NEWS

NEWS 5-8-08 - commissions coming up: a 15 minute medley of arrangements of Western folk tunes for Caritas Chorale for their tour to Vienna, Prague, Krakow, and Budpest next summer. And the choir/orchestra piece on the Nez Perce is looming on the horizon. Still working on the violin concerto... NEWS 4-21-08 - the Langroise Trio has released a new album, Volante. My Isle of Bathos is included along with some great 20th century string trio music. Thanks guys! NEWS 1-29-08 - my kids song "A Real Cool Guy" has made it to the semi-finals in the International Song Competition. NEWS 1-18-08 - Just back from a trip up north to Lapwai/Lewiston to the Nez Perce reservation. Dick Brown, Diane Josephy-Peavey and I had meetings with various Indian leaders there in preparation for our next big chorus/orchestra piece on the Nez Perce. Thanks to all for their hospitality! NEWS 12-2-07 - Having been "nominated" for a 2007 L.A. Music Award, I thought it would be fun to go and check out an awards show in Hollywood. So I bought tickets, general admission, to the show and made plans to fly to LA.. Some friends of mine from out of country who had also been nominated, were going to fly in too. We all arrived in L.A. safely. Thursday, awards night, we went to the Music Box at 5:30 to "register." Here we stood, in line, on the sidewalk in front of the Music Box, along with hundreds of other nominees and friends until almost 7:30. Our feet hurt, and everyone was wondering what was going on. We finally started moving, registered, received our general admission armbands, did the cheesy "red carpet", entered the theater and was directed up some stairs to a back lounge area. This was what our general admission ticket got us. We weren't allowed into the auditorium and we were "nominees!". Nowhere was this mentioned when purchasing our tickets in advance. Everywhere people had confused looks on their faces and I spoke with many of them and they were in the same predicament: General admission nominees. True BS at its finest. I have never been treated so disrespectfully in all my life. We left the theater once we heard our categories, went and had a nice dinner, and tried to chalk it up as one of the strangest experiences we had ever had. The remainder of our vacations were great. NEWS 11-28-07: started a new violin concerto for Geoff Trabichoff... NEWS 10-28-07: many thanks to Dan Stern and the Boise Baroque Orchestra for a fine first performance of my Sinfonia Pastorale. Cheers! NEWS 10-17-07 - Suddenly I'm the "college orchestral music guy". Just cranked out a :30 classical, Mozartian score for the College of Idaho ad campaign, and :60 large orchestra score for the University of Idaho's campaign. 10-14-07 - today was the first rehearsal of my Sinfonia Pastorale by the Boise Baroque Orchestra. It's going to sound great! Premiere is Oct 26th in Nampa, and Oct 28th in Boise. NEWS 8-14-07 - Today delivered score and parts for the Sinfonia Pastorale to Dan Stern, conductor of the Boise Baroque. Another project finished! NEWS 8-7-07 Just spoke to Tony Boatman at the Philharmonic. Due to the length of the silent film given me (29:30) which would not fit in the allotted program time, I will not be doing the Musical Movies project this year. Perhaps next... NEWS 8-1-07 - finished the Sinfonia Pastorale today. now for the score and parts... NEWS 7-17-07 - have finished a new commission for St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sun Valley to celebrate the installation of their new priest. Scored for 3 trumpets, Organ, Timpani, Choir. Will premiere in August. NEWS 6-27-07 - just returned from a trip to Ireland, Scotland and Lisbon. My Irish hymn arrangements were performed in 4 concerts in various places, the last being the Royal Chapel at Stirling Castle, Scotland. See the photos on this site. Also, my Cello Concerto - III has been nominated for a Los Angeles Music Award in the Classical category.

