Everyone has their hobbies, and composing music is one of my favorites.

In terms of software, I first used Music Masterworks before going with CakeWalk ScoreWriter (now owned by GenieSoft). I later tried NoteWorthy Composer before switching to . Now I use Sibelius, which I've found to be the most impressive, versatile and customizable composition tool.

Here I list a number of songs that I've arranged or transcribed, as well as some original pieces that I composed. Most were set with specific instrumentation in mind, though a few of them were put together solely as MIDI files with no intention of being performed.

Note: If you wish to obtain these transcriptions (arrangements), you should either transcribe them yourself (it's a worthwhile exercise) or contact the original owners to avoid copyright infringement. It's the right thing to do.

[MIDI/electronic] [A cappella] [Piano] [Vocal/accompaniment] [Brass] [Other instrumental] [Contemporary]

These were the baby steps I took back in my high school as I began to engross myself with music.

Arabian Nights - 2002
Later on, I arranged this MIDI from a song in Disney's Aladdin, just because I really enjoyed its feel (and a bit of homage to my culture). I suppose I couldn't written it for instruments to play, but at the time I was only concerned with having it as background music for my site. You should know the song if you've seen the movie or TV series.

Crystal's Lullaby - 2002 [Original]
I originally wrote this with a dedication to one of my closest friends. Modeled after Pachabel's Canon in D, it was the first original piece I've ever composed. Not particularly special, but it managed to get published in my high school's literary magazine. Eh, you might enjoy it (though I'd like to put forth the disclaimer that my musical writing skills has vastly improved since then).

Hey Pachuco - 2000
In Fall of 2000, I joined the North Brunswick Marching Band. That was the first time that I made a MIDI of a song orchestrated for an actual music group. Since it was a simple song, I transcribed it from memory rather than looking at parts. A few bad notes in there, I'm sure, but for early on, it wasn't so bad.

Pokémon Theme - 1995
This was the very first song that I composed using a music writing program. Yeah, I used to (kind of) like Pokémon. But in particular I liked the gym theme, so I decided to give it a go. It was also an experimentation with counterpoint (playing multiple melodic lines at once). Kind of cool. Pretty amateur. But a decent first try at MIDI.

Be Our Guest - 2006 (sample)
This is a transcription of the barbershop quartet arrangement of this Disney song, originally performed by Platinum quartet. As one of my favorite songs (and it's Disney - who can resist it?), I thought it would be a testament to my ear training if I attempted to transcribe its fine barbershop harmonies. And overall, I was rather successful, with this arrangement completed. Now if only it wasn't so challenging to perform.

Cell Phone Jingle - 2008 [Original]
I put together this cute little diddy with the intent of having callers hear something creative. Unfortunately the frequency response of cellular phones caused a poor distortion of the harmonies. Hear it here!

Christmas with the Penn Glee Club - 2005 (sample)
In 2006, the Penn Glee Club planned to release a holiday CD by the end of the year. Dissatisfied with some of the arrangements we were recording (in addition to my general enjoyment of Christmas music), I decided to put together my own medley of songs, inspired by our own medley of Penn songs. Arranged a cappella for TTBB, this song starts with "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" and has its journey's end with "Joy to the World." I really enjoyed arranging and performing this piece.

Enormous Penis - 2006 (sample)
Sung by the group Da Vinci's Notebook, this ridiculous song describes a guy consoling himself with the fact that he has a - well, you know. It's surprisingly catchy, and the people on my floor really seemed to enjoy it, so I figured I'd transcribe it. Depending on how open-minded you are, you might find it funny. Yeah. I just wanted to reassess my transcribing skills. I swear.

Finite Simple Group - 2006 (sample)
An original song by The Klein Four Group, this song is a contemporary a cappella composition filled with numerous mathematical puns. As of November 2006, I'm still finalizing some parts of it, but for the most part it's complete. My intention is for a few of my friends on my floor to have this as part of our informal repertoire (it's both fun to listen to and perform). Check out the links section to hear the actual song.

It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday - , 2005
Based on the popular "Boyz II Men" song, I arranged this for the Penn Pipers with a particular soloist in mind. He did get the solo, but unfortunately this song never came to fruition. But it was a decent arrangement, modeled for 5 to 6 people a cappella.

Folger's Theme Song - 2007 (sample)
A transcription of the Rockapella rendition of the Folger's theme song, specifically targeted for a men's quartet.

