Shockachi

A Note From the Composer:

In the Fall of 2021, I had the pleasure of witnessing the Texas All-State process for the first time, not as a student or teacher, but as the husband of a choir director (and therefore, full-time field trip chaperone). I began to meet many incredible music educators from west Texas, and one of those people was Dr. Frank Eychaner, Director of Choral Activities at the University of Texas Permian Basin in Odessa. He invited me to attend one of UTPB’s choir concerts, and then to my surprise, asked to commission a piece from me! Frank wanted a faster, more rhythmic piece, which I hadn’t yet been able to really do for a choral piece before, so I really enjoyed putting it together. It ended up taking on a much more adventurous persona than I thought it would! We also thought it would be fun to do something pretty unique in the choral world – create a made-up text. I wrote the music first, then came up with the text; it was definitely the hardest time I’ve had setting “words” to music. After the release of Shockachi, I created a shortened version of the piece to make it more accessible to younger/smaller ensembles, and it was premiered by the New Canaan High School choir in Connecticut under the direction of Sarah Gleason in the Spring of 2023. Because that version was tailored to fit a wider array of choirs, it has now become the primary version of the piece, with the original becoming known as the “extended version.”