Symphony Orchestra

BOP-A-DEEDLE!  for Afro-Caribbean percussion and orchestra (2004)
   [3322 4331 Timp Perc(4) Solo Perc Str]; 12 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Louis Vuitton on the occasion of its 150^th anniversary

Excerpts in QUICKTIME
or
REALPLAYER format as noted

CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA (1991)
   [3333 4331 Timp Perc(4) Hp Pf Str]; 22 min., Marnie.

Premiere by the Honolulu Symphony, Donald Johanos, conductor.
"...wonderfully intriguing new work...tantalizingly inventive...an attempt at blending Eastern and Western musical traditions, and in this McKay succeeds admirably,"
Gregory Shepherd, The Honolulu Advertiser.

DANCE OVERTURE (1965)
   [3222 4331 Timp Perc(4) Hp Pf Str]; 10 min., Music Sales/G. Schirmer.

Commissioned by the Duluth Symphony and premiered at the opening of a new Arena-Auditorium complex in Duluth.
"A beautiful piece, the overture was a mixture of the romanticism of the past and the excitement and change of today..." Dolores Orman, Duluth News-Tribune.
"...confirms McKay's reputation as a sound composer, skilled in orchestral color and with a taste for good dance rhythms," Harvey Southgate, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

E KUI LIMA! ("Join Hands!") (2002)
   [3332 4331 Timp Perc(3) Hp Pno Str]; 8 min., Marnie.

Concertino for horn, two violins and orchestra; commissioned by the Hawai'i Youth Symphony and premiered by young soloists from Japan, Alaska and Hawai'i.

E KUI LIMA! II ("Join Hands!") (2004)
   [3332 4331 Timp Perc(3) Hp Pno Str]; 10 min., Marnie.

Concertino for violin, viola, cello and orchestra; commissioned and premiered by the Hawai'i Youth Symphony.

EVOCATIONS (1984)
   [3222 4331 Timp Perc(5) Str]; 8 min., Marnie.

Transcription of the work originally written for concert band. 
Commissioned by Central Pacific Bank, Honolulu for the Hawai'i Youth Symphony to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Japanese immigration to Hawai'i. "This exciting composition is a study of shadings and textures", Charles R. Groeling, Instrumentalist (11/1975)

FANTASY ON SEA THEMES "Skye Boat Song" and "The Drunken Sailor" (1981)
   [3232 4331 Timp Perc(3) Str]; 12 min., Marnie.

HEAR MY SONG (2005)
   [3332 4331 Timp Perc(4)Pno Str and SATB Chorus]; 15 min., Marnie.

Introduction and songs of seven Pacific rim countries. Commissioned and premiered by the Hawai'i Youth Symphony
and the Honolulu Symphony Chorus.

HONOLULU (I Fell In Love With) for Baritone and Orchestra
   [3232 4331 Perc(3) Pf or Gtr Baritone Str]; 4 min., Marnie.

HONOLULU for Baritone and Orchestra
   [3232 4331 Perc(3) Pf or Gtr Baritone Str]; 4 min., Marnie. Popular song with
   words and music by Neil.  See below under Voice

JE ME SOUVIENS! ("I remember") (2003)
   [3332 4331 Timp Perc(4) Str]; 9 min, Marnie.

For speaker and orchestra; based on a poem by Gérard de Nerval and written in collaboration with the University of Hawai'i French department. May be performed without piccolo, English horn, bass clarinet.

JUBILEE, VARIATIONS ON AN AMERICAN THEME (1982)
   [3222 4331 Timp Perc(3) Str]; 12 min, Marnie.

Commissioned by the Eugene, Oregon Youth Symphony to celebrate its 50th anniversary. 
"I could not have anticipated a composition more suited for our needs.  I feel the work is very effective as an introduction to the instruments of the orchestra,"  Richard Long, conductor. 
"...each of the four variations concentrates on the various choirs of the orchestra and each
emerged as a picturesque vignette...," W. Thomas Marrocco, The Register-Guard, Eugene, OR.

NA MELE O KAHALAOPUNA (1999)
   [3332 4331 Timp Perc(4) Hp Pf Cho(optional) Str; 12 min., Marnie.

Selections from the opera "Kahalaopuna, Princess of Manoa", premiered by the Hawai'i Youth Symphony
and the Hawai'i Youth Opera Chorus.

