Work samples

  • Slow Call (work in progress excerpt for Double Spectre project)

    Double Spectre is a new solo project in which I play 2 keyboards, slightly out of tune with each other. This created a sound that required me to find a different way of writing, which led me to finding a new, deeper creative voice. Slow Call is the second long form piece I am writing for this project.

  • live excerpt from Dalawang Multo (part 1) for Double Spectre project

    Double Spectre is a new solo project in which I play 2 keyboards, slightly out of tune with each other. This created a sound that required me to find a different way of writing, which led me to finding a new, deeper creative voice. This excerpt is from the first live performance of this project at Current Gallery in June of 2024.

  • excerpt from Dance of the Morning Roosters

    This section of a Ghost Life piece features the accumulating solos of different instruments. Starting with the organ, it goes through 2 short solos with a rest in the middle. The second solo is a little wilder than the first and they both play off of the rooster crows. Then there is a solo between the 2 woodblock percussionists, to imitate the jerky motions of roosters. A soloistic drum passage then gets added on top of the blocks, followed by a vibraphone solo to bring the theme back and end the piece.  

     

  • moose baker excerpt
    excerpt from a virtual performance video

Share:

Facebook Twitter Share

About Stephen

Baltimore City  

In the past, composers were free to write different kinds of music. Operas are drastically different than string quartets or piano works. These days musicians are often expected to write music under a genre or style, and hopping around is looked down upon. But different purposes, situations, and collaborators will necessitate having a different approaches and output. I have a wide variety of solo and collaborative projects, but I believe they are all related. Creative endeavors when worked… more

View Stephen's Resume
Jump to a project:

Double Spectre

I came to this project in the spring of 2024. It is the first truly solo project that I could play by myself without the need of other performers. I play two keyboards, slightly out of tune with each other. This created a sound that required me to find a different way of writing, which led me to finding a new, deeper creative voice. Someone has described it to me as sounding like a field recording and I think there is something to that.

 

  • Slow Call (excerpt)

    work in progress

  • excerpt Dalawang Multo part 1 (live)

    First performance of Stephen Santillan / Double Spectre project at Current Gallery as part of Andrew Shenker's "Crosscurrence: Friendship and Other Loves." 

  • Night Dance

    Song written in the Double Spectre set up. This one does require some loops to be played. One is a detuned ukelele and the other one plays a rhythm texture that plays out of sync with the ukelele loop.

  • Snow Spectre
    •

    • Numbers project

    Music has been a moving target for me. I've tried to keep the solo projects separate by self imposing parameters but I find myself constantly experimenting with music that is outside the scope of existing projects. I also find the blurring between projects and an overlapping of ideas. The Numbers allow me to embrace the ever changing path of new ideas without having to give a name to new micro-projects. In the past, composers were allowed to write in different genres (chamber works, song cycles, operas, symponies,etc). The idea of pigeonholing oneself to a certain approach is a trait that exists in the current environment, and the Numbers approach helps me to circumnavigate it without having to give it a name. The idea is to release different little set of complimentary music that can drastically change from one release to the next. 

    • Winter Sets of the Apocalypse / Some Days
      Winter Sets of the Apocalypse / Some Days

      released January 2024. This cover is an acrylic painting I made containing a combination the imagery of the two songs on this release.

    • Winter Sets of the Apocalypse (2023)
    • Some Days (2023)
    • 100 Windows / Sleepers Find A Hole Through Time
      100 Windows / Sleepers Find A Hole Through Time

