Ray Fahrner, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, composes all manner of energetic, rhythmic music: progressive rock, string quartet, jazz, samba, musical theater, and choral works. His compositions mix popular and post-modern musical styles with a dash of humor, a burst of instrumental color, and a powerful pinch of polyphony. Consider his piece for three serpents, tom tom and tam-tam – “Serpent Magic” – and an ensemble of shehnai (Indian oboe), oud, African drums and electric guitar – “The Subbasement of Babel!”