NA MELE OVERTURE 2003 (revised 2005)
   [3323 4331 Timp Perc(4) Pno Str];10 min., Marnie.

A medley of favorite Hawaiian songs.
May be performed without Eng. horn and/or contra bassoon.

PARABLES OF KYAI GANDRUNG for Javanese gamelan and orchestra (1976)
   Hardja Susilo, co-composer; 25 min., Marnie.
[3323 4331 Timp Perc(4) Javenese gamelan Str]
Commissioned by the Honolulu Symphony Society for the bicentennial year.
  "...emerged at its premiere as a bicultural masterpiece.  The audience loved it, and so did I,"  Howard Driver, Honolulu Advertiser

STRUCTURE
   [3222 4331 Timp 4Perc Str]; 7 min., Marnie.

An experimental piece commissioned by the Hawai'i Festival of the Arts of This Century. 
Performed by members of the Honolulu Symphony, the composer conducting. 
"...sonically imaginative...it was ultimately the instrumental effects that impressed most - particularly the persistent use of glissandi and the massing of the instruments into a sound like 'the murmuring of doves in immemorial elms, and murmuring of innumerable bees',"
  Lee Winters, Honolulu Advertiser.

SYMPHONY NO. 1 (1956)
   [3222 4331 Timp Perc(2) Str]; 20 min., Kalmus.

The slow movement, Larghetto, won an Edward Benjamin prize for Music for Quiet Listening.  Recorded by Howard Hanson and the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra, Mercury Living Presence 434 347-2; reissued by Polygram.

"has a fresh gushet of melody and sophisticated skill." John Rosenfield, Dallas Morning News (12/12/1960)

"packed with invention, sensitivity and clever, interesting thought." Max Wyman, Vancouver Sun (3/4/74)

SYMPHONY NO. 2 (A Shakespeare Triptych) (2000)
   [3333 4331 Timp Perc(4) Hp Pf Str]
   [2222 2211 Timp Perc(2) Str] 19 min., Marnie

Winner of Loudon Symphony Competition for American Composers 2002

  I. And thereby hangs a tale
  II. Such Sweet Sorrow
  III. Pribbles and Prabbles

VARIATIONS ON "TWINKLE, TWINKLE, LITTLE STAR" for Narrator and Audience Participation;
   [3222 4331 Timp Perc(3) Str] 8 min., Music Sales/G. Schirmer.

Commissioned by the Honolulu Symphony as an introduction to the instruments
of the orchestra for young audiences.
"It was a great success with the kids and  their parents...we put it at the end as a 'broche d'or.'  It's really very well thought up,"
Gisele Ben-Dor, conductor, Houston Symphony. 

VOICE OF THE PHOENIX, Concerto for Koto and Orchestra based on Yatsuhashi's 'Midare'.
   [3222 2110 Timp Perc(2) Koto Str]; 21 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Ricardo Trimillos for performance with the Reading, PA Symphony Orchestra, Sidney Rothstein, conductor. 
"The audience liked it, judging by the applause at the conclusion,"
  Gary Trollinger, Reading Times.

Chamber Orchestra

FANTASY ON A QUIET THEME
   [1111 2110 Perc(1) Hp Str]; 8 min., Music Sales/G. Schirmer.

Winner of Benjamin Award for Music for Quiet Listening.  Recorded by the Atlantic Symphony, CBC SM 241, Klaro Mizerit, conductor.
  "I was present at the Inter-American Festival in Washington, DC when they performed your Fantasy...The work was given a splendid reception,"  John Adaskin, Canadian Music Center;
 "Your work was most effective...your ingenuity in orchestration was excellent and most effective. I was particularly impressed with the warmth of the feeling that permeated the entire piece,"  Jean Shaw, Arlington, VA;
  "The orchestra thoroughly enjoyed the work and I myself derived a great deal of satisfaction from it...",
Gordon McGowan, CBC Halifax.

SYMPHONY NO. 2 (A Shakespeare Triptych) - see above

Concert Band

BALLAD OF THE TALL TREES
   8 min., Marnie.

A theme and variations based on the lumberman's song, 'A Shantyman's Life.' 
Transcription of Jubilee, Variations on an American Theme for orchestra.

DANCE OVERTURE
   10 min., Music Sales/G. Schirmer.

A transcription of the work written for orchestra, commissioned by McKinley High School, Honolulu.

THE DRUNKEN SAILOR
   5 min., Marnie.

Variations on the sea chanty.