      Released in July 2023

    • 100 Windows (2023)
    • Sleepers Find A Hole Through Time (2023)
    •

    • Sunset at Owl's Head - music for solo performances

    All the non-collaborative music I have written in the past required organizing groups of musicians to perform it. The current music trend of performing with backing tracks in a live setting was not something I intended to explore. However, the unustainable nature of hiring musicians for orchestral work, along with the opportunity to intermingle instruments that wouldn't normally be grouped together, have made the idea more intriguing. With this in mind, I started working on a perfomable solo project , which became "Sunset At Owl's Head." This approach also helped me bridge the gap between eastern and western music. Being born in the Philippines, I have always been interested in folk traditions in music. As a main performing vehicle for this project, I was exploring alternative guitar approaches that didn't use the strumming of chords, common in western pop music. Instead, I was interested in the use of eastern and western Asian techniques and modes, which I synthesized within pop structures. A guitar played this way helped me keep the live guitar elements completely enganged, to help keep balance with the non-liveness of the backing tracks.  But the use of  the backing tracks also allowed me to use ensemble passages to give the pieces a more modern western texture. Large group performances and non-western approaches to music are ongoing motivational factors for me, and this project is a culmination of both influences, as well as a culmination  of the various approaches I have been experimenting with in other projects. I am looking forward to playing more solo shows in the future and am currently working on new music for this project.


     

    • Sleepers Find A Hole Through Time (2023)

      The original idea about this project was to have a thickly layered rhythm and heavily orchestrated backing track. The live guitar would be busy to counter the invisibility of the backing track performance. The vocals were just signposts on the structure. After performing in this way for a few years, I found myself wanting to whittle down the layers and have the vocals and the lyrics dictate the structure. While contemplating how to approach this new direction, Andy Shenker asked me to participate in a night of readings called "Circles and Lines". This was written with cirlces in mind:

      Sleepers Find A Hole In Time

    • 100 Windows (2023)

      written for Circles and Lines. This was written under the idea of lines and following a thread of clues.

      100 Windows

      I watched a hundred windows open
      But saw nobody move them

      I heard a sound so I looked outside
      Saw no one

      I had a feel of somebody falling
      Who knows where it came from
      So I leaned in
      While listening
      I sunk down to my elbows

      In the woods I heard a voice call
      Or was it a hundred angels
      Or a hundred drums
      A savage clang of thrums
      A crushing fiery hum
      I leaned in
      It told me "um pa-pa pa pa pa pa"
      They sang "um pa-pa pa pa pa pa"

    • Winter Peace (2024)

      work in progress.  Experimenting with more improvisatory techniques to structure the song against a static guitar phrase.

       

      Scattered bract, leaves blown about and once again dark comes to us early

      And the boughs left stripped, uncovered trembling with the cold cold, cold

      Some straggle leaves flutter like birds frozen on bare branches 

      While birds below hop like foliage in a blow

       

      And winter winds come whistling like sirens of the lonely

       

      A frozen moon shares it strange light now

      And there’s a quiet that’s sheltered from the night. 

      The darkness lightens surrenders up a far corner

      Crackle ash and smoke shepherds apparitions 

       

      And it’s you and 

      me 

      and the winter ghost 

       

    • Sunset at Owl's Head cassette
      Sunset at Owl's Head cassette
      finished and released a cassette based on these set of songs
    • Sunset at Owl's Head (animated performance of first section)
      Since the pandemic has halted possibilities of live performances, I did a hand drawn animation for the first section of the title track, to replace what would have been a record release performance. I wanted to be physically present in the performance through the lines in the drawings, instead of doing a web performance. And instead of animating singing, I drew portraits of people that have influenced me to superimposed on the blank singing figure, when the voice is present.
    • Sunset at Owl's Head
    • Red Finish
    • Outro
    • Strange Tear
    • live photo from Fadensonnen, February 2020
      live photo from Fadensonnen, February 2020
    •

    • Wheatie Mattiasich

    I started accompanying Wheatie for live shows in 2011, and naturally started writing songs with her. I recorded her 2013 record "Little Black Star" and co-wrote a few songs on that record. We just released an LP, "Old Glow" in January 2023 and plan on touring to support the album. One track "This Way" was spotlighted on NPR's Now Playing. We continue the collaboration and are touring to support the last record.

