Ohio Sketches was written for the musicians of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Symphony Orchestra, & The Cleveland Orchestra for Mindful Music Moments, a program by Cincinnati-based organization The Well, which combines aspects of mindfulness, arts, social-emotional learning, play, movement & poetry into practices for regular use within schools, hospitals, and communities. The completion of this project was made possible by the generous support of Dr. John and Susan Tew.
The piece is 12-minutes, written in 4 movements with the first 3 dedicated to the city of each participating ensemble and the 4th being a finale movement in which all 3 quartets participate thoughout. The music in each movement was inspired by a series of responses given by students in grades K-12 who participate in the Mindful Music Moments program. Their very passionate visions for the music lead to many of my artistic choices.