotionally charged piece conveys
a constant searching for answers, ridden with anxiety
and uncertainty. I hope you find this timbre exploring
and tense piece introspective, and please do let me
know what thoughts it provokes!
I was approached in Spring 2022 by a friend who asked if I'd be interested to write a contemporary piece for their trio, and I was thrilled for the opportunity, especially since I've never written for prepared piano.
The foundational idea of this work lies in the shared timbre of these instruments and the use of E-bows in the piano. An E-bow is an electrical device mainly used with electric guitar. It creates a magnetic field that lets a steel string vibrate on its own for a constant tone, much like an infinite bow on a violin. These are mainly used with electric guitars, but can also be placed on the strings of the piano, making them sound by just lifting the damper.
My hope was that the textures of E-bows, flute harmonics and bowed vibraphone will weave together and create a unique and magical soundscape.
As per usual, I also keep chasing my internal craving of rhythmic complexity, which becomes apparent as the piece develops further.
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Written during the Summer of '22.
Ühinema
Estonian for 'coalesce'
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I was asked by a friend to write a piece for him and
his class at Gothenburg University, nine violinists
and their teacher at the masters program.
The instrumentation of ten violins is quite rare for
sure, which presented a fun and interesting
challenge. I wanted to explore how techniques like
col legno and harmonic/ricochet glissandos
sounded in an ensemble like this, and must say
that I'm very proud of this piece! Quite rhythmic, which is typical of my music, but also some new territory in regards to cluster harmony and twelve tone. There is even elements of acting, mostly for the first and second violinists.
I also wanted to play with acoustics and three dimensional sound, which is why the violinists were placed in this fashion. I kept this in mind while composing and used it for different effects, particularly at the very end when I try to achieve a sort of acoustic delay.
The following video with Øyvor Volle on first violin was recorded at a rehearsal, but will hopefully be performed in the spring of -23.
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Written between October '21 and May '22.
Stämningsmusik
Swedish for either 'Atmosphere Music' or 'Tuning Music'
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I. Sognante, con amore - Dreamlike, with love
This movement should evoke the feeling of Spring,
the first birds of the season singing, the warmth of the
sun against your skin, and a hopeful rabbit making it's
way through the forest. The audience will have a
chance to just sit back and enjoy the beautiful
perpetual melody, and a sentimental clarinet in the
chalumeau register. It should be treated with a
romantic period oeuvre, focusing on the drama and
emotions that makes this piece.
II. Agitato, con fuoco - Agitated, with fire and passion
The lively second movement could be described as a wild and dramatic pursuit. Continuing the theme, this calm Spring afternoon is interrupted by a fox chasing the rabbit through the woods. The drive lies in the metric precision. Very decisive and exact, the fierce attitude should reach out to the audience through the music with strong intent.
III. Desiderio, poco doloroso - Longing, slightly sad
The last movement is somewhat inspired by impressionism and neo-classicism, combining it with a more modern rhythmic approach. The piano should sound like waves of melancholy fervour, and act as if the music knows something the audience doesn't, keeping them guessing. In our story, the rabbit has escaped but is severely wounded. A wide range of emotions are fleeting by. First, a temptation to lull into a peaceful sleep. Following that, our rabbit snaps out of it and slowly finds the drive to keep going. An intense atmosphere builds, will it find it's way home? It is up to the audience to interpret the end of this tale.
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After a concert in the Winter of 2022, four musicians at my university confronted me about writing a piece for their ensemble containing of flute, flute, clarinet and piano. We had a meeting and I asked what kind of musical interests they had, and it was very varied. An idea that struck me was to write three pieces in a suite, so that I could explore these different styles. I then realized that I needed some way to connect these four different pieces, so decided to also write four shorter pieces in between these movements, a prelude, two interludes, and a postlude.
I like surprising the audience with a performance, so the idea for these shorter pieces was to start the performance by tuning the instruments, but then suddenly be in the music. The theme over these -ludes became this tuning figure, but that transforms each time and leads on to the next piece or to conclude the whole suite. Thereby the name, Stämningsmusik. In Swedish, 'stämning' can mean both atmosphere, as in atmosphere of a room, or it can mean 'tuning', as in tuning your instrument.
