Rachael Fasano, MARES x Tales 2026
This page contains the audio samples and musical scores associated with my application for MARES x Tales 2026.
Click here to download the full Application PDF.
PORTFOLIO
1. SALVAGE
2. Out of the Woodworks
3. RAW, Volume I-V
4. YOU
5. HERE
6. REACHING
7. IRIDESCENCE
8. RUACH
SALVAGE
by ALISON STIGORA
Sound Installation by RACHAEL FASANO
SALVAGE was an immersive, multi-sensory installation created for MadArt Studio in Seattle, WA. Drawing inspiration from the natural world and Seattle’s industrial maritime heritage, this monumental work included reclaimed driftwood, light, and sound compositions.
OUT
OF THE
WOODWORKS
OUT OF THE WOODWORKS is a piece composed for solo percussion and audience, featuring audio tracks composed out of field recordings from around the Pacific Northwest.
premiered by Bryan Wysocki, 2025
RAW
VOLUME I-V
RAW began as a single musical reflection on Steven Pressfield’s book, The War of Art, which highlights the ruthless, cyclic battle between Resistance and Creativity. This project now exists as a multidisciplinary collection of explorations on the nature of Resistance, each piece scaffolding space for both artist and audience member to consider the power of their creative agency.
“Everyone who has a body experiences Resistance.”
— Steven Pressfield, The War of Art
VOLUME I
Volume I, for flexible chamber ensemble and audience, is a reflection on my early experiences with chronic illness and one of my first attempts at alternative music notation. The digital illustrations were a direct response to my inability to use music software at the time due to disability, which played a primary role in my future experimental music explorations.
performed by Andrew Tjandra, cello; Derek Easterday, tenor; Allison Damon, trumpet; Rachael Fasano, dulcimer and percussion; Eric Peterson, percussion
VOLUME II
gesso, acrylic, wax, paper, wire, string, screws, crayons, and chalk on panel
6’x3’
2022
Volume II was made in tandem with Volume I, and invites passersby to interact with the panel directly. Choice of color, texture, and hand-made tools were intentionally chosen to evoke the element of war.
“Take a tool and make nonverbal marks directly on the painting as you meditate on the concept of resistance.”
VOLUME III
for flexible chamber orchestra and audience
Volume III furthers the motifs and explorations of the first two volumes, but turns its focus to exploring the resistance that lies within memory. It utilizes hand-drawn ink drawings and asks audience members to participate by drawing in response to what they hear, and ripping their paper along with the ensemble.
premiered by The Sound Ensemble, 2025
VOLUME IV
ink on paper
5"x7"
2024
Volume IV is a collection of small expressive ink drawings that continue the previous explorations on resistance and memory. Each vignette features a hyper-miniature gestural composition that coincides with the textural memory.
VOLUME V
for flexible chamber orchestra and audience
For the fifth volume of RAW, the score was created out of markings made by past audiences during performances of the third volume; the musicians are responding directly to words and drawings that have been digitized, pulled apart, and collaged back together to create a new structure. This iteration continues motifs found in previous scores, and furthers the exploration of resistance through the materiality and usage of balloons, improvisation, and process of reintegration.
SCORE 1
oil on panel
36”x23”
2022
YOU
Created for the Common Tone Arts Institute for Creativity
Premiered by members of the TORCH Collective
Performing with others requires an immense amount of mutual respect and trust. Making space for others empowers creative agency and allows for more cohesive art, but it requires intentionality from all parties. I chose to title this project “YOU” because it is designed to honor and uplift the ideas of the person(s) you are collaborating with; it places emphasis on what I believe to be a crucial part of being human: listening.
This variation asks the performers to react to two separate but related paintings that serve as graphic scores. It is highly improvisatory in nature, including the creation of the paintings themselves. The subject matter is abstract and nonrepresentational, which encourages musical responses based on gesture of line, form, shape, and the interaction of color. I also chose to utilize bitonality as a musical limitation to mirror the visual complementary color scheme. These are also elements that cater to the concepts of listening and making room for others.
This is the first variation of the project and is designed to have four performers; however, the nature of the piece welcomes any number of people with an optional open instrumentation.
SCORE 2
oil on panel
36”x23”
2022
SCORE 1
VIBRAPHONE
CLARINET in Bb
SCORE 2
TRUMPET in C
DOUBLE BASS
2023
HERE
multisensory installation
by RACHAEL FASANO and JENNY YOUNG
AUDIO: pipes, pebbles, glass bottles, sticks, screws, charcoal, voices, pinecones, water, wind, etc,.
VISUAL: two 4’3’ wood panels covered with gesso and paper, sheets, string, bottles, charcoal, pebbles, screws
NOTICE | LISTEN | SEE | SMELL | MOVE | BREATHE
REACHING BACK
REACHING ON
4’x3’
oil on wood panel
2023
REACHING
3’x4’
oil on wood panel
2023
oil and acrylic on stretched canvas
20”x20”
2021
Performance Video | music premiered by the TORCH and Skyros quartets
IRIDESCENCE
for chamber ensemble
oil and acrylic on panel
6’x3’
2022
premiered by Megan Seibert, bass flute; Rachael Fasano, french horn; Lexi Geffs, trombone; Emily Nguyen, viola
RUACH
graphic score for flexible quartet
i. Breath
ii. Wind
iii. Spirit