Two of San Francisco's houses of worship will soon have SFCM compositions ringing through them.

Composition students Alex Malinas and Mukil Narayanan were both recently tapped for commissions by the Sha'ar Zahav synagogue and the Church of the Advent of Christ the King, respectively.

Both Malinas and Narayanan study with David Garner, though Narayanan's commission came through Composition Department Chair David Conte. Narayanan says he was attending a 2025 Nebula Consort concert to hear works by faculty Max Marcus and SFCM's Choir Director Eric Choate.

"I love choral music, I've been on a choral writing spree, and it's always good to listen to more choral music," Narayanan explains. "So I went in thinking, 'Okay, I'm not going to know anybody in this concert.' And then lo and behold, I see Dr. Conte, and he introduced me to Dr. Paul Ellison, Church of the Advent's music director." (Narayanan is only the fourth SFCM student to receive a commission from the church.)

After a short conversation, Ellison offered Narayanan the commission. "He didn't even see any of my scores, he didn't know who I was, but we talked again after the concert and nerded out a bit like, 'This is my taste,' 'this is my taste' and it just came together," Narayanan says. His work will be a soprano-alto-tenor-baritone and organ arrangement of the Christian "Ave Maria" ("Hail Mary") prayer, which has also been set by Schubert, Bruckner—and David Conte.

Narayanan enjoys what he describes as the "very architectural" aspect to choral music, adding "I visualize choral and organ music as a huge mind palace inside my brain." Helping that sense of space: He even got to play the Church of the Advent's pipe organ: "I've taken Professor Choate's organ class, so I'm not completely new. But sitting down at a real organ, the adrenaline kicked in. I plan to pursue further organ study and choral conducting with Professor Choate as well." (Narayanan also has a recital on March 8.)

Malinas' piece is a three-movement trio that will be premiering on April 12 at Sha'ar Zahav, and was commissioned by violinist Randal Weiss of The Bridge Ensemble.

"The first movement was formed by transcribing the chant from a Torah portion," Malinas explains. As the piece continues, the violinist and cellist's parts begin to resemble an argument over "their interpretation of the events of the Torah portion," he continues. "The violinist and cellist's lines are in two different modes for the entire piece," and while the piece swings towards confrontation, in the third movement, Malinas says, although the two instruments never leave their distinct modes, "they learn to live together."

Composition faculty like Conte, Garner, Mason Bates, and Jake Heggie provide close mentorship to students while sustaining active, high-profile composing careers. Young composers like Malinas and Narayanan benefit from San Francisco's vibrant musical life as well as in-house opportunities like the Pankonin Art Song Commission and the Highsmith Orchestra Competition. (Malinas became the youngest-ever recipient of the Highsmith Award in 2024). Regular concerts, readings, and composer-performer collaborations also give composers opportunities to see and hear their works brought to life.

Malinas' programmatic description of his piece is a happenstance mirror of the story of these commissions: Two composers from different backgrounds writing for different faiths, all building towards a harmonious San Francisco.

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