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Written between December of '22 and March '23.
The Seal Man
I asked a friend of mine in the Summer of '23 if he wanted me to write him a piece, and he was excited for it. He asked me to write a lied for him and his girlfriend, for piano and soprano. I asked them to provide me a text, and they sent me John Masefield's The Seal Man, published 1905.
I found the lyrics quite difficult to put to music, because of the lack of rhymes and the inconsistent verse structure, as well as the combination of mostly narration with only a few instances of dialogue. Nevertheless, I am happy with how it turned out and how the text is embodied through the music.
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I interpreted the text as quite ambiguous. Though the outcome of the story is very tragic, everything else is described as a beautiful and enchanting portrayal of love. To convey this ambiguoussness, I wanted to create the feeling of uncertainty while still exhuming the vast emotions the characters feel for each other.
The piece has yet to be performed, but hopefully during Autumn of '24.
Text by John Masefield, 1905
And he came by her cabin to the west of the road, calling.
There was a strong love came up in her at that,
and she put down her sewing on the table, and "Mother," she says,
"There's no lock, and no key, and no bolt, and no door.
There's no iron, nor no stone, nor anything at all
will keep me this night from the man I love."
And she went out into the moonlight to him,
there by the bush where the flow'rs is pretty, beyond the river.
And he says to her:
"You are all of the beauty of the world,
will you come where I go, over the waves of the sea?"
And she says to him: "My treasure and my strength," she says,
"I would follow you on the frozen hills, my feet bleeding."
Then they went down into the sea together,
and the moon made a track [upon] the sea, and they walked down it;
it was like a flame before them. There was no fear at all on her;
only a great love like the love of the Old Ones,
that was stronger than the touch of the fool.
She had a little white throat, and little cheeks like flowers,
and she went down into the sea with her man,
who wasn't a man at all.
She was drowned, of course.
It's like he never thought that she wouldn't bear the sea like himself.
She was drowned, drowned.
Written over the Summer of '23.
Trio Trientalis - WIP
A friend of mine asked me to compose a piece for her and her two friends, flute and two percussionists. She had previously performed a piece of mine, Stämningsmusik, and was eager to ask me when their trio needed works for a tour they're doing in the Spring of '25.
It's an unusual instrumentation, but I'm excited to see how they work together and what possibilities arises.
Små Ting - WIP
A friend of mine studying classical song is having a project this spring to sing a modern classical piece, anything in the past 100 years. Naturally, he asked me to write something fresh, and I jumped at the opportunity! We've had many inside jokes about how we view contemporary music, so this is going to be innately very humorous.
From the get go, my friend ordered me to use 12-tone in some manner. I also asked him to provide a text for me that he had a connection to, which became Karin Boye's poem 'Små Ting'. Reading the poem, it conveys feelings of hope and comfort. It speaks about the small things that brighten up an otherwise grey world. To try to convey these emotions utilizing 12-tone technique is not quite the best fit... However I feel confident that the result will achieve... something?
LXI
This was the first piece I wrote at Gothenburg University, a school that pushed me to explore and learn more about contemporary music. Our assignment was to write a piece for solo cello that consists of only five notes (which could be used in any octave). In preparation we looked at several pieces, including a piece written for conductor Paul Sacher, where the composer used the notes existing in his surname. I was inspired by this and took a similar approach, but a bit more extensively.
As I only had two notes in my name (A and B), I decided to do it differently. So I numbered the alphabet where
A = 1 = c
B = 2 = c#
C = 3 = d
D = 4 = d#
etc...
My name of five letters would then give me five notes, although that wasn't quite true. B = 2 = c#. But taking my last letter N = 13 = c#, giving me the same note twice. My surname's initial is M, which gives the same note as A does, so I decided to take my middle name's initial, J.
This gave me the five letters: A, L, B, I, J, and their corresponding notes: c, b, c#, g#, a. This did however also add more letters, since notes have two or three corresponding letters, giving me a total of twelve letters:
A B I J L M N U V X Y Z
The letter's numbers added together becomes 61, written as LXI in roman numerals, the title of the piece. So having arrived with a subset of letters, I decided to write a Swedish poem using only those ones. This is the result:
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Albin J. M.
