"Gallina crafts a seven song program of electric chamber jazz that is both immensely compelling and melodically ornate."
~Jay Collins, of Cadence, full article.

"Bassist Ben Gallina's compositions on Sundial Lotus are cinematic in scope, making quick turns with a willingness to indulge in marches and psychedelia, most notably on the remarkably swirling 'Metamorphistopheles'."
~Kurt Gottschalk, of The New York City Jazz Record
(formerly All About Jazz - New York), full article.

"With the combination of jazz and rock instruments and the catchy, pop-ish but sophisticated songwriting of Gallina, the band straddles nearly perfectly the worlds of indie rock and jazz."
~Pico, of Something Else!, full article.

I think the unifying trait in my music, if there is one, is an "anything goes" attitude. This may have been a result of being exposed to an incredible range of music simultaneously. When I learned about Josquin, Bach, Shostakovich, Philip Glass, Tom Waits, Alasnoxis and Radiohead, all within a few weeks of each other, I become open to the idea that music can be anything (and wanted my own music to be a little bit of everything).

I am currently working on a commission for Deifiúr Duo, as well as an orchestral work for the American Composers Forum's "Composer Institute" competition. I am continuously developing repertoire for my main compositional outlet, Salo, and at the moment that means developing a multi-movement work which was premiered at The Stone in May 2011 (John Zorn's venue in the Lower East Side, Manhattan).

Here is a short list of composers and bands whose styles I hope to assimilate/emulate:
Shostakovich, Michael Gordon, the Beatles, J.S. Bach, Mr. Bungle, Ennio Morricone, John Hollenbeck, Led Zeppelin, Elliott Smith, Trey Anastasio, Gentle Giant, Deerhoof, Michael Jackson, Medeski Martin and Wood, the Bad Plus, Bill Frisell, Aaron Copland, Debussy, John Oswald, Carl Stalling, Dan Weiss, Nintendo Music, Thelonius Monk, Chris Thile, Steve Reich, Boards of Canada, Radiohead, and an equally big influence from my friends and classmates in Thought, the David Crowell Ensemble, itsnotyouitsme, Knights on Earth, Kneebody, Jerseyband, and the Respect Sextet.

Lastly, in a other art forms, I appreciate and enjoy the work of:
David Lynch, David Foster Wallace, Kurt Vonnegut, Van Gogh, Salvador Dalí, The Coen Brothers, Don DeLillo, John Barth, Carl Sagan, and Hunter S. Thompson.