EVOCATIONS
   8 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by McKinley High School, Honolulu. 
"This letter is a token of great admiration for the extremely sensitive writing which you are doing...I am fascinated by the musical resources which you have demonstrated in Evocations...the most significant work for band to blossom in a long time...", Joel Blahnik.
"Evocations is a welcome addition to American band literature,"  C.R.G., The Instrumentalist.

FANFARE AND CEREMONIAL
   5 min., Shawnee.

Written at the MacDowell Colony on a University of Wisconsin research grant.
Published and recorded on Bandfare album 11 by Shawnee.  "This brief publication is brilliantly scored and has many exciting and dynamic moments.  It will make a good concert opener...,"  H.R.R.,  Instrumentalist.

GAMELAN GONG
   5 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by the Curriculum Research Center, University of Hawai'i.
"...the purpose of the composition is not to recreate the authentic sound of a Balinese gamelan ensemble, but rather to represent its overall effect using the elements of Western instrumental music,"  C.R.G., Instrumentalist.
"...you captured the excitement of Balinese music, the coloration, the rhythmic vitality, should I say the ethos?  What a master of instrumentation you are!,"
Hal Rutan, principal horn, Duluth Symphony.

PRELUDE AND FUGUE
   6 min., Marnie.

SKYE BOAT SONG
   5 min., Shawnee.

Arrangement of the Scottish ballad.

SYMPHONY FOR WINDS
   20 min., Marnie.

in three movements

Opera

KAHALAOPUNA, PRINCESS OF MANOA
   45 min., Marnie.

Based on Hawaiian legend; piano, 8 performers and chorus, ages 8-18;
Commissioned by The Hawai'i Youth Opera Chorus.  Libretto by the composer.
Filmed for presentation on Public Television.

LA'IE'IKAWAI, PRINCESS OF THE RAINBOW
   55 min., Marnie. 

Based on Hawaiian legend; piano, 12 performers and chorus, ages 8-18; Commissioned by The Hawai'i Youth Opera Chorus.  Libretto by the composer.

PLANTING A PEAR TREE
   17 min., Marnie.

Adaptation of ancient Chinese legend.  Libretto by the composer.  Ten characters. Experimental opera. Orchestra of Eastern and Western instruments is on stage.

RING AROUND HARLEQUIN
   35 min., Marnie.

Comic opera with libretto by Grady Smith; 5 performers, ages 16 or older; piano or orchestra
"...openly farcical in the Italian 'commedia dell'arte' tradition...joyful inanity...,"  Lee Winters, Honolulu Advertiser.
"Ring Around Harlequin is a smash!  What delighted me most was the effective music...always in good taste, interesting and pleasing,"  Gladys Hildebrandt, Duluth, MN.

Chorus

A DREAM WITHIN A DREAM (SATB)
   4 min., Music 70.

Text by Edgar Allen Poe.

BEYOND THE TEMPEST'S SOUND for Women's Chorus (SSA) with Koto or Harp
or String Orchestra or String Quartet;
   5 min., Marnie. 

Commissioned by the Inouye Ensemble of New York.

FOLK SONG FANTASY (Bb Cl and Chorus, SATB)
   6 min., Waterloo.

Based on three Canadian folk songs, "Lots of Fish in Bonavist Harbour," "I'll Give My Love an Apple," and "Come and Dance with Me."
 "Your composition has been a hit wherever the Faculty of Music Singers have performed it...,"  Deral Johnson, Professor, Univ. of Western Ontario. 

LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH (Mixed Chorus, Soloists and Chamber Orchestra
   (woodwind quintet and strings) or Piano/Organ)    20 min., Marnie.

Latin text from the Biblical 'Lamentations of Jeremiah'.

LEGENDS OF MAUI : A FOLK CANTATA for Chorus and Percussion (including Hawaiian ipu)
   6 minutes, Marnie.

Commissioned by House of Music, Honolulu, for the Hawai'i Festival of the
Arts of This Century.

PRAYER FOR PEACE for Mixed Chorus and String Orchestra or Piano/Organ, with or
without soprano solo; accompaniment also for string quartet or string quintet
   5 min., Marnie.

A VIRTUOUS WOMAN (SATB and Organ)
   7 min., Marnie

Commissioned by Kamehameha Schools for the dedication of Bishop Memorial
Chapel; text from Proverbs, Chapter 31, verses 10-31 in English and Hawaiian.

