Wadley Publications

The title of  Sonar’s Riddle  is an anagram of "Dr. Daniel Ross," and stands as a tribute to a musician known for both his kindness and humor.  Dr. Daniel F. Ross (1944-2019) was a Professor of Music at Arkansas State University, where he taught the double reed studio from 1968 to 2018. During his illustrious career, he became known as not only a world-class musician, but an innovator in the field of reed-making with his Ross Gouging Machine. As a performer, he served as Principal Oboist with the Arkansas Symphony and performed with the North Arkansas Symphony, Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra, Tupelo Symphony, Delta Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Nashville Symphony, the St. Louis Symphony, and the St. Louis Chamber Music Society. He was a frequent soloist with the Forum Sinfonia of Krakow, Poland, touring with them in the United Stated and Europe. He held the title of Visiting Professor of Oboe at the Academy of Music in Krakow, Poland and has been a soloist with the St. P...

As this is an unaccompanied piece, ANY saxophone is acceptable. While most soloists will undoubtedly opt to use alto or soprano, the composer welcomes renditions of this piece on any of the larger saxes as well. This piece was inspired by Nevermore: An Evening With Edgar Allen Poe, a single act play featuring Jeffrey Combs. My good friend, Dr. Brent Bristow of Arkansas State University, Beebe, convinced me to go see the play when it was presented there in March of 2018. That performance by the legendary Mr. Combs inspired this piece. Why unaccompanied saxophone? Brent Bristow and I have been close friends since high school, and since he is the one who convinced me to see this show, and given that he plays classical saxophone (yes, that IS a thing!), I figured saxophone would kill two birds with one reed… or something like that. The show itself is a one-man performance, so that’s why this piece is unaccompanied. I toyed with the notion of including some text from the show. Eventua...

The Ring-Bearer's Tale was written in 1996, well before Peter Jackson's film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s  The Lord of the Rings,  which is arguably the defining novel of the fantasy genre.  Many of the characters in this epic novel are larger-than-life:  Gandalf, Saruman, Aragorn, and others.  Interestingly enough, the true heroes of Tolkien’s tale are very simple folk:  hobbits.  Bilbo Baggins and his nephew Frodo are among the most beloved characters of the story, quite possibly because they are not so much different from you or me, yet they accomplish great and heroic deeds nonetheless.  This piece for unaccompanied flute focuses on five moments from  The Lord of the Rings  in which our down-to-earth heroes encounter situations both marvelous and terrible.  As the title suggests, the musical narrative follows the adventures of Frodo and his faithful companion, Samwise Gamgee (who also bore the One Ring for a time). I. Rive...