Bila i min by
Alla i min vy
Vi vill alla vana va
Babbla, jubla, jamma
Bila i min by
Alla i min vy
Bila i min by
Alla i min vy
Vi vill alla vana va
MAXIMUM!
minimum…
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Vi vill alla vuxna va
Babbla, jubla, jamma
NAIV!!
NAIV!
NAIV
NAIV
Naiv
naiv
naiv…
…naiv…
From this poem, I suddenly had exactly which notes to use and in what order, so the only remaining thing was to choose octaves and add articulations, dynamics, tempo and techniques. Soon after, it was performed á vista by Johan Stern of Gothenburg Symfony Orchestra in a brief workshop.
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Sometimes art is a craft.
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Written inside a week in September '21.
Voolav Vesi
Estonian for 'Flowing Water'
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Voolav Vesi follows the dramaturgy of that of a storm.
Very still and quiet in the beginning, it slowly reaches
out it's branches of a longing melody. It reaches further
and touches you with a sense of sentimentality. It then
goes into a deeper and foreboding atmosphere, warning
you of what's to come. A small glimmer of hope is heard before the storm vengefully breaks out with jagged rhythm and dissonance that engulfs your senses. As it reaches it climax, the viola alone brings itself back from the chaos as it reminisces about the earlier themes, and finally ends with the sunrise and a triumphant, sentimental finish.
This piece was written as a collaboration between myself and the violist. For the better part of a year, we had regular meetings where I brought ideas that we then could discuss and try together. This was a great way for me as a composer to learn the instrument more intimately, as well as challenging myself by having to explaining my process and choices to a third party.
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Recorded by Simon Holmsten and myself at Högskolan för Scen och Musik in Gothenburg, 19th of January '22
Viola - Simon Holmsten
Piano - Meeuw
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Written during the Autumn of '21.
Piano Pieces
Writing for the piano is one of my biggest passions. My composition journey has been heavily influenced by Armenian folk/jazz/prog pianist Tigran Hamasyan, and ever since discovering his music I've striven to compose in a similar style, combining complex rhythms with extremely emotional and melancholic tonal language. I tend to perform my own piano pieces, both because they tend to be quite advanced and I don't want to demand too much from an instrumentalist, and also because I have a complete understanding of what I want to convey with the music.
Most of my piano pieces you can find on my YouTube channel, however sometimes I can be slow to upload. Here is some information about the different pieces and how they came about.
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Wojna (2019)
Polish for 'War'
I consider this to be the first piano piece I've written. A very violent composition, explosive dynamics with an anxiety ridden, flowing ostinato. This piece really let me explore the Hijazz scale, a major scale with a lowered second. It is common in a lot of Balkan and eastern European music, with a very dissonant and aggressive sound. This scale has become one of my favourites, popping up here and there in my music.
Becoming more evolved as a composer, there are a few things I'd do differently today, however I still think it has it's charm and it's place in my repertoir.
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Sequoia (2020)
Written for the pianist 'Sequoia' on YouTube
This piece marks a giant leap forward in my evolution. I am still to this day very fond of the piece, and I think it accomplishes a lot more than my previous work. I feel like this composition can stand on it's own, and also says a lot about me as a composer and what I aspire to create.
Structurally, this piece does a lot of things right in my opinion. It starts quite rhythmically ambiguous, which engages the listener to try to find the logic. It doesn't take long for the time signature to become more clear, and it can move on to the next part. The piece also presents two main themes, both of which are used in a variety of registers. They also work well to be played together, which further gives the themes meaning.
I first saw the pianist Sequoia when he played a few pieces by David Bruce Composer on YouTube. I admired his level of skill, checked his website and read that he offers to play anyone's pieces. I saw it as a great opportunity to get to write something a bit more difficult and let him play instead of having to learn it myself. In the end however I still wanted to be able to play it.
Sequoia is also a type of tree in the US, the biggest species on Earth, which also has a bearing in the concept of the composition. I see the two themes as small seeds in the beginning of the piece, that grows and grows throughout. The branches are shifting and intertwining, yet the two seeds still displays their presence, always reminding you of it's humble beginnings.