Kiss the Girl - 2003 (sample)
For Theatre Revue 2003 auditions, I put together this song, based on the song from Disney's "The Little Mermaid." With a clever little skit and five other talented guys, we performed this song a cappella, much to the delight of the crowd. While the song wasn't particularly difficult, it was plenty of fun to put on. Oh, and it was great to get a standing ovation.

The Longest Time - 2003
Here's a standard piece in every a cappella group's repertoire. It pretty much sounds like all of the others, though I haven't actually heard another arrangement that sounds exactly like this one. Anyway, it was a jump in terms of difficulty from "Stand By Me" and though it wasn't ever actually performed, it was a nice attempt at transcription.

Stand By Me - 2001
The first a cappella arrangement I ever arranged, this being for Theatre Revue 2002. With three other singers, we pulled off this quartet piece and began to solidify my standing as an a cappella arranger at North Brunswick High. This arrangement, modeled after Rockapella's version, wasn't particularly impressive, but I think it was a good start.

Twelve Days of Christmas - 2008 (sample)
Straight No Chaser's hilarious take on the holiday carol, with a TTBB twist.

Under the Sea: A Cappella - 2005
In my first year of college, I was involved in an a cappella group, the Penn Pipers. That year they wanted to perform a song "Under the Sea," and having already arranged that for a brass quintet, I decided to arrange a song based on that version. Using a clever set of lyrics, I put it together, ultimately in 8 parts. Personally, I like the brass version better, but eh, they wanted it.

Where In The World is Carmen Sandiego - 2006 (sample)
Once arranged for a quintet back in high school, I toned down the arrangement in preparation for the Penn Glee Club 2006 spring show so that a men's choral group could sing the song.

Canon in D for Clarinet and Piano - 2006 (sample)
This song, originally arranged for strings is one of my favorite classical pieces. Unfortunately the arrangements that I've found for piano and solo were always less than adequate. In summer 2006, I decided to arrange it myself, not actually for myself but rather for my friend's girlfriend as a birthday gift. It was quite a feat, given the time crunch (I had less than a week), but I got through, and I'd say I'm rather satisfied with it. There's nothing notable about this arrangement except for the fact that I arranged it myself.

Muppets Theme - 2005 (sample)
For the opening of the Penn Glee Club 2006 spring musical, they wanted to open it with the theme from "The Muppets Show." I decided to take a stab at it, and I actually enjoyed putting this together. This arrangement isn't impressive by any means, though it was tricky finding a way to integrate four part harmonies (which you can hear toward the end). For the most part its either one line or two line harmonies. Yeah.

Super Mario Bros. 2 Theme - 2002 (sample)
The first song I arranged for piano, and coincidentally the first song I was unable to play myself. I enjoy its ragtime feel and its cutesy chords. And I know now that there are plenty of simple arrangements out there, but I'm proud to have transcribed this myself.

Prince Ali - 2005
Based on the song from Disney's "Aladdin," the Penn Glee Club wanted to have this as the first song for Act 2 of their 2005 spring musical. As the first song I ever arranged for choir and piano, this was a bit daunting, especially since I don't have much in terms of piano theory; add to it the fact that it would open the second act, and I had a lot of pressure put on me. But I did it. And I'm proud of it.

Making Our Dreams Come True - 2006 (sample)
The theme song for "Laverne and Shirley" arranged for the Penn Glee Club spring show. Featuring a quartet on the main verse and the chorus on the background.

You Have AIDS (from "Family Guy") - 2005 (sample)
If you're a Family Guy fan, you must know this song. Clearly one of the show's most offensive moments, the Season 4 episode "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire" featured this song where a barbershop group serenades a man who has just been informed that he has been infected by AIDS. Oh, such a great song. And totally worth transcribing. Now if only I could find four guys to sing this song.

Primarily quintet music (trumpet, trumpet, horn, trombone, tuba), though some larger ensembles included.

Duck Tales - 2001
One of my earliest brass quintet arrangements, based on the theme from that 90's cartoon TV show. Sadly, it's not a particularly special arrangement, but it was one of my first ones and for that reason alone, I'm proud of it.

Fields of Hyrule: Brass Sextet - 2001 (sample)
After the success of the last song, I thought I'd stick with video game music and orchestrate the music from The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. This song is the music played as you travel across Hyrule Field, which I put together for a brass quintet. But in hindsight, I realize that I made the parts a bit unbalanced; that is, the trombone and tuba were pretty easy, but the upper parts where all over. A worthy attempt.

