Isomorph is the spiritual successor to my 2009 band work, Kinetics. After years of writing nothing but lyrical music for wind band, I needed to return to the music that originally drew me to the medium.
Harmonically, the piece shares much in common with Kinetics—including an abundance of the major-minor 7th chord.
In mathematics, an isomorphism is a reversable mapping between two structures—in a way, similarity in a mathematical sense. I liked this as a cheeky reference to the piece’s resemblance to my earlier work.
The piece evolved from three motifs—an innocent theme in compound meter, its minor counterpart, and a foreboding melody first heard in the low brass. It began to evoke a mischievous creature—sometimes playful, but often turning on a dime to be brash and boastful. Thus isomorphic became Isomorph.