Compositions and Arrangements

Last summer I was part of a residency at Cranbrook Art Museum and School which involved the creation of a spiritual jazz operetta. I participated in this residency as a part of the Autophysiopsychic Millennium (APPM), a Black-led creative research and performance collective that honors and builds on the music and philosophies of the multi-instrumentalist, composer, author, visual artist, teacher, and ‘jazz giant,’ Dr. Yusef Lateef. Amongst the many beautiful compositions and significant educational materials and essays penned by Dr. Lateef, there is a poignant novella he wrote entitled, “A Night In The Garden Of Love,” which reflects his unique perspective as a key originator of Afro-Futurism and Spiritual ‘Jazz’ as well as the sadly universal experience of living in a polluted world ravaged by man-made climate catastrophes. For APPM’s residency at Cranbrook, we brought to life this novella in a project called “Something Else In The Garden,” for which I arranged several movements of strings in collaboration with the collective’s creative director, LuFuki. We have since expanded on those string movements for a brand new project: White Flowers is a string ensemble that explores themes of climate consciousness and mutual accountability to initiate a communal conversation about environmental devastation and the importance of addressing it before it’s too late.