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Aliquotiens (2020)
Latin for 'Several Times'
In this piece I take a bit of a different approach. It begins very still and fragile, and almost minimalistic, but slowly throughout the piece shifts and evolves. I took inspiration from Tigran Hamasyan's 'Fides Tua', where a single note becomes a central part of the music. I utilize a similar technique of a repeating note, thereby the name. It also has a lot more rhythmic complexity than my previous works, exploring a five against four polyrhythmic pattern.
The composition is very uneasy, toeing the line of tension for most of the piece. Bit by bit it builds up, almost infuriating as it keeps teasing you before finally thrusting itself into a machinery of force. When performed live I've also been accompanied by a saxophonist to improvise over the ending, which I feel elevates the atmosphere fiercely.
A new technique for me in this piece is also the effect of muting the strings of the piano while playing. It creates a dry, more percussive sound, as well as creating a lot of reverberation within the piano that really works with the soundscape. I thoroughly enjoy this technique and hope to incorporate it more in future compositions, although I don't want to push it and overuse it.
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Starý Divák (2021)
Slovakian for 'Old Spectator'
I view this as something of a masterpiece. I feel like this composition really succeeds in what I crave to create, a dramatic journey that grabs you emotionally and really tells a story.
I was considerably inspired by Tigran Hamasyan's song 'An Ancient Observer' from the album of the same name. It has this ostinato that utilizes parallel fifths in a very wistful manner. Almost as if you can feel the culture in the music. I was so inspired that I decided to write a piece with a similar style of ostinato, yet still something unique. Here, again, I turn up the complexity of my music, starting to realize my creative potential. The next section really turns the rhythmic dial up to eleven in an explosive, anxiety inducing gut punch, featuring a combination of the time signatures 9/8, 10/8 and 11/8. It then resolves into a beautiful, atmospheric shimmer in the third section that features improvisation over shifting odd time signatures. Improvisation is a huge part of Tigran's music, and something I wish to incorporate more into my works. To conclude the piece there are two short parts that reminisce about the middle and beginning of the piece before an open ended finish.
Because of where the inspiration came from, I decided to name the piece after Tigran's song.
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Draumur (2021)
Icelandic for 'Dream'
This is another piece I'm very proud of. It mainly uses the time signature of 7/8, but does so very effectively in innovative ways. I also feel like it has a great flow, which sometimes can be difficult to achieve with odd time signatures. While it has, like most of my pieces, an anxiety-like tonal language overall, there is a part towards the middle where it really becomes something else. Where the piece was previously a constant flow of eighth notes with sorrowful legato melodies, it suddenly transforms into a happy, silly, choppy and almost groovy section that really pushes the rhythmic perception. Even though this is huge contrast to both the earlier parts of the piece and my style in general, I find it very refreshing and new. It then, however, falls back down into misery with a section that practices third hand illusion, an effect I really like, before moving on to the conclusion of the piece.
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Glücklich (2021)
German for 'Happy'
This is somewhat of a comedic piece. I sat down one day and looked at my compositions and though "Wow, this is really depressing". It's true that I like to express feelings of anxiety, sadness and claustrophobia, but I felt like I should try to write something different for once. So I sat down, chose a major key and a 4/4 time signature. Let me tell you, it did not go according to plan... It didn't take many measures before the 4/4 turned into 13/8, and a few more to descend into my typical pain and suffering. It did however turn into a very humours piece in that sense, and I give it my upmost respect.
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Till Gunnar (2022)
Swedish for 'To Gunnar'
My grandfather passed away the summer of '22 and I wrote this piece in his memory to be performed at his funeral. The circumstances are sad, but it was very peaceful. The music reflects a bittersweet acceptance and sentimental atmosphere that I think fit very well.
I wrote the entirety of the piece during the first two weeks of August '22 while on a trip to Greece, without the ability to try anything on a piano. This is unusual for me, since I tend to want to improvise and try ideas during the composition process, but it made me very conscious of that fact. Since I also had only about three weeks of practice until the performance, I didn't want to make it too complicated. I'm very happy with the result, and I think it's one of my more easily-listened-to piano pieces.
