When I first thought about this post, I was going to offer some thoughts about my trip to Las Vegas earlier in the month for a music conference...then I got started updating my web site and noticed that the last week or so has actually been rather busy compositionally.
It's actually been just over a week since I finished my Suite on Norwegian Folk Tunes for my cousin Michael. It's been a long time coming, relatively speaking. I generally work quite fast, but this piece has been on its way for a couple of months. The link above gives some info on the piece, but no mp3 as yet. That will probably wait until Michael performs the work on February 5 in San Francisco. In the meantime I'll work on an electronic version.
Lst Tuesday was particularly busy. I'd thought about writing a prelude for tomorrow's worship service, and relating it to the piece our children's choir was singing. Out of that came a neat Variations on Kumbaya. I love the slight African-inspired feel, with a rich composite rhythm as pedal and both hands--each playing fairly simple lines--combine their different but related rhythms. I'll have an mp3 soon (I'd like to get a performance recording, rather than relying on an audio version of the notated score).
That was Tuesday morning. In the evening I decided to see if I could come up with a piece that combined two hymns I'd been asked to play at the end of a memorial service I was playing the next day. The combination seemed unpromising. When I'd thought about it, and messed around a bit, I ended up with Quodlibet on Olivet and Battle Hymn. It seemed to work, but I wouldn't know until I had some time on the organ bench.
I basically got in two rehearsal sessions the next day before the memorial at 13:30 hours. The piece worked; people were happy. The rest of the week was filled with rehearsals...and one session of golf from which, 24 hours later, I'm still feeling muscles I'd forgotten I had!
So musically it was a good week. It was also rather nice dining out Wednesday with Marianne and my Dad before Marianne's rehearsal, and going to a party last night celebrating Wolfie's 250th birthday (that's Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...). A crab feast at church tonight, a concert to attend at Grace Cathedral tomorrow afternoon, followed by a quick return to church for Annual Meeting round out the social calendar. The beginning of our weekend (now pushed back to 8:00 pm--20 hours--on Sunday) can't come too soon.
But with Mozart, music-making, and time spent with loved ones--it's all music to my ears.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Monday, January 23, 2006
O Tannenbaum
Well, today (January 23) we said goodbye to a dear friend...for the next 10 months. Dad and I put away the Christmas Tree. This is not just a tree--well, it's not actually a tree, since it is artificial--it's almost a member of the family. It's well-behaved; doesn't get up too early or make too much noise; doesn't make much mess; only goes to bed late once per year (Jan 23rd is not the latest it has stayed up!); it stands as a beacon of (night-)light as we pass through the shortest day of the year and begin our move back towards longer days and shorter nights.
We had to get new lights this year, but other than that the tree is a cheap date. We have more ornaments than would be proper to burden one tree, so those tend to differ slightly each year. I like the various stringed instruments, pianos and excerpts of Christmas carols. There are ornaments the kids made; various ones we've bought in our travels and living in several regions of the country; stories told and retold each year. I hated to see the tree go back in its box (actually, its box fell apart a couple of years ago; it now resides in a box formerly the property of one of my synths)--but the time for Tannenbaum is past, as the ground hardens enough that we may be able to find our golf balls in the fairway, rather than watching them hopelessly embed themselves in the mud as they burrow mindlessly toward the warmth and sun of the southern hemisphere, leaving us to guess their entry point as we search for the closest island of semi-dry ground upon which to gingerly place another future formerly-in-play golf ball which, when hit, we hope will head towards the correct green while we receive another coating of the same mud that so gleefully consumes each less-than-perfect shot.
Whether it's golf or tree, it's all music to my ears...
