Let's stick to the reverse chronology.

2004 - In March I wrote music for "My Master is a Collector," a collaborative multi-media piece by Thylias Moss, with video, direction and performance by Cynthia Pachikara, Marienetta Porter and Terri Sarris, which premiered at Michigan Theater as part of the Ann Arbor film fest. Also at the film fest i premiered the sound installation "Ode to Mesmer" at Work Gallery, later exhibited at Biddle Gallery. April and May were spent at Performance Network in my role as Musical Director for a 6-week run of "Three Penny Opera". In June, the Power Center premiered "Peninsula" by choreographer Peter Sparling for which I wrote the music.
In July at the Performance Network I wrote and performed original music for Jeffrey Steiger's "Stand-up: A Show." In September I performed at the Broken Clock festival and provided sound design for Performance Network's "Humble Boy." October will premiere "Fair and Balanced" a political cabaret by Milwaukee Dance, for which I'll write incidental music and perform protest songs. Awards this year include Best Sound Design for "Three Penny," Der Leo's Best Music for a Short Film (Egg), and a Salute to Excellence Award from Downriver Council for the Arts.

2003 - In January at Hastings Street Ballroom, Scavenger Quartet, with automatic accompaniment, performed the music to an original piece of theater I wrote and directed entitled "Leftovers: The Musical" which told in verse the fictionalized life of Edward Lear. Late February and March were spent in Japan touring to support Back of Beyond on the Novel Cell Poem label. In April I joined the Shaking Ray Levis to perform "Mayor of Tennessee River" written and narrated by David Greenberger. I also received a Creative Artist Grant from ArtServe Michigan to build and write new music for Automatic instruments.

2002 - I've been juggling three groups: The Immigrant Suns (a tour in May to support "Supernova"), Xenharmonic Gamelan and Scavenger Quartet. I wrote the music for "Dada Boy Paints on Canvas" by Jeffrey Steiger and Body Talks by Peter Sparling. Two installations were also premiered: "Slumberland" at Detroit Artist Market and "Fall" at Biddle Gallery. Breech and Nelly Bly also released CDs featuring my tinkering.

2001 - Music for Desserts with Klimperei on the in poly sons label and Whistling for Leftovers with Scavenger Quartet on the Snowdonia label are both released and a lovely toypop compilation "Musique du Jouet," on Japan's Novel Cell Poem label also hits the record stores (somewhere). Several theater and dance commissions (performed live): "My Elephant Dream" for Milwaukee Dance in Milwaukee, "Dossin Project" for Peter Sparling and Company at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and for University of Michigan: Brecht's "Good Person of Szechwan" and Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath". Two installations: Double Quartet #1 at Slusser Gallery and "Music for Desserts" at Biddle Gallery. A few lectures, most notably a lecture, demonstration and workshop at Cranbrook Arts Academy and a fine article in The Wire by David Mandl entitled "Scavenging for Automatons."

2000 - In January and February I was Artist in Residence at Zeum in San Francisco where I taught high school students how to build and perform with automatic instruments, culminating in a performance called "The Luggage Project". Several theater commissions kicked me arse in the best possible way. In Miwaukee: "Ten Minutes Till Bedtime. In Detroit": "Inspector General". And for University of Michigan: "Lysistrata" and "The Tempest" (return engagement). The sound installation "Music for a Red Room" was installed at Biddle Gallery and The Immigrant Suns released the "Field Recordings" LP featuring improvisations recorded at my studio.

1999 - Two commissions for University of Michigan (both performed with Scavenger Quartet): "The Tempest" and Peter Sparling's "Delirium Waltz". I also wrote an article for the final issue of Experimental Musical Instruments entitled "Door-to-door Doorbell Salesman Sample Case." A few exhibitions that are hardly worth mentioning and an extremely limited release CD with David Greenberger, "I Still Like Myself."

