VIDEOS

The House & The Library {2021}

The House & The Library is about two things. The first is about my elementary school teacher who had to move out of her house because the library across the street was expanding onto her land. The second is about my memory of her and how it changed as I got older. The piece is broken into 4 sections: the video, the text, the instrumental, and the electronics. The video explicitly shows no people, but the places I remember. I did this intentionally to allow anyone to put themselves into these environments. I also feel like our memories focus less on the people in the buildings, but the buildings themselves. The text portion travels through different stages of my life: elementary school, middle school, high school, & college. I then had students from each of those stages of life narrate their corresponding stage in the piece. This was to show the change in timbre in the voice as I got older. There are moments in the text where I interrupt different stages in life with others stages to show different inner thoughts and memories. The text becomes more mature and complicated as it continues to also show growth. The instrumental section is divided by all the musical instruments I have ever played in their corresponding stages of development. For example, in elementary school, I played violin and then clarinet. During the elementary section of the text, we hear violin and clarinet. In middle school, I played percussion. We hear marimba during the middle section. Piano in high school and guitar in college. Each section has the instrument perform differently. In elementary school, there is a simple score for violin and clarinet. In middle school, there is a simple technique exercise and motif for percussion. In high school, there is imitation and development for piano. In college there is improvisation on guitar. These are used to reflect my evolving playing style. The electronics represent my current compositional aesthetic and the base of the piece. The electronics are used to reflect the mood of the story. There are moments where it is light and airy, while other moments are dark and intrusive. Another small detail is the noise we hear. I recorded in multiple different sound environments. One is a sunny spring morning. Another is a rainy evening. I recorded the inside of my car and the busy streets outside of my car. I also incorporated noises that correspond with the text. For example, when one of the narrators talks about the creaking of floorboards, you will hear the creak of a wooden floorboard. When a narrator says they hear the rumble of a vent, you will hear the rumble of a vent. These small details enhance the overall experience of feeling like you are actually there with the narrator.

Pause {2019}

Pause focuses on people who stutter and how it affects them on a day to day basis. The piece looks into how people felt growing up with their stutter and how it influenced them as adults. The piece uses various panning and delay techniques. There are also moments of heavy gating on some of the people. These techniques are used to enhance what they say and not how they say it. The goal of the piece is not to worsen their stutter, but to bring awareness of these people and their stories. I was fortunate to record with some of the people in this piece. People who are still good friends to this day. The piece expresses that everyone has a stutter. It may not look or sound like it, but there is something in everyone's lives that is holding them back or is an obstacle they must try to overcome.

Analysis of Billie Eilish's, WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? {2020}

This is a review and analysis of Billie Eilish's, WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO? This video will go in-depth about the compositional design as well as the production of the album. Discovering what samples were used and the effectiveness of the overall work.

The Taste of Jammbo'Laya Livestream {2020}

This work was a fundraiser for the Helen L. Fox Gospel Music Center, featuring music by black composers. This was a collaboration project with Kennedy Dixon, Haden Plouffe, Lexi Terrain, Ava Lynch, & Jordan Hamilton. Also in collaboration with, The Jammbo'Laya Ensemble, The Suzuki Academy of Kalamazoo, First Baptist Church of Kalamazoo, & Elizabeth Terrian Photography.

Drone For Wet Strings {2020}

This piece is simply a decomposition of a drone. I built this drone up with effects, such as: reverb, delay, modulators, & equalization. I completely cover the drone with effects until it is unrecognizable from its original form. I then peel each layer of this musical onion away, slowly morphing the sound. Once the sound is recognizably a string drone, I incorporate celeste and bass guitar for added effect. Even more so, I add a layer of room noise from the window of my apartment. We hear birds chirping and the noise of the world outside. This piece explores the manipulation of sound over time without using simple practices like melody, harmony, & rhythm.

dodie - She (Cover) {2020}

"I really wanted to jump back into posting videos again. This is the first of a series of videos that will be on my Youtube channel. She is a song by dodie. The piece includes recorded vocals and backing vocals. Acoustic guitar side delay and classic guitar accompaniment to simulate string accompaniment in the original piece. It was fun to work on a piece by someone who I deeply admire for her quality of performance and aesthetic."

Free and Beautiful {2019}

Best in MAT Semifinalist. This piece uses a blend of different techniques and flow of different genres, incorporating lyrics from Coldplay's "Everyday Life" & Charlie Chaplain's "The Great Dictator" Speech. The drum set samples consist of a floor tom, a microphone case & a metal bowl. Experimentation with vocal layering, as well as vocal manipulation, simulating the sound of whistling birds. The guitar loop evolves into a reverberating synthetic pad sound. "Listen for the guitar; it will be moving in and out of different spaces."

Solitude and The Attempt to Escape It {2019}

"This string septet illustrates is how everyone feels alone and we try to escape that sense of loneliness by being with friends and family. The irony of the piece is that none of the performers have a solo moment, except for one moment where the cello solos for one measure. The reason behind this is because I believe that no one is truly alone & that only when we force ourselves to be alone is when we are truly alone."

Persono {2018}

One of the many songs on the album, Safety. Persono has an intense pushing theme. The powerful rhythms from the drums and synths push the song along. "This is one of the more intense song I've written in a while. I enjoyed experimenting with the electronics. It reminds me of an old Zedd song."

Spaces In Movement {2017}

A piece written for 4 percussionists on a stairwell. There is a variety of different timbres and flow of gestures and textures. Spaces in Movement takes advantage of the areas of the stairwell by moving from one location of the stairwell to the next

The Road Song Challenge {2017}

Written by Casely and the Jank

Rearranged by John Engstrom

This piece was the submission Winner of the Road Song Challenge, awarding John a $10,000 prize and notoriety by the Kane County Chronicle.

Gravity {2017}

This was John's first look into ambient electronic music, mixing styles of Lo-Fi and Chill-wave music."Imagine you're falling towards the earth, but instead of feeling the sensation of falling you feel like you're floating, due to weightlessness."

Eleven {2017}

"Eleven is an orchestral piece with an electric piano and synthesizers. This song resembles my ideal film score. I was inspired by the film scores of Tron Legacy and Interstellar. This piece is layered with arpeggios in the synthesizers and long tones in the strings. It creates an colorful soundscape to the reflective imagery."

The States of Being: Melancholy {2016}

Part 1 in the States of Being trilogy. This state of being compels the emotion of sadness and a feeling of loneliness and hopelessness. Nothing ever seems to get better .

The States of Being: Reverie {2016}

Part 2 in the States of Being trilogy. This state of being resembles the dream world. Imagine falling off to sleep. Once you're in the dream world, everything shifts from one view to the next, without any sense of direction.

The States of Being: Calamity {2016}

Part 3 in the States of Being trilogy. This state of being embodies the nature of aggression. This constant force pushes us in a forward direction, constantly building and cashing into itself.