Inspired by Newman’s blog, I went through a few of my old — like, really, really old — pieces, and decided to post some of them here. I started with the oldest, “Elegy and Fantasie,” which I wrote when I was 15 & 17. (Wrote “Fantasie” when I was 15; “Elegy” when I was 17. Combined them into a single work during my Freshman year of college.)

Be kind. I was just a dumb kid. I thought it might be fun to put up some really early stuff, though, especially since some of the people who read the blog are young composers, and this will give you the opportunity to listen to my early stuff and be like, “that dude totally used to suck. Oh wait — he still does.”

I remember working on “Elegy” in the break room at Pizza Hut, where I worked every summer through high school. I still really like “Elegy.” Part of me thinks it’s better than a lot of my more recent works. “Fantasie,” on the other hand, is pretty weak, but fun to listen to just so you can hear how derivative it is. (If you’ve ever listened to the Barber Piano Concerto or the Barber Violin Concerto, you’ll see what I mean.)

Here’s the link to the page with both pieces — complete with MP3 files and a PDF of the full score so you can read along. Again, be kind! And enjoy that beautiful Finale 2.63 engraving! Hooray, Petrucci font!

In a few days, I’ll post a “mid-college” work — something from my sophomore year. And wow, won’t that be exciting.