1998 - Two releases now out of print: Only a Mother's swan song, "Damned Pretty Snout," and a collection of instrumentals to coincide with my MFA show called "Remove the Cork." The MFA show which featured members of The Immigrant Suns (first use of the name "Scavenger Quartet") was the final requirement for an MFA in Art and Design from University of Michigan. Also featured in the MFA show was a performance by The Amazing Tubachairs complete with a video collaboration with Terri Sarris. Other gallery performances included automatic doorbell performances/exhibitions at C-Pop in Detroit, Biddle Gallery in Wyandotte and Performance Network in Ann Arbor. I was also a finalist for the Polk competition in Birmingham and I received a competitive scholarship award in composition from the GameWorks/World Studio Foundation and an Arts Achievement Award from Wayne State University where I received my undergraduate degree in 1981. Curiously, Only a Mother was nominated for best new jazz band by Detroit Music Awards?

And in the summer I squeezed in a West Coast tour.

1997 - Several Dance Commissions: Janet Lilly's "Portrait of a Woman in Mythological Disguise" in Milwaukee, two short pieces for "Haiku Project" (released on CD of the same name) in Geneva, Switzerland and Terri Sarris' "Partners" in Ann Arbor (for which I also danced). I also composed music for the documentaries "Ballad of Fire" by James Knight and "The Faces of Tyree Guyton" by Nicole Cattel. Besides performing with Only a Mother at Edgefest in Ann Arbor I also toured Japan solo where I hawked my "In Cahoots" CD which made a few top 10 lists at year's end. Four local exhibitions, two of which yielded cash prizes (Polk Awards and Lansing Art Gallery).

1996 - University of Michigan lured me back to school with a non-traditional fellowship (which means help for the aged). Two exhibitions, one film commission, two dance commissions and two theater commissions that are hardly worth mentioning. My music appeared on three CDs now out of print: "Eyesore: A Tribute to the Residents," "State of the Union," and "Back from Durbecca" by the Immigrant Suns. Of particular interest was an automaton performance at Detroit Institute of Arts and a European tour with Only a Mother followed by performances at Solofest. Solofest featured Fred Frith, Zeena Parkins, Rudiger Carl, Otomo Yoshihide, Peter Kowald and many others. It was in Geneva where I met Pierre Bastien and the automatic music bug may have planted.

1995 - Two Ann Arbor dance commissions: Terri Sarris' "Loose Threads" and People Dancings' "Way Far Out Balls." Three theater commissions: Malcolm Tulip's "Robber's Nightmare," Sue Carman's "Heaven" and Wild Swan's "Winnie the Pooh." "Feral Chickens" released to unsuspecting public.

1994 - Three dance commissions: Janet Lilly's "Black Cat," Terri Sarris' "Chance and Circumstance" and Peter Sparling's "Travelogue." Two theater commissions: Malcolm Tulip's "Asylum Asylum," and Walk & Squawk's "They Do It With Mirrors."

Two CDs: "The Romantic Side of Schizophrenia," and "Montenegro," with Immigrant Suns. Last but not least, I penned a chapter in Jon Rose's book, "Violin Music in the Age of Shopping."

1993 - Two theater commissions: Nelson Smith's "Psychological Gravity" and Malcolm Tulip's "Enrique Miasmo." Two dance commissions, Peter Sparling's "Local Color" and from Chattanooga Ann Law's "Walnut Street Bridge Dance" with the Shaking Ray Levis. 1993 also marked the second year of the Earwhacks! Music  Festival that I coordinated with the help of Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit. The two festivals took place in five venues and three counties to give musicians ample opportunity to reach different audiences. Featured performers included Eugene Chadbourne, David Greenberger, Shaking Ray Levis, LaDonna Smith, Davey Williams, Roy Brooks, Nobua Kubota, Paul Dutton, Nick Didkovsky, Amy Denio, Tatsu Aoki and many more. A couple of awards from Detroit's Metro Times: Hall of Fame and Best Instrumentalist.

1992 - Only a Mother was busy in 1992 with performances at Sound Symposium at St. John's Newfoundland (the inspiration for Earwhacks!), New Music America, a European tour and a performance at the first Earwhacks! A commission to write music for Walk & Squawk's production of "Song of the Lark," brought me to Telluride, Colorado. Eugene Chadbourne included Only a Mother on his LSDC&W Part 2 CD.

1991 - Only a Mother was chosen by Metro Times as Band Deserving Wider Recognition but more importantly 1991 was the year of the first collaboration with Malcolm Tulip ("Don Don…") and it was also the year of the first CD releases from Wyandotte's Private Studios (Only a Mother's "Naked Songs for Contortionists" and my first solo release "The Cowboy Disciple").