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Future Plans
These last years I have felt out of touch with my piano, distancing myself from it. There are many unfinished pieces that I hope to one day continue, but will have to wait as the urge for it is slightly dormant.
Fundi Viatu
After discussing the music of Schubert with a friend
I decided to write this piano trio. Schubert's name is
translated to 'Shoemaker', which is the name of this
piece in Swahili.
I wrote the piece for my aforementioned friend to
play the piano part, however he unfortunately fell sick
the week leading up to the performance. Luckily,
Joel Slott was able to save the day, learning and
rehearsing for only a few days.
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Performed and recorded at Högskolan för Scen och Musik in Gothenburg, 21st of January -22.
Clarinet - Francesca Salvestri
Piano - Joel Slott
Viola - Klara Angawa
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Written during the Autumn of '21
Solveig
This piece was written for a friend who was going
through a tough time. Some things you just cannot
change, no matter how much it hurts.
I wrote and recorded this song on my bass lute
in one sitting, July 11th '22.
Block-Harm Rhapsody
Block-Harm Rhapsody was originally written as a small
assignment for a music theory course, specifically about
block harmonization. However I liked the idea so much
that I expanded on it to a fully fledged piece.
I like the way this piece moves between different
genres and atmospheres quite haphazardly, which
is also the cornerstone of the Rhapsody as a musical
form.
Firstly it establishes the main theme, then moves on to more of a laid back swing, coming back to a slightly more rigid theme variant, moving on to a kind of Mario Kart-esque vibe, building up to a heavy metal breakdown, and finally collapsing over itself in a third, more drunken variation of the theme. Quite the ride!
The main theme is heavily reliant on the shifting odd time signature groove:
7/8 + 9/8 + 7/8 + 4/4
Subdivided as follows:
3+2+2 --- 3+2+2+2 --- 3+2+2 --- 2+2+2+2
As it turns out, though not unexpected, this was more difficult to play than I had anticipated... However as a student it's all part of the process. The rest of the piece however is a bit more straight forward.
The piece was written in the Spring of '21, then polished over the next year and performed by Gothenburg Jazz Orchestra 6th of June '22.
Piano Concert No. 1 in C minor
My second year studying composition I was told by my teacher
that I should write something more extravagant for my portfolio,
in time for the application to university. Specifically something with orchestra. So since piano is closest to my heart, I wrote a piano concerto.
It was a great challenge for me and I learned a lot in the process. I embraced my rhythmic insanity, let go of all barriers and, after about 5 months, emerged with this extravagant piece.
Unfortunately I don't have a symphony orchestra at my disposal, so I've never been able to hear it's beauty fully realized. But maybe one day I'll be famous enough to force that monstrosity onto some poor musicians. I particularly do not envy the piano soloist...
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Written between September '20 and January '21.
Friður
Icelandic for 'Peace'
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This chamber music piece was written for an ensemble that went on tour, playing at several nursing homes in the north of Sweden. It was a fixed ensemble that I had to write for, but the main focus became writing for my audience. I wanted to create beautiful music that would evoke emotion, the emotion of peace. A still, sentimental atmosphere, yet a light sense of sadness.
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Written November '19.
ÄŒlenia
A short but sweet chamber music piece, written as a short assignment. Us composers had a week to write a piece for a fixed ensemble who then were to play it a vista the subsequent week. A fun challenge to have to compose on a time crunch, and you also have to take the difficulty of the piece into account, considering the musicians have such a limited time.
I can't actually remember what language the title is or what it translates into, for which I am deeply ashamed... My process of naming pieces can be a bit spontaneous and slightly confusing when not documented properly.
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Written September '20.
Odalbonden
In a project my first year of composition studies I wrote this romance. It was the first time I composed for classical guitar, which was both thrilling and quite the challenge. I chose a poem by Erik Gustaf Geijer, a well known Swedish author and poet. I felt like the text resonated with me, and also fit for the musicians I wrote for. This piece is particularly special to me, as the singer became one of my dearest friends, which began with this project.
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Written Spring '20