I vividly remember a fascinating 5th-grade science unit about identifying types of clouds, where each day we went outside and reported cloud data to NASA! I still remember all the different types of clouds, and when I had the idea to write an octet for four violins and four violas, I knew clouds would be the perfect theme.
Cloudgazing is a fun and compact 9-minute, four-movement suite depicting four types of clouds and packs an experimental punch with tons of extended techniques! Get a group of eight chinstrument-wielding companions together for the perfect exciting closer for your next concert! Natural and artificial harmonics represent high-altitude wispy Cirrus clouds; popcorn pizzicato represents rows of small puffy Altocumulus clouds; dreary sul tasto, creepy glissandos, and spazzolato represent gloomy Stratus clouds; and finally an explosively chromatic fugue represents the thunderclouds, Cumulonimbus!
Cloudgazing has never been performed live, but in 2025, I recorded all eight parts myself in this video! See a screenshot of me and my 7 doppelgangers below.
I vividly remember a fascinating 5th-grade science unit about identifying types of clouds, where each day we went outside and reported cloud data to NASA! I still remember all the different types of clouds, and when I had the idea to write an octet for four violins and four violas, I knew clouds would be the perfect theme.
Cloudgazing is a fun and compact 9-minute, four-movement suite depicting four types of clouds and packs an experimental punch with tons of extended techniques! Get a group of eight chinstrument-wielding companions together for the perfect exciting closer for your next concert! Natural and artificial harmonics represent high-altitude wispy Cirrus clouds; popcorn pizzicato represents rows of small puffy Altocumulus clouds; dreary sul tasto, creepy glissandos, and spazzolato represent gloomy Stratus clouds; and finally an explosively chromatic fugue represents the thunderclouds, Cumulonimbus!
Cloudgazing has never been performed live, but in 2025, I recorded all eight parts myself in this video! See a screenshot of me and my 7 doppelgangers below.
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