I composed this piece in 1993 while studying film music and composition at UCLA, originally as part of an orchestration assignment. It later became a frequently performed tune by my band Exit Only. The piece is influenced by Brazilian bossa nova and the music of singer-guitarist João Gilberto. The melody was written with the oboe in mind, giving it a distinctive lyrical quality. The harmonic structure features modal shifts and changing tonal centers—techniques that are characteristic of my compositional style.
