Selections of compositions composed by Ron when he was a composition student at FAU and UM  BACK


These works were composed between 1971 and 1974. While Ron is known for his jazz compositions, his student studies were in the Theory-composition departments at both FAU and UM. Ron earned a BFA in Theory-composition from FAU, and a MM in Theory-composition from UM. So, these are Ron's 'classical' works. Ron's composition teacher at UM was CLIFTON WILLIAMS. He gave Ron much freedom to choose his projects and in lieu of a large orchestral work, Ron wrote some of his more succesful jazz big band works as Theory-composition projects such as Seventh Sign, Halcyon Days, and Grimpen Mire to name a few. The rest of his Theory-composition projects were what is presented here. Regarding the compositional process, Ron composes his classical works by a line-writing method, meaning that the harmonies are derived from the melodic combination of all the parts, in fact, Ron does not know what the chords are until subsequent analysis. The melodic lines are composed by ear and intuition, then tweaked later.


THE WORKS:  The titles are links to the music files for IOS users.  To read the scores while listening, go here: VIDEOS  If you would like scores and parts. EMAIL RON


1. Serenade for Winds and Strings, 1974: Ron's final classical project at the UM. Serenade shows an obvious nod to Alban Berg with its dark Germanic tone.

2. Salon Music: composed in 1973, UM. Salon Music is a pastiche of the kind of composition that Debussy and his peers may have composed to perform in salons or bistros; in other words gigs for money.

3. Pastoral Scenes for String Trio: composed in 1972 at UM, probably inspired by a work by Stravinsky.

4. Dances for Flute and String Quartet: composed in 1972 when Ron was a student at FAU. Written as an assignment for a class taught by Bill Prince.

5. Chorale For Woodwinds: composed in 1974, UM, a simple chorale in the style of Ravel. The piece is both romantic and impressionistic.

6. Chorale For Woodwinds (Piano reduction version)

7. Serenade For Flute and Piano, 1973: composed as requested by Dan Bonsanti for his senior recital. As yet, another romantic/impressionistic work.

To hear Ron's Big Band projects, go here: BIG BAND.

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  Since April 1, 2013