That Regrettable Weekend contains 20 of my songs, plus the eponymous instrumental. You can find it on Bandcamp. I play soprano, banjo, and baritone ukuleles; keyboards; Tremoloa; Ukelin; bulbul; xylophone; melodica; bells; psaltery; ocarina; grunt call; trombone; and assorted percussion. And sing, of course. Carol Benner plays viola on three songs. The tracks are: Little […]

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In 1974, as a composition student at Oberlin Conservatory, I wrote three songs for “The Donner Party: Its Crossing,” developed and performed by the company Kraken, and directed by Herbert Blau. The words were by Stuart Friebert and Herbert Blau. I posted the program here, and finally got round to revising and recopying the songs. […]

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Here’s another excerpt from The Doug Skinner Dossier (see last post). It’s the first bit of “Trevor’s New Job.” TREVOR’S NEW JOB “I didn’t think I’d need a job in the afterlife,” said Trevor. Mr. Wallingford smirked at him from across his desk. “Didn’t you need a job in life?” he asked. “Well, yes,” said […]

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I had forgotten about these two short pieces for flute, ‘cello, and piano, written for my composition class at Oberlin Conservatory, back in 1972.  They seemed lively enough to keep, so I made a legible copy from the penciled antique.

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This melancholy little piece features the Tremoloa, a curious instrument once made by the Manufacturers Advertising Company, which has a single slack string played with a steel bar. On its first performance, I was joined by David Gold on viola, Ralph Hamperian on tuba, and Doug Roesch on guitar.

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A round about time.

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Aleister Crowley used to great carolers by flinging open the door and roaring, “To the lions with them!” This charming holiday tradition inspired the following round.  

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I often performed this vent bit with Eddie back in the ’90s, including, if memory serves, a couple of TV appearances.  Here’s an excerpt:

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A short piece for piano, based on diatonic 4-pitch and 7-pitch sets.  Here’s the beginning:

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In 1996, MTV decided to expand, by starting a second station called M2.  A number of bands were commissioned to write jingles using their slogan “24 more.”  White Knuckle Sandwich submitted three possibilities (one for each of us), and mine was chosen.  The 30 second spot used an elaborate set, a revolving camera, and a […]

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