Abstraction.

Abstraction is a four-movement piece written for the Wind Ensemble. It begins with only two Baritone Saxophones and gradually adds instruments until the full ensemble is performing. Abstraction is a look at my personal travels through theistic and atheistic modes of thought and a reflection on my own conclusions. Abstraction's first movement "creation ex nihilo" was written in homage to two concepts: creation from nothing, and duality. The second movement, titled "…maybe" is orchestrated for a chamber group of clarinets and saxophones and is a look at a theistic answer to the question "Why are we here?" The third movement, "godless," is written for the wind section of a Wind Ensemble. "godless" is a translation of an evolutionary construction of music, designed to be more naturalistic. The final movement, written for the full Wind Ensemble, is an attempt to reconcile the two modes of thought explored earlier.