Voice

THE DEAF MEN AND THE DIVA, poem by William Leyerle, for Coloratura Soprano
and Chamber Ensemble (fl, cl/bs cl, vla, db, hp, perc) or Piano
   10 min., Leyerle.

"The vocal line contains every vocal style in the soprano repertoire...The mood
throughout is one of pedantic solemnity betrayed by the music into absolute hilarity...
This piece is the ultimate inside joke - a marvelously witty caricature of the voice teaching profession turned loose on unsuspecting singers...,"  Judith Carman, Journal of Singing.

FROM A JADE TERRACE, Six Songs for Soprano and Chamber Ensemble (fl vc pno)
   10 min., Marnie.

Based on Chinese poems translated by Anne M. Birrell.

FOUR SPIRITUAL SONGS for Medium Voice and Piano
   8 min., Leyerle.

Adaptations of revival songs that have attractive, mostly modal, melodic lines and
strong rhythm.

HOW LITTLE WHILE from Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam for Soprano, Flute and Piano 
   8 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Clare Hamamoto, soprano, in Honolulu.

(I Fell in Love With) HONOLULU, popular song, words and music by Neil McKay.
   4 min., Marnie.

Arrangements: piano-vocal; male glee club (a capella); SATB and piano; SSA and piano; concert band with baritone (voice optional); jazz ensemble and tenor
voice; symphony orchestra and baritone (see above under Orchestra).
Recordings include:
  "Hawaiian Love Songs," Palani Vaughn, Hula Records,  CHCS-919
  "Hawai'i Calls," Palani Vaughn, Hula Records HS-535 and CD535
  "Reaching Out Touching You,"  Kamehameha Glee Club HS-540
  "Time", Lyle Ritz, ukulele, Sakuma Productions RSCD5583
  "Where is My Love Tonight," Ohta San, ukulele, Sakuma Productions RSCD3888
  "E Hua", Loea, Loea Productions LP001 
  "Golden Hawaiian Melodies," The Makaha Sons, Tropical Music SPCD9063.

KU'U PUA ROSE for Chorus (SATB) and light percussion (performed by chorus members),   poem by W.M.K. Laymance in English and Hawaiian;    6 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Timothy Carney for the Hawai'i Vocal Arts Ensemble.

LAZY MAN'S SONG  for baritone and piano
   3 min., Marnie.

Written for William Pfeiffer on a poem of Po Chu-i.

PATTERNS, for Medium Voice and Piano, poem by Amy Lowell;
   15 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Annette Johansson, mezzo-soprano, who wanted something
big and dramatic to perform on a concert tour of Sweden.

THERE ONCE WAS...Introduction and Five Limericks for Medium Voice and Piano;
   6 min., Leyerle.

"A collection of typical limericks, this marvelous short cycle would add humor to
any program for a singer with wit and style...," Judith Carman, Journal of Singing.

THREE SONGS ON POEMS OF PO CHU-I,  for Medium Voice and Chamber Ensemble (flute or recorder or shakuhachi, guitar and perc);
   9 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by Anne Miller, mezzo-soprano.

Chamber Music

Bassoon:

FOUR SKETCHES for Bassoon and Percussion
   10 min., Marnie.

Written for Paul Barrett, bassoonist with the Honolulu Symphony.

Cello:

MOSAIC for Solo Cello
   8 min., Marnie.

Chamber Ensemble:

KALEIDOSCOPE (fl, ob, cl, bsn, hn, tr, trb, 2 perc, pno, string quartet and db)
    8 min., Music Sales/G Schirmer.

Written on commission from the Hawai'i Festival of the Arts of This Century.
"Neil McKay's Kaleidoscope which (Dennis Russell) Davies premiered...is a pleasant and exciting excursion into timbres, textures and ebb-and-flow motion...It has an exotic tinge...," John Harvey, Saint Paul Pioneer Press.
"This...work is by  turns startlingly assertive and yielding lyrical...a thoroughly engaging work,"
  Lee Winters, Honolulu Advertiser.

KUBLA KHAN (sop, fl, vl, vc, db, 2 perc, pno)
   16 min., Music Sales/G. Schirmer.

