John A. Carollo

 

John was born in Torino, Italy and brought to the U.S. by his adoptive parents. When he was in grade school, he studied classical piano and sang in the church choir. He attended college at San Diego, CA, studying music and psychology. During this time, John took piano lessons and began composing his first piano works. He graduated from San Diego State University with a Master’s Degree in Clinical Psychology.

 

The composer moved to Honolulu and began a full-time mental health career for the State of Hawaii and started private composition lessons with Dr. Robert Wehrman. His first composition under Bob's tutelage was a piano suite in six parts. Following this effort, Robert encouraged John to compose an atonal work in 1998 entitled Frenetic Unfoldings for Solo Violin. After completing this large work, the composer focused his energies on compositions incorporating various instrumentations including trios, quartets and orchestral works. John quit his public servant job to compose full-time in 2006. He also writes poetry and collects art, including the books, art and ephemera of Edward Gorey, a lifetime hobby.

 

www.johncarollocomposer.com

 

 

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The Transfiguration of Giovanni Baudino

 

I have always preferred to let music speak for itself. We each derive our own unique personal meanings from our listening experiences and most of it is felt viscerally.

 

For me, music should reflect the newness of the day. In its most exalted state music should be fresh and new, resembling the moment, which is always unique. There are no two identical moments in observable nature. Just as a river meanders down dynamic vistas, so to music should change over time giving us newness in motion. This concept of metamorphosis fascinates me and also the idea that nothing in nature is static. Musically, I have endeavored to translate this notion of change by composing works that evolve so that no two musical moments are identical. Since everything is new, we are, so to speak, fresh as a meandering stream rolling over changing landscapes.

 

In my own musical development, being crisp and concise is now a conscious effort, taking an idea and expounding upon it. Reflecting back on my own writings, I can see that the poems that stand out are the ones delineating a single subject matter. It is the simple idea that is the most complex to elucidate. We will hear this most profoundly in the string orchestra works. The orchestra works are intensely composed as they are reflections of everyday life, e.g., the humor of musicians needing an ER room for their exceptional product requiring healing from the demands of the music industry to transformations we experience as human beings living through life’s demands and delights, it’s turmoil and tribulations.

 

- John A Carollo