As a professor with the State University of New York, my first sabbatical resulted in three large ensemble pieces, Three Canvases for Orchestra, Dance Suite for Wind Ensemble, and, Grendel Suite for Band, inspired by the John Gardner book, Grendel.

A neo-classicist at heart, I developed a form that reconciled atonal elements and tonal elements within the recapitulation. These elements were used programmatically in Grendel Suite for Band to represent the two realms of existence the Grendel character inhabits. I came to think of this as “Sonata Grendel form” and subsequently composed several pieces in this style, most notably my Piano Sonata in C.

Years later, when faced with the task of naming my fledgling music publishing company, “Sonata Grendel” seemed an appropriate appellation to represent my love of musical form and diverse styles.

The truth of the matter is that I started Sonata Grendel Publishing as a result of my love of formatting and my desire to change other’s copy. My theory students refer to this as the, “red pen of death.”

For information on becoming a Sonata Grendel Publishing collaborator, click below.