Favorite Quotes

"Drops wear down the stone, not by strength, but by constant falling." "No man, more than the serious artist, craves an independent income. To no other class of man is the freedom it assures so valuable. The feeling that one is working under pressure, that one is not free to develop, revise and extend, that one has no time to explore one's deepest depths, is intolerable except to those whose fluency is only another aspect of their superficiality." J.W.N. Sullivan "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistance. Talent will not: Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not: Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistance and determination alone are omnipotent." "Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid." Goethe "The artist must be blind to distinctions between "recognized" or "unrecognized" conventions of form, deaf to the transitory teaching and demands of his particular age. He must watch only the trend of the inner need, and hearken to its words alone. Then he will with safety employ means both sanctioned and forbidden by his contemporaries. All means are sacred which are called for by the inner need. All means are sinful which obscure that inner need." Kandinsky, from Uber das Geistige in der Kunst (Concerning the Spiritual in Art)

Review of Langroise Trio Concert

for complete review, go here: http://www.musicweb-international.com/sandh/2007/Jan-Jun07/langroise1003.htm excerpt: We then returned to the present for the high point of the evening, the world premiere of “Isle of Bathos” by David Alan Earnest (b. 1960). He began the composition in 2004 with the title of El Extrano Español intended to be an homage to Pablo Picasso. Then images of islands, both in the Caribbean and Aegean Seas intruded, and the word bathos, here meaning “an abrupt change from the lofty to the ordinary” suggested itself - hence the title applied when the work was completed on December 28, 2006. The music is comparable with late Shostakovich only in its richness and density and the excellence of its fitting to the qualities of the instruments, but is much more positive in mood and in its greater range of its drama. My observation is that this is the least derivative work Mr. Earnest has yet produced and likely shows the beginnings of his mature style which will inform the music to come. The audience appreciated what they received with vigorous applause which Mr. Earnest acknowledged shyly and modestly. Mr. Earnest (www.davidalanearnest.com) is unusual in that he makes his living composing every kind of music from TV commercials and film soundtracks through New Age woo-woo electronics to symphonic and choral oratorio, as well as chamber music. F or eight years, he and the Langroise Trio have enjoyed a brilliantly productive association - of world class artists with a world class composer - that has enriched the string trio repertoire with many excellent compositions. I feel deeply privileged to be present when something so wonderful is happening here in Idaho; if you live within a day’s drive of Boise, it is well worth your effort to attend these concerts. If you are flying to Boise on business from Paris, Sydney, or Moscow, arrange your flight to take in the next concert on 21 September 2007. After that you may come just for the music. Paul Shoemaker

Review of Visit the Blue Planet

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2007/Apr07/Earnest_planet_511601.htm There are quite a number of New Age music recordings* available, probably thousands. Of these, there are a few great classics worthy of the attention of critical listeners: Laughton’s Harps of the Ancient Temples, one of the very first (1958); Ray Lynch’s Deep Breakfast (1966); Paul Horn’s Inside the Great Pyramid (1977); the Gordon brothers Garden of Serenity series (1992 et. seq.); Kitaro’s Tunhuang (1983). This disk deserves comparison with these; track 9 from this disk is now my favorite meditation music. It is my loss that I only became aware of it 11 years after it appeared. This disk can be included here only because it was many years after the release of it that Mr. Earnest became well known locally as a serious classical composer. I suspect in the ensuing years when he becomes better known around the world, this disk will also become better known and more generally available. As to the sound of the music, it is difficult to describe apart from its genre and the titles of the tracks. This disk uses mostly electronic sounds, but some acoustic instruments are heard, perhaps synthesized, perhaps recorded live and processed. “Celebration,” for instance, contains an episode reminiscent of walking by near a group of African musicians out on the plain, as well as wind sounds and the ubiquitous distant chorus sounds. The point is how well does this composer create his mood by balancing the dramatic sound-picture, now moving it forward, now letting it glow. Mr. Earnest in his single entry into the genre does this with supreme skill. It is to my great gain that I, by coincidence, happen to live near the composer, in fact only four miles from the Idaho farm he grew up on. While I would like to say we are friends, the relationship is hardly an equal one; I am more a groupie, at least at this point as I eagerly become acquainted with his oeuvre while attending his premiers several times a year. I would suggest you remember his name, for you will some day find it unavoidably thrust upon you if you continue to explore modern classical music and search out the very best. Paul Shoemaker *from this genre I exclude electronic pieces by established composers (e.g. Philip Glass), electronic arrangements of symphonic repertoire works (e.g. Tomita), symphonic works where there are electronic sounds added into the orchestra (e.g. Edgard Varèse, Alan Hovhaness, Einojuhani Rautavaara), electronic compositions of symphonic length, structure, and intent (e.g. W. Carlos, Pierre Henry). I also exclude works by established rock and pop musicians (e.g. David Bowie, Jefferson Airplane/Starship) but I have included recordings consisting mostly or entirely of acoustic instrument sounds.