    • a cover.jpg
      a cover.jpg
      Old Glow LP. Released in January 2023
    • Wheatie live.jpg
      Wheatie live.jpg
      Photo from a show at the True Vine on November 21, 2018.
    • This Way.mp3
      This track was featured on NPR's Now Playing in January 2023
    • People.mp3
      from "Old Glow"
    •

    • Ceremony Drum

    Ceremony Drum started off as a writing  exercise based on an image of a pop band in the dark. I imagined a group of musicians where the view of the lead vocalist, ususally the most visible in a pp group would be obscured by darkness and by his posotion in the back of the stage. I also imagined a drummer being front and center, and only having a floor tom instead of a full drum kit, and he would be the only person standing on stage. I liked the idea of the drummer's repetitive motion being the only visible element of the live performance. From this image, I imagined what this group would sound like. At first, I was just using this as an exercies to quickly write a song to help me take a break from the more involved pieces I was working on. But after some time, I realized I had accumulated a some good songs adn decided to take this project more seriously. I put together a group to perform this live in 2019 and hope to do more shows in the future. I am still writing new material for this project.

    • Ceremony Drum at Current Gallery 2019
      Ceremony Drum at Current Gallery 2019
    • Ceremony Drum cassette
      Ceremony Drum cassette
      Released cassette version of Ceremony Drum project in January 2021
    • Some Days (2023)
    • Canoe
    • Fell Into a Room
    • Ceiling Fan
    • World Is On It's Way
    • In the Roses
    •

    • Ghost Life

    Ghost Life was an ensemble project based on mostly small rhtythmic instruments .  When it first started, I wanted to combine my love of pop and ethnic music with ensemble organization.  The instrumentation allowed me to put percussion up front to form its own narrative.  At an age where anybody can play a single instrument and fill up a room completely with sound, I wanted all the individual sounds of the group to be tiny.  I also tried to avoid any use of chord progressions, relying instead on the constanly shifting rhythmic elements and combinations to sustain interest in the pieces.   I made some virtual ensemble performances to highlight the physical elements of the sound.  That element is an important factor in this music and might be lost on just a listen through.   After years of performances with little documentation, I wanted to have some representation that would highlight the sound generating process of the physical action.  
    • Ghost Life - Moose
      2nd virtual ensemble video for Ghost Life
    • Ghost Life - Hands (2018)
      virtual ensemble performance video
    • Ghost Life cassette
      Ghost Life cassette
      Cassette release of Ghost Life and Relay project together. Release date pending due to problems with the tape transfer of the recording. But it should be out by late winter 2021.
    • Morning Roosters (2018)
      First part of a projected cylce of 8 parts.
    • a3
      ghost life performance at floristree. february, 2014. filmed by thomas kessler.
    • ghostbeat4
      ghost life performance at floristree. february, 2014. filmed by thomas kessler.
    •

    • Miscellaneous pieces

    The constant search for inspiration leads to experimenting with ideas that don't necessarily fit in within the confines of existing project. Some pieces were written just to be its own thing project with an end.

    • Loneliness of a Long Distance Runner

      excerpt written to a video

    • Saul Walk

      excerpt written to a video

    • Looking Glass River (2021)
      A setting of Robert Louis Stevensons's "Looking Glass River" for organ and chorus (here represented by MIDI sounds)
    • Alan Moore 2021
      After working with the Officer! track, Jared Paolini, Jeff Mcgrath, and myself decided to work on a couple more tracks in the studio.
    • Apse Coo 2020
      This was an experiment in writing a serial piece using a set of dyads to generate the composition
    • Relay song cycle
      While working on the Ghost Life project, I started working on a drum machine driven experiment that wasn't hindered by the idea of having to perform it live. It also gave me the freedom to work outside the confines I had set for myself with Ghost Life, while using techniques I had learned from that projects. The idea is that a constantly shifting drum machine idea eventually gives way to more melodic instruments sprouting out of its rhythmic bed. There are 4 movements. Movement 1 and 2 start instrumentally, and eventually vocals come in towards the end of those sections. After the only pause in the whole cycle, Movement 3 "The Cathederal" begins. It is a completely instrumental section and leads to movement 4 "The World Is Always Disappearing", a vocal section. The dynamic between the 3rd and 4th movements mimic the instrumental/vocal song structure of movements 1 and 2.
    •