 Text by Coleridge.  Written for Clare Hamomoto, soprano. 
"I must say that I had a lot of pleasure working on it and that the public received it very well. In fact it was the best piece on the program...,"  Peter Paul Kaprowski, Professor, Univ. of Western Ontario School of Music.
  "It was the hit of the evening...The whole thing was a joy." 
Roger Hannay, Professor, University of  North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

RITUAL (fl, ob, cl, bsn, hn, tr, trb, 2 perc, pno, str)
   8 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by the Hawai'i Festival of the Arts of This Century.  Inspired by the dancing and drumming in a puberty ceremony in Zaire.
  "(Ritual) was an effective, surprisingly gripping work...," Janos Gereben, Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

Clarinet:

CONNEXIONS, Four Inventions for Bb Clarinet and Basset Horn or Bass Clarinet
   10 min., RonCorp.

Written on commission from the Office of Research Relations of the University of Hawai'i.

SONATINA for Clarinet and Piano
   12 min., Roncorp.

Commissioned by Henry Miyamura, clarinetist.

SOUNDPRINTS for Clarinet and Koto or Harp
   7 min., Roncorp.

Written for Henry Miyamura, clarinetist.  Winner, first prize, American Chamber Music Composition Competition sponsored by Roncorp
Publications.

SUITE OF MINIATURES for Bb Clarinet and Percussion

   10 min., Roncorp.

Commissioned by the Hawai'i Music Teachers Association.

Flute:

ECHOES for 12 Flutes and Percussion

   8 min., Marnie.

Commissioned by the University of Hawai'i flute ensemble.

French Horn:

SONATINA for Horn and Piano

   10 min., Marnie.

"...brief, eminently listenable three-movement work of instrumental ranges and moods...,"
  Lee Winters, Honolulu Advertiser.

Koto or Harp:

WORLD(S)

   7 min., Shawnee.

Experimental work commissioned by Ricardo Trimillos.Recorded by Keiko Nosaka for Camerata Records (Tokyo), CMT-1048.
 "...brief but amusing juxtaposition of Balinese gamelan, serialism and blues...,"
  John Rockwell, New York Times.
  "...I like your piece very much, and I'm happy I play this lovely and fantastic piece to my audience in Japan...,"
  letter from Keiko Nosaka.
  "...your world(s)was accepted as wonderful and charming music to Japanese audience
and critics. People felt happiness and tenderness in them[selves]...,"  letter from Keiko Nosaka.

Piano:

FOUR MINIATURES (Dance, March, Lullaby and Caprice)
   5 min., Marnie.

Dance, March, Lullaby and Caprice.
  "These are delightful contemporary sketches for the sophisticated young pianist...They are very effective recital material,"
  Clavier  "...Even a more advanced pianist will enjoy these short contemporary compositions,"
  K.G.O., The American Music Teacher.

TRIOLOGUE for Two Prepared Pianos and Percussion
   6 min., Marnie.

VALSE LENTE ET SENTIMENTALE
   2 min., Marnie.

Saxophone:

FOUR BY FOUR

   10 min., Marnie.

four miniatures for saxophone quartet

String Quartet:

STRING QUARTET
   15 min., Marnie.

Written at the MacDowell Colony. Premiered by the Fine Arts Quartet in Lawrence, KS.
  "McKay's composition did well despite formidable competition from Mozart and Beethoven...[and] certainly original ideas...," Clyde Neibarger Kansas City Times. 
"This work is an immediately communicative one...lyrical melodic lines and driving rhythms...delicate handling of subtle sonorities...,"  H.E. Smither, Lawrence Journal World.

Viola d'amore:

FLIGHT OF FANCY
   6 min., Marnie.

Written on commission from Jose Blankleder for performance at the 16th International Viola d'amore congress, Grantham, England.

Violin:

SONATA for Violin and Piano<
   12 min., Marnie.

Written as an audition piece for entrance to the Eastman School of Music.
Performed at Eastman for the 7th Annual Symposium of the International Federation of Music Schools.
"About your sonata: I am very sorry that you were unable to attend the performance at Eastman because for me to tell you of its reception there will probably seem exaggerated.  I can safely say, Neil, that it received a bigger ovation than any other work throughout the entire week...,"  letter from Peter Harcourt, head of Toronto Conservatory delegation to the Symposium.

Woodwind Quintet:

FIVE BY FIVE, Five Miniatures (fl, ob, cl, hn, bsn)
   8 min., Marnie.

Transcription of Four Miniatures for Piano with the addition of "Valse lente et sentimentale." 

Textbook

Textbook: Fundamentals of Western Music - Second Edition, in digital format