From a Review of Romancero

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2006/Feb06/Taneyev_6035536502.htm (Recording by The Langroise Trio) "The most remarkable work on this disk is the Earnest Trio (Trio No. 2), in particular the first movement. Like most great composers, Earnest freely borrows phrases and moods from other composers, fully assimilating these influences into his own art. The first moments of this work might be said to depict Philip Glass meeting Cesar Franck, but the impression is only momentary as the music sweeps onward with its own authentic and vitally compelling logic. As we explore this rich tonal landscape, there are moments of aggressive dissonance, not unlike middle period Bartok, but the overall shape of the music is solidly neo-Romantic. With each hearing, this work further ingratiates itself and I will be surprised if Earnest is not soon universally recognized as one of the major musical personalities of the early twenty-first century. Fortunately his works are frequently performed by the Langroise Trio, among others." Paul Shoemaker

Broadjam Reviews

"what can I say--astonishing work!! Exquisite strings and superb orchestration bring to life an excellent composition. I'm running out of superlatives here! Bravo!" (Cello Concerto - I) "very enjoyable. nice stereo separation makes it even larger than life. this composer is putting enormous effort toward the humbling task of discovering and developing their own personal style, and that is honorable. Good luck with this and future efforts." (String Trio No. 2 - I) "Very beautifully put-together piece." (String Trio No. 2 - I) "Incredibly orchestrated! Beautiful Voice! I typically don't listen to Opera however this has won me over. Nice work." (7. The Future - Immence Ranges of High Mountains) "This was an incredble adventure in diissonance and wonderful authentic orchestration. Bravo to you and to the fine musicians that carved this piece to blissful perfection. My ear-training was most challenged! Absolutely riviting and beautifully orchestrated!!" (Cello Concerto - III) "Rousing Intro sequence made me sit up and take notice! Writing for full orchestra with the support of a full orchestra...Wow. Not only Wow, but in addition you have singlehandedly changed my 10 year rant about the substandard quality of the mp3 format. Tremendous work, highest quality sound and compositional skill level I've ever heard on broadjam. You made my pupils dilate. You made me drool. Your cello ripped my heart out. I bumped my head on the lamp above my head when I jumped up to applaud at the rousing ending! No cons at all. If there was a rating of 6 I'd put you at 6+. Bravissssimmoooo!" (Cello Concerto- III) "Fantastic - great intro (main theme) Stravinsky eat you heart out! Great recording too. Beautiful structural devlopment and the atmosphere you create is immaculate. The diverse rhythm is great - love it. I can almost see the images you are capturing. Performance is great as well. This is an exceptional piece of music, probably the best i have reviewed on thiis website so far. (Cello Concerto III) "REALLY ENJOYED THIS COMPOSITION. TOOK ME ON AN ADVENTURE WITH GREAT INSTRUMENTATION. LIKE FINE WINE WITH HINTS OF COPLAND". (Cello Concerto III) Excellent orchestration. Excellent piece. Flawless. (Cello Concerto III) "Excellent! Fine sounding! Keeps interest throughout." (Cello Concerto III) "Heart rendering intro with solo cello/viola, staccato strings enter as perfect accompaniment to buld suspense. Enjoyable arrangement, Suspenseful. Pizzacato section provides a wonderful intro to the pull and tug between the violin parts. Build up of intensity and key change at 6:00 move the piece forward with visual strength. In fact, the entire piece could be a fantastic underscore for a drama. Was pleased and surprised to hear this was a live performance for your string ensemble. Bravo, excellent recording quality. Had no idea it was live until I heard the round of applause. I hope you're into film scoring because your work certainly stands ready to enhance the silver screen. You had me from the get-go with the lilting cello intro....like a deer in the headlights! No criticisms at all in this work. It's a 5+/5. (String Trio No.l - III) "Haunting melodies. Great playing. Excellent use of dynamics. Constant development throughout the composition. Dramatic" (String Trio No.l - III) "This piece is wonderfully eerie. Great voicings for illustrating darkness. It is so refreshing to hear true instrumentation played so well. This could certainly be placed in the appropriate scene in a horror film. Great composition and an equally great arrangement. BRAVISSIMO!!" (String Trio No. 1 - III) "The melody is haunting yet moving, and the overall agitated mood can fit many scenarios. I think this is a beautifully performed and recorded piece of music." (String Trio No. 1 - III) "GREAT JOB!!!!! Great writing!" (String Trio No. 1 - III) "Great composition. Reminds me of the Bartok String Quartets." (String Trio No. 1 - III)