    • Music for other people's projects

    Music written for other people's projects

    • Officer! - "Strong Butler" (2023)

      Written for international collaboraive project "Officer!" This is the first time I took the lead vocals in a collaborative setting, and the first instance of using the bass clarinet (which I am relatively new at) in a recording.

    • Crickets (2023)

      Soundtrack written for 3rd collaboration with Zoe Friedman

    • Night Jungle (2022).mp3
      Music written for an animated installation by Zoe Friedman
    • 2018 exquite corpse soundtrack- The Adventures of Prince Achmed
      On October 13, 2108, I took part in 2 live performances of an exquisite corpse soundtrack. New music was written for different sections of the film by different artists, and was performed at the Parkway Theatre. This section was written in collaboration with Emmanuel Nicolaidis playing vibraphone and floor tom. This was a home draft our section, so the vibraphone and drum is not present in this version. The video footage is still being put together at the time of this post.
    • Ishi's Brain (2012)
      Music written for travelling puppet performance of Ishi's Brain, used to promote book by Eamon Espey, of the same name.
    • Children in Heat (rough mix) (2009)
      Song written in collaboration with Emmanuel for "Children in Heat" a video by Deitra Thompson, based on a song by the Misfits.
    •

    • Past collaborative music projects

    • Oh Hang 2013-2016
      Oh Hang 2013-2016
      Oh Hang was a collaboration with Emmanuel Nicolaidis (drums, vocals) and myself (keyboards, drum machine). Pre-programmed drum machines and samples against live drums and keyboards were used to generate the music for this project. We released an album of Friends Records in 2015.
    • Oh Hang 2013-2016 "Conquistador Hop"
    • Permanent Waves 2016-2017
      Permanent Waves 2016-2017
      This was a collaboration between Emmanuel Nicolaidis (bass), Jeff Mcgrath (guitar), Christina B (vocals) and myself on drums. We recorded an album in El Paso, Tx in 2017.
    • Cole Tut 2014-2015
      Cole Tut 2014-2015
      Collaborative project with Jeff Mcgrath (guitar), Lesser Gonzales (vocals), Chris Day (bass) and myself on drums. We released a cassette in 2016. Cover art by Chris Day
    • Cole Tut 2014-2015 "Goodness Goes"
    • Thank You live photo from London in 2011
      Thank You live photo from London in 2011
      I joined pre-existing band Thank You in 2011. I toured and released a single with them on Thrill Jockey Records
    • "Night Now Is Sleeping Soundly" (2007)
      Movement 1 of 4 from the Golden Age. Golden Age was a collaborative song cycle written with Emmanuel Nicolaidis for an art opening at the Current Gallery for "Inside/Out" in 2007. It was written to find the intersection between pop songs and classical song cycles. It was performed again in 2008 as part of Whartscape.
    • "Western" (2007)
      Movement 4 of 4 from Golden Age. Golden Age was a collaborative song cycle written with Emmanuel Nicolaidis for an art opening at the Current Gallery for "Inside/Out" in 2007. It was written to find the intersection between pop songs and classical song cycles. It was performed again in 2008 as part of Whartscape.
    • More Dogs 2000-2006
      More Dogs 2000-2006
      A studio project collaboration which turned into a live performance trio. We released 2 albums S?T (2003) and "Never Let Them Catch You Crying" (2005) on Monitor Records. We toured throughout the United States and Canada.
    •