Clouds and Flames (2010)

Instrumentation: piano trio: violin, cello and piano (14:30)

Clouds and Flames was commissioned by the Rome-based ensemble Piccola Accademia degli Specchi.

The title Clouds and Flames and the names of the movements come from lyrical moments in Colum McCann’s novel Let the Great World Spin.

The movements, inspired by events in the novel, are a set of impressions on loss, remembrance and rebirth, and, a meditation on the tightrope wire walk of Philippe Petit between the World Trade Center towers on August 7, 1974 culminating in events surrounding 9/11.

Quiet Rhythms No. 9 for Accordion, Marimba and Piano (2010)

Originally for solo piano, Quiet Rhythms No. 9 is an arrangement for accordion, marimba and piano created in 2022. Quiet Rhythms No. 9 is one of forty-four pieces in the series. Each piece is divided into two sections, a Prologue and an Action.

Quiet Rhythms No. 9 for Accordion and Marimba (2010)

Originally for solo piano, Quiet Rhythms No. 9 is an arrangement for accordion and marimba created in 2021. Quiet Rhythms No. 9 is one of forty-four pieces in the series. Each piece is divided into two sections, a Prologue and an Action.

The first performance was given by Brett Jones, marimba and Stas Venglevski, piano on January 25, 2022 in Superior, Wisconsin.

Zydeco Madness for Accordion (2006)

Instrumentation: Accordion

1st performance: Stas Venglevski, The Green Mill, Chicago, IL, April 19, 2009

To the forgotten of Hurricane Katrina.

Zydeco is Creole-based music indigenous to Louisiana. The lead instrument of a Zydeco band is accordion and the music itself over the years has integrated a wide variety of popular music forms. Rather than trying to copy the sound or instrumentation of a Zydeco band, the emphasis is on rhythm.

Duo Montuño (2004)

Instrumentation: clarinet and piano (7:00)
First Performance: The Knitting Factory, New York City, 2007

Instrumentation: alto saxophone and piano (7:00)

Instrumentation: viola and piano (7:00)

Instrumentation: violin and piano (7:00)

Much of Susman’s music of the 90s and beyond explores the repetitive rhythms heard in Afro-Cuban music. One such gesture is the montuño, a repeated syncopated line or ostinato, often assigned to the piano, which outlines the harmony of a passage. In Susman’s music, any instrument can play a montuño. He also uses medieval rhythmic and contrapuntal devices called hocket and isorhythm. What results is an episodic conversation between the instruments.

Piano Montuño (2004)

Instrumentation: piano (6:00)