Broadjam Reviews 2

"Listening to this work is like reading a good book in that I looked forward to the turning of each new page. Nicely done. Fresh, unique, but not so over the top where it could be hard to relate. Needless to say, it really does lend itself to film, though it stands well on it's own." (Three Dances - Dance No. 2)

2006 performances

May 26, 2006 - Due to the demand for another performance Dick Brown has added this performance. 7:30 at the Presbyterian Church of the Big Wood in Ketchum. May 27, 2006 - The Boise premiere of the Lewis and Clark piece "Immence Ranges of High Mountains" performed by the 100 voice combined choir of the Caritas Chorale of Sun Valley and Anam Cara of Idaho Falls, along with an orchestra featuring players from the Boise Philharmonic. Coincides with the Lewis and Clark celebration in Idaho. 7:30 Timberline HS Auditorium.

Immence Ranges Premiere May 2005

The world premiere of my chorus and orchestra piece "Immence Ranges of High Mountains" was on May 21, 2005 in Ketchum, ID, May 22, 2005 in Idaho Falls, May 23, 2005 in Ketchum. The 7 movement, 45 minute piece was commissioned by the Caritas Chorale in Sun Valley to commemorate the Lewis and Clark expedition in Idaho. The text was prepared by Diane Josephy Peavey and includes excerpts from the journals as well as Lemhi Shoshoni and Nez Perce phrases and tells the story of Lewis, Clark, and Sacajawea in Idaho. The premiere featured a soprano soloist, baritone soloist, 100 piece chorus and 30 piece orchestra conducted by Dick Brown. I joined Caritas iin taking the work, with piano accompaniment, on a European tour in June of 2005. Concerts were in Tengersee, Germany; in Mira, near Venice, IT, and in Vereggio, IT on the Mediteranean coast.

