for jazz ensemble
duration: 10′
Commissioned and premiered by the MSM Jazz Orchestra

Program notes

Apple Juice explores the crossroads between contemporary jazz charts and the eclectic nature of today’s concert music. Beginning in nothingness, the piece grows through the command of the piano, ornamented by swelling saxophone lines and the jittery randomness of the trumpets. The bass takes hold of the space and drives us into a locked groove. A fixated chromatic melody is put through its paces on the different sections of the ensemble before the piano takes control again, leading us straight into the climactic and energetic finish line.

This piece came into being after the director of the MSM Jazz Orchestra, Noe Marmolejo, suggested I write something for the ensemble after having played guitar in the jazz ensembles at the University of Houston during my undergraduate. It was premiered in my Senior Composition Recital at the Moores School of Music on April 16th, 2019.

Why the name? Well, haven’t you ever just had the need for apple juice?