Auditioning for All State choir this year, I was first introduced with some of the most creative music I had ever heard up to this point in my life.  A required piece to learn was "A Boy and A Girl" , by Eric Whitacre, which consisted of a seemingly messy arrangement of time signatures and clashing notes.  After going through the piece several times, the music suddenly clicked in my mind-the pieces had fell into place.

As a composer myself, I am amazed how the music Eric Whitacre has designed truly meshes and blends together!  My All State group would gather 'round the piano, our Alto giving out the notes, and we would try to get through our parts that first week.  As the tenor, my part was easier than others because my note made the harmony work, while the Alto and Soprano line were almost constantly a half step apart (or clashed).

A week later, we had mastered the notes but had to focus on Eric Whitacre's choices for dynamics, treading very lightly at soft spots in the piece.  Eric Whitacre's "A Boy and A Girl" became my favorite All State piece quickly.  If you haven't had the opportunity to listen to Eric Whitacre at his best, I'd highly recommend listening to a choral selection of "A Boy and A Girl" or a band performance of "October".

Some background information on Eric Whitacre includes that he lives in LA, was born in January 2, 1970, and is even married to a Soprano-Hila Pltmann.  Eric Whitacre, in High School, actually got kicked out of band but followed composition, becoming what a lot of musicians think as the most played modern music pieces in bands and choirs around the world!