Timeline: Birth-2005

1960 Born in Nampa, Idaho USA on May 11. 1970 Began teaching myself clarinet. 1972 Received first guitar for Christmas. Began teaching myself to play. 1973 Bought first bass guitar. Taught myself to play. Performed on bass with father’s gospel quartet. 1974 Wrote earliest composition, “Spanish Guitar” for classical guitar. 1976 Took music theory course while sophomore in high school. Joined first rock band. 1977 Played first rock club gig. 1980 Moved to Minneapolis. Performed in several bands. Wrote several songs for bands. 1981-2 Discovered Beethoven’s 6th symphony in roommates record collection. Bought study score. Orchestrated rock songs for orchestra. Moved back to Idaho. Continued self-study of classical scores while working at computer chip factory. 1983 Accepted to Wheaton College Conservatory. Began piano lessons. Wrote first string quartet. 1984 Began study at Wheaton. Composed various student pieces. 1987 Wrote “All You Servants Praise the Lord” for Grace Baptist church Meriden, CT, first commission and public performance. 1988 Moved back to Idaho after completing 2 years at conservatory and counterpoint classes. MIDI makes synthesizer composing accessible for home recording. Wrote “Rhythminium” for Vallivue High School Concert Band. Assembled synthesizer music compilation “The Initial Album”. Played in various rock bands. 1989 Moved back to Wheaton to finish college degree. Composed numerous synthesizer pieces. 1991 Graduated from conservatory. Senior recital program: “Three Improvisations” for synthesizer, “Bag-O’-Tails” for piano, “Andante” (conducted) and “Street Attack” (conducted) for string orchestra, “Life is Fine” (conducted) for soprano and ensemble, “Quartet for Soprano Sax, English Horn, Cello, and Piano”, and “Kuwait: 1990-91” for wind ensemble. Returned to Idaho, composed instrumental album “Phases of the Mood.” 1992 Attended first recital by the Langroise Trio. Met players backstage. Started composing “String Trio No. 1” the next day. 1993 Wrote “Serenade for Strings” for brother’s wedding. Performed in country/rock band Redstone. 1994 Premiere of Scherzando from “String Trio No. 1” by the Langroise Trio 1995 Premiere of complete “String Trio No. 1” by the Langroise Trio and “Serenade for Strings” by community orchestra. 1996 Wrote “Company Tour.” Completed new album of synthesizer music “Visit the Blue Planet”. 1997 Premiere of “Company Tour” by the Langroise Trio. Wrote “String Trio No. 2” and “Sonatina for Strings.” 1998 Premiere of “String Trio No. 2” by the Langroise Trio and “Sonatina for Strings” by the Suzuki Institute Strings (conducted). Composed new instrumental album “A Call for Rain.” 1999 Wrote “String Trio No. 3” and “The Avon Lady Meets Frumpy the House Cat.” Made trip to Budapest for "The Basket" scoring sessions. 2000 Premiere of “String Trio No. 3” by the Langroise Trio at Hengst Gallery, Seattle, WA. The Langroise Trio performed “Trio No. 2 – II” on the Kennedy Center Millenium Stage, Washington DC. Idaho Dance Theater choreographed trio music for performance in “Riptide”. Premiere of “The Avon Lady Meets Frumpy the House Cat” by the Albertson College Concert Band. Began audio post job with NxNW in August. 2001 Wrote “When Foxes Meet in Moonlight.” Premiered in February by the Darkwood Consort. The Langroise Trio performed “Trio No. 3 – II” on the Kennedy Center Millenium Stage, Washington DC. Started writing the “Cello Concerto.” 2002 Finished the “Cello Concerto.” Wrote “Three Dances” for Idaho Dance Theater. 2003 Premiere of “Three Dances” in January and the “Cello Concerto”, with Sam Smith as soloist, in April. I conducted the Boise Philharmonic. 2004 Scored documentaries "3 on 3", "In Time of War", "Sudan, the Path to Peace". Started composing “Immence Ranges…” 2005 Finished "Immence..." 2/05 Premiere of “Immence Ranges of High Mountains” by Caritas Chorale, Dick Brown conducting, in May.

Timeline: June 2005-present

2005 June - Joined the Caritas Chorale on 3 week tour of Austria and Italy, performing 4 movements of "Immence Ranges..." with piano in 3 concerts in Tegernsee, Germany, Mira, IT, Viareggio, IT. Visited Salzburg, Venice, Verona, Ravenna, Florence, Lake Como, and Milano. What History! 2006 January: Premiere of string trio version of "Three Dances" by the Langroise Trio. May: Performances of "Immence Ranges..." in Sun Valley and the Boise premiere. Aug 15-Oct 15: Composed 14 minute score for the 1912 Edison silent film "The Land Beyond the Sunset". Nov 8-14: Composed 12:45 Elegies for Two Cellos for Idaho Dance Theater. 12-28-06 - finished composing The Isle of Bathos (formerly The Eccentric). 2007 January: IDT Dance performance "Riptide" to string trio music. February 1: Premiere of silent film score "The Land Beyond the Sunset" by the Treasure Valley Youth Symphony, conducted by David Saunders. Performed live to picture at the Egyptian Theater, Boise. March 8 & 10 - Premiere of "The Isle of Bathos" by the Langroise Trio. April 12-15 - Premiere of "Elegies for Two Cellos" by Meloney and Ned Johnson. Choreographed as "Emerging from Loss" by Carl Rowe for Idaho Dance Theater. June 2007 - joined Caritas again, this time on a tour of Ireland/Scotland. The choir performed my Three Irish Hymn Tunes in 4 concerts, 2 in Ireland, 2 in Scotland, the last being in the historic Royal Chapel at Stirling Castle. August - finished the Sinfonia Pastorale for the Boise Baroque Orchestra. Oct 26 & 28 - Premiere of the Sinfonia Pastorale by the Boise Baroque Orchestra. Nov 28 - started a new violin concerto for Geoff Trabichoff...