We had to get new lights this year, but other than that the tree is a cheap date. We have more ornaments than would be proper to burden one tree, so those tend to differ slightly each year. I like the various stringed instruments, pianos and excerpts of Christmas carols. There are ornaments the kids made; various ones we've bought in our travels and living in several regions of the country; stories told and retold each year. I hated to see the tree go back in its box (actually, its box fell apart a couple of years ago; it now resides in a box formerly the property of one of my synths)--but the time for Tannenbaum is past, as the ground hardens enough that we may be able to find our golf balls in the fairway, rather than watching them hopelessly embed themselves in the mud as they burrow mindlessly toward the warmth and sun of the southern hemisphere, leaving us to guess their entry point as we search for the closest island of semi-dry ground upon which to gingerly place another future formerly-in-play golf ball which, when hit, we hope will head towards the correct green while we receive another coating of the same mud that so gleefully consumes each less-than-perfect shot.
Whether it's golf or tree, it's all music to my ears...
Thursday, January 12, 2006
(not long) ago
I just got back from the Region IX American Guild of Organists (AGO) mid-winter conclave in Las Vegas NM. It was good to get away; I attended a number of concerts and workshops, about which I'll say more after I get some sleep...
Oh, yeah: I found a little time to do some music writing, and may have written the organ piece my cousin Michael asked for (more on that as soon as I've been able to try it on an organ).
In the meantime...
that's music to my ears...
Oh, yeah: I found a little time to do some music writing, and may have written the organ piece my cousin Michael asked for (more on that as soon as I've been able to try it on an organ).
In the meantime...
that's music to my ears...
Saturday, January 07, 2006
ad libs
Just a few odds and ends as the first week of the new year draws to a close. My furious pace of the first two days of the year slowed down as it became necessary to work for a living--even half time. The piece I wrote on the 1st, Find Your Rest, Oh My Soul, received its first rehearsal on Thursday. It sounds pretty good, but it'll take another rehearsal to get the whole thing together.Happily, I have two rehearsals before we present the piece. In any event, I was pleased.
For those who like travel, visit Bob Campbell's photo blog of a trip to Germany to get a new car. They're currently shown in reverse order, so start in the archive and work backwards! Some of the pictures are very good, indeed. (Bob and Jan are good friends of my parents; he and my Dad both worked for Chevron).
I'm off to Vegas for the Region IX (American Guild of Organists) mid-winter conclave. I really wanted to get in some golf in between concerts and workshops, but will focus on...music (!). Both of others and of mine, as I continue work on a piece for my cousin. As always, it's...
music to my ears.
For those who like travel, visit Bob Campbell's photo blog of a trip to Germany to get a new car. They're currently shown in reverse order, so start in the archive and work backwards! Some of the pictures are very good, indeed. (Bob and Jan are good friends of my parents; he and my Dad both worked for Chevron).
I'm off to Vegas for the Region IX (American Guild of Organists) mid-winter conclave. I really wanted to get in some golf in between concerts and workshops, but will focus on...music (!). Both of others and of mine, as I continue work on a piece for my cousin. As always, it's...
music to my ears.
Monday, January 02, 2006
happy (musical) new year 2
Monday is cleanup day, New Year or not. That didn't stop me from starting the second of the introit set I mentioned in my last post. Last week I wrote a piece for the men in my church choir to sing on the Sunday in February when the Women's Retreat takes place (which will include a good number of women from the two musical groups I direct). I wasn't sure whether the men or the Praise Team, which will also be low in numbers, would do the introit (the chancel choir was scheduled), so I thought it might be nice to do something that would involve both groups, although the chancel choir men are featured. But first, there was some housecleaning...
...although not as much as I thought, since we've been hiring help. We spend most of our time at Dad's place, so there's a certain amount of cleaning up for the three of us--it really messes up my composing time!
Since I thought this piece might work for both groups, I gave it a strong Gospel flavor (the piano part is going to be fun). The piano sets up a two-measure pattern, with slight variations and a few harmonic changes in each iteration. Finding a text for the singers, since I am following the lectionary with this set, proved difficult since I had already taken the best text for the men's anthem. The Episcopalians use a different psalm than the Presbyterians for February 19 (the day this will all be sung), and it offered some inspiration.
The piece works pretty well. