Duration: 12' ca.

Composed in 2025

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Commissioned by the following performers:

• Grant Keel (lead commissioner), Florida State University

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• Sarah Castillo, Florida State University

• Daniel J. Cosio, University of Northern Colorado

• Alex Doolittle, Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University

• Kenneth Johnson, University of Wisconsin–Green Bay, St. Norbert College, Brass Institutes of America

• Jaehan Kim, Pacific Trombone Project, Shepherd School of Music at Rice University

• Nathan Musch, Ann Arbor, MI

• Wesley Nielsen, Bowling Green State University

• John Shanks, Western Michigan University

• Jonathan Tang, University of North Texas

• Markell Terrell Caradine, Ypsilanti, Michigan

• Carter Wessinger, Shepherd School of Music at Rice University

• Evan Williams, Assistant Principal, National Symphony

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Meyer Lansky, the “Mob’s Accountant” was one of the most influential figures in American organized crime throughout the 20th century. Born in present-day Belarus, Lansky fled to Manhattan in 1911 to escape rampant antisemitism in Eastern Europe. He quickly became a central member of the Jewish mob, and alongside his childhood friends Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel and Charles “Lucky” Luciano, was able to build a wildly successful criminal empire. Lansky’s primary financial investments came in the form of illegal gambling operations, in which his influence spanned from Las Vegas to Miami and Cuba. During the rise of extreme antisemitism during World War II, Lansky was able to use his influence with the mob to break up pro-Nazi rallies in and around New York City. He even brokered deals between the United States Navy and the Italian-American Mafia that saw criminals helping to protect docks from German attacks. 

 

This piece is a loosely programmatic composition which takes inspiration from some of the most notable events throughout Lansky’s life, including his relocation to America, the growth of his criminal empire, his signing off on the murder of his childhood best friend “Bugsy” Siegel, his sudden loss of all casino-based assets due to a regime change in Cuba, his exile to the Bahamas and later Israel, and his ultimately peaceful death with his family in Miami. By the end of his life, Lansky was almost entirely financially destitute in the eyes of the government–however, it is widely speculated that millions of dollars remained in offshore bank accounts in his name. His largely criminal life, occasionally shadowed by moral ambiguity, has created, to me, this incredibly dramatic and fascinating story.