Information:

• Source: Emperor’s New Clothes Notebook
• Key: C Major/ A Minor
• Measures: 48
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:05 Min
• Pages: 4

“Social media doesn’t create negativity, it uncovers it.” - Jay Baer

TROUBLE IN PARADISE

By the time you read this, the Internet may seem as ordinary to you as electricity does to me. But when I was growing up, none of this existed. Then came the Internet, followed by email, and suddenly we had an entirely new way of communicating. It was fast, convenient, and, at first, it felt almost miraculous.

We thought we had opened the door to a remarkable new world. And in many ways, we did. What we didn’t notice at the time was that, little by little, we were also closing another door - the one that led to actual human connection. Funny how that works.

You should also know that the Internet came into our lives before we really had any idea...

Information:

• Source: Hello World Notebook
• Key: F Major/ D Minor
• Measures: 48
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:16 Min
• Pages: 4

Art has always had this habit of showing people what they don’t want to admit about themselves

NOT TODAY

I’ve seen a lot, but I haven’t seen it all. Still, I’ve seen enough to know that religious and political extremist are the ones who get obsessed with having full control over everyone else. And when they do, they usually end up creating and sometimes magnifying the exact thing they were trying to crush. The problem is when they start using physical intimidation, that’s when things get a lot messier.

But here’s the think: just when they seem ready to clamp down by building some pure, disciplined, moral world, someone in six-inch heels, a blond wig, and glitter walks onstage to a Whitney Houston song and says, “Not today.”

A SATANIC SHOW

Take...

Information:

• Source: Open Letters Notebook
• Key: Bb Major/G Minor
• Measures: 36
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:02
• Pages: 4 Pages

THE CARTEL

Family can be a blessing or a curse _ or a little bit of both. But in the end, I must admit that in this life, family is still the one thing a person can rely on when everything else shifts. I don’t say this lightly, because I know that not all families are the same. At the same time, without fear of sounding like I belong to the Corleones’ family. I still believe that family, for better or worse, is often the last refuge of loyalty and belonging.

I am fortunate to have four sisters and two brothers, for that reason, you can probably imagine the environment in which I grew up, where heaven was hell and hell was bliss. The memories are countless. Where should I begin? Perhaps in the port of Acapulco.
 
 

SURNAMES

But Acapulco...

Information:

• Source: Under the Sun Notebook
• Key: Bb Major
• Measures: 24
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:11
• Pages: 4 Pages

“I love mankind … it’s people I can’t stand!!” ― Charles M. Schulz

LOOKING FORWARD
I have said it before and I will say it again: We are capable of great beauty, unspeakable darkness, and everything in between. Through all my life, I have realized that, it’s always people who cause the most uncomfortable situations, the most pain, the most destruction. But then again, it is also people who cause the most incredible moments in life. Beautiful, kind souls that make life easier, more enjoyable, more meaningful.

I know it is a challenging idea, while at the same time, it does resonate with many universal truths. I don’t keep tabs, but if given the opportunity, I would sincerely look forward to reading _ with gusto _ the obituaries of the awful people I...

Information:

• Source: Open Letters Notebook
• Key: G Major/ E Minor
• Measures: 36
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:33
• Pages: 3 Pages

PART OF ME
There is a part of me that naturally challenges authority, another part that questions everything, another part yet, that refuses to do what society has established as normal. However, I am shy and I do not expose myself to dangerous situations. I’m not a rebel. I play by the rules, I pay taxes and I don’t skip on line.

But if you ask me, I despise elaborate weddings, I can’t help but see a touch of theater in religious rituals, and I’d avoid a class reunion _ like the plague _ if I were ever invited to one. I hate having my picture taken, and just for a moment, I also hate the person taking it, and I must admit I loathe smartphones. People say I am quiet, and indeed, I don’t talk unnecessarily.

YOU DO KNOW ME
And I can go on and...

Information:

• Source: Under the Sun Notebook
• Key: F Major/ D Minor
• Measures: 36
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:32
• Pages: 4 Pages

My life isn’t defined by choosing one side or the other, but by how I move between opposites

EMBRACING DUALITIES
One of the most fascinating realizations I’ve had as a composer is that every concept in music has its counterpart which can be used to our advantage to make beautiful music. This discovery opened up a world of possibilities, not only for music composition, but strangely, for how I see the world.

Just as we live in a world full of contrast - up and down, black and white, deep and shallow, savory and sweet, sick and healthy, fast and slow - music thrives on opposites. Opposites are not enemies, they are partners. Contrast creates meaning in music, as well as in daily life. For example; a sweet melody feels sweeter after dissonance...

Information:

• Source: Under the Sun Notebook
• Key: F Major/D Minor
• Measures: 27
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:28
• Pages: 3 Pages

“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they fly by.” _ Douglas Adams

FULL OF MEANING
Throughout the years, and during countless hours of practice. I have noticed something surprising happening in the tiny moments between the notes, in the minuscule interval before a phrase, in the pause that follows resolution. These spaces, I feel, aren’t completely empty, they are full of meaning, equal to the sounds, they are also part of the music. Surely, music not only exist in the musical notes we hear, but also, in the complicated connection between them and the silences.

In music, it’s an illusion to think a rest is an absence, rather than a presence. Rests are fundamental to the music we hear. Even when we don’t think of it, they...

Information:

• Source: Hello World Notebook
• Key: C Major/A Minor
• Measures: 49
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:24
• Pages: 4 Pages

People trust a smile more than the truth

THE SOCIAL GLUE
Trying to resist smiling in a funny situation is almost impossible. As soon as you become aware of your own face, that idea is ridiculous and it is almost impossible not to do it. Smiling is a social glue, helps to connect to people in ways we can only imagine. Smiling is a disarming signal.

Even when we are not thinking about it, most of us smile everyday. Whether it’s quick greeting or a genuine burst of joy, a smile opens a window into our character. It’s one of the first things we look for in strangers to get a sense of their well-being. A smile makes us feel good about ourselves - both when we offer one sincerely and when we received one in return.

NOBODY TO IMPRESS
Behind this...

Information:

• Source: Under the Sun Notebook
• Key: D Major/ B Minor
• Measures: 36
• Parts: Cello and Piano
• Duration: 3:20
• Pages: 3 Pages

“The English language is full of words that are just waiting to be misspelled, and the world is full of sticklers, ready to pounce.” ― Mary Norris, Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen

ALL THE USUAL THINGS
I juſt fell in love wiþ the Engliſh language at ſome point in my early years. I don’t even remember when it ſtarted - it was juſt… ðere. Movies in þe background, pop ſongs I played all the time, claſſes where I learned juſt enough to get by. all Þe uſual things. þen, I ſtarted actually paying attention to it - which, looking back, it may have been a mistake.

Þe more time I ſpent wiþ Engliſh, þe more it ſtarted to feel a little… off. Not broken exactly. Juſt held togeðer wiþ þe linguistic equivalent of duct tape. I’d ſtop in þe...