• Cry Premiere

    Rochester’s Madrigalia choir and Artistic Director Cary Ratcliff premiered another Antarctica-inspired choral piece, “Cry.” The words? The ice is crying. The waters will rise with every tear.

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    Christmas at the Foot of a Volcano

    My wife and I have gotten to know the local Catholic community of Sacred Heart, Na’alehu. This rural community gathers together the whole range of Hawaiians including those from indigenous heritage to those whose families originate from the US, Europe, Japan, China and the nations of Polynesia. The author James Joyce once described the Catholic…

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    Lava Trees – Courage and Stamina

    The Tour To compose music about volcanos, I need a crash-course in volcanology. This is Dr. Don Swanson from the US Geological Survey, my “go-to guy” for all geological things during my artist-in-residence with the National Parks Arts Foundation. Today, Don led me on a tour of the Hawai’i Volcanos National Park, trying to get…