Unapologetically queer.
In 2017, I was asked to become the next Composer in Residence with The Fourth Choir, a leading LGBT+ chamber choir in London, UK. This collaboration resulted in three meaningful commissions on themes of gender and sexuality - and helped me find my voice as a composer.
Since then, I’ve focused my work as a composer towards queer-themed music, including multiple choral works, song cycles, and instrumental pieces. These projects represent the most important and personally gratifying music that I have written, and the response from performers and listeners has been nothing short of incredible.
I invite you to listen to the works below, and get in touch if you’d like suggestions for your next concert!
“Years and years of singing in choirs about love not meant for me; never had I even imagined hearing such a moving piece in which I could see a shimmer of myself. Thank you for these happy tears - not only is it uplifting to see that our kind of love has a place in our beloved world of choral music, but it's also deeply touching to see you and Matthew Stepanic share some of the most heartwarming and purest moments that our kind of love has to offer.”
YouTube comment re: “a boy & a boy”
SATB Choir
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SATB a cappella
Text: Matthew Stepanic (b. 1990)
Duration: 5 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? A sweet love story between two men -
SATB a cappella
Text: Richard Barnfield (1574-1620)
Duration: 5 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? A sacred reinterpretation of a gay Elizabethan sonnet -
SATB (divisi) a cappella
Text: John Barton (b. 1957)
Duration: 21 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? A choral cycle on life, loss, and the support of our chosen families -
SATB and piano
Text: David Ly
Duration: c. 4 minutes
Difficulty: 2/4
What’s it about? Water as a metaphor for safety and sexuality -
SATB (divisi) a cappella
Text: Adapted by the composer from contemporary sources
Duration: 7 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? The legalization of homosexuality in the UK -
SATB and Piano
[also available for SSAA or TTBB]
Text: Jay Hulme (b. 1997)
Duration: 5 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? Celebrating queer faith & unconditional love -
SATB (divisi) a cappella
Text: Walt Whitman (1819-1892)
Duration: 6.5 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? Individuality, gender, and sexuality -
SSATB a cappella
Text: William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Duration: 3 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? The youth and beauty of a male lover -
from “I am like many”
SATB (divisi) a cappella
Text: An anonymous letter from a gay man, read in UK Parliament in 1958
Duration: 3 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? Seeking tolerance and acceptance from lawmakers
SSAA/TTBB Choir
-
SSAA or TTBB and Piano
[also available for SATB]
Text: Jay Hulme (b. 1997)
Duration: 5 minutes
Difficulty: 3/4
What’s it about? Celebrating queer faith & unconditional love
Solo Voice
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Baritone and Piano
Text: Matthew Stepanic (b. 1990)
Duration: 14 minutes
Difficulty: Medium
What’s it about? Five queer love songs, charting a relationship through love and loss -
from “Still Running”
Tenor (or Baritone) and Piano
Text: Matthew Stepanic (b. 1990)
Duration: 4 minutes
Difficulty: Medium
What’s it about? A nostalgic love song of indulgence and comfort -
Tenor (or Baritone) and Piano
Text: Matthew Stepanic (b. 1990)
Duration: 15 minutes
Difficulty: Hard
What’s it about? Six songs on contemporary queer issues, responding to the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting
Instrumental
-
Alto Saxophone and Piano
Duration: 7 minutes
Difficulty: Hard
What’s it about? Honouring and celebrating the resilience of the queer community
Want to add something unique to your next concert?
Contact me directly for suggestions, or consider commissioning a new work for the occasion! (I have so many ideas!)