About the Music

Volatility Index for solo alto saxophone was composed in early 2021. The previous year was a time of tumult and stress on many fronts, and the pitch content of the work’s opening theme was derived from the weekly closing value of the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s VIX Index for each week in 2020. Nicknamed the “Fear Index,” VIX tracks the volatility of the stock market in real-time. Other themes were derived from the 2020 charts of the S&P 500, TSLA, NKLA, KODK, and GME. While the stock market made a strong recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people faced a continuous struggle to make ends meet. Volatility Index reflects on these stories in relation to each other.

Solo score: 5 pages.

Listen to the composer's own performance of the work:

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About the Composer

Praised by the Tacoma News Tribune for his “effortless lyricism” as well as his “smooth tone and fluid virtuosity,” saxophonist Erik Steighner has performed with ensembles including the Austin Symphony Orchestra, the Federal Way Symphony, the Northwest Sinfonietta, the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra, the San Antonio Symphony, and Symphony Tacoma. Steighner teaches at Pacific Lutheran University and Tacoma Community College, where his course load has included Saxophone, Chamber Music, Music Appreciation, Ear Training, Music Theory, and Digital Music. He is also on faculty at the University of Puget Sound Community Music Department and is the founder and conductor of the South Sound Saxophone Ensemble.

Steighner has premiered dozens of solo and chamber works and appears on CD releases from labels including Albany Records, Alea Publishing, Mark Custom, Naxos, Reference Recordings, and Vienna Modern Masters. Steighner holds bachelor’s degrees in music and English from the University of Puget Sound and master’s and doctoral degrees in saxophone performance from The University of Texas at Austin. While living in Austin, he served on the faculty at Texas State University. Steighner is a Conn-Selmer artist and plays on Selmer Paris saxophones and mouthpieces.