Fields of Hyrule: Brass Choir - 2002
Realizing the difficulty of the arrangement I made for simply five musicians, I decided to extend it to include instruments all across the brass section. With at least two of each instrument, the addition of other voices, and an extension of the previous to showcase some more voices, this became a more manageable piece. Unfortunately, this arrangement was never attempted, though it was based on the players available in the NBTHS band.

Mario Bros. Theme: Brass Quintet - 2001 (sample)
With a bit of music theory under my belt, I decided to give it a second go. Using my original trio arrangement, as well as a painstaking analysis of the chord progression from the SNES video game, I put together this composition. It's actually a pretty big jump from the previous quintet arrangement, and to this day, I consider it one of my best.

Under the Sea: Quintet - 2004 (sample)
After the success of "Kiss the Girl", I thought we should put select members of the band in the spotlight. So for Theatre Revue 2004, I arranged this popular song from "The Little Mermaid" for a few of my friends. Complemented with a silly skit, we made it and did pretty well. Oh, and I played tuba. That was the best part.

Zero to Hero - 2003 (sample)
This is clearly one of my most impressive brass quintet arrangements. Inspired by the music from Disney's "Hercules," it features the theme with a swing feel, while taking advatange of each instrument's full range and qualities. Though not easy, it's pretty fun to play. Certainly enough that Mr. Egan felt the urge to record a demo of the song.

The Glee of Clubs Entr'acte - 2006 (sample)
For the 2006 Glee Club musical, I undertook the task of scoring the show for an instrumental ensemble ranging from violin to trumpet. Most of the songs came from other sources (mainly musicals, shows, and choir repertoire), but I had the opportunity to include my original songs. One of the songs I made was the overture (which eventually became the ent'racte instead, i.e. between Act I and II). This is that piece, featuring a tidbit of every single song we performed in the show. Arguably one of the most impressive pieces I've ever composed.

Fields of Hyrule: Honors Band - 2004
Based on the same song, I rearranged this as per the instrumentation in my honors band class (i.e. the top band members in the NBTHS, all in one class). I think we might have even played it once or twice. Anyway, this was the closest to the actual song, since we actually had instruments of all timbre to cover the necessary parts.

Mario Bros. Trio - 1998
My first stab at the original Nintendo Mario theme, which is perhaps my favorite theme of all time (you'll see this as a recurring theme). This was the first song I tried arranging for instruments to be played, in this case a clarinet trio (the only instrument I knew how to play at the time. I didn't have any real knowledge of chord structure, so it wasn't so bad for someone lacking music theory.

Mario Bros. Theme: Marching Band - 2003
Same song as before (can you tell it's one of my favorites?). Only this time it's arranged for marching band (i.e. stand music). I was hoping we could perform it in the stands, but we shifted our focus to the actual marching band music and never got around to it. I'm not really sure if I have the original score anymore.

Each year I work with Glen Burtnik each year to put on a rock show that often includes wind instruments. Instead of using synthesizers, Glen prefers to use the real deal -- and it keeps me contentedly transcribing as a side job. At the very least, it's a fun exercise that has me exploring a different genre from a transcribing standpoint.

Across The Universe - The Beatles, 2009

Baba O'Reilly - The Who, 2010

Carry That Weight - The Beatles, 2009

Cool Yule - Louis Armstrong, 2008

The End - The Beatles, 2009

Golden Slumbers - The Beatles, 2009

Help! - The Beatles, 2010

Here Comes The Sun - The Beatles, 2009

Hey Jude - The Beatles, 2009

I Me Mine - The Beatles, 2010

Jingle Bells - Bing Crosby & Andrews Sisters, 2009

Let It Be - The Beatles, 2010

The Long And Winding Road - The Beatles, 2010

Michael Jackson Medley - Michael Jackson - 2009

My Wife - The Who, 2010

Pictures of Lily - The Who, 2010

Rockestra Theme - Paul McCartney, 2009

Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt, 2009

Something - The Beatles, 2009

This Christmas - Donnie Hathaway, 2008

Where Are You Christmas - Faith Hill, 2009

Whiskey Man - The Who, 2010

You've Got To Hide Your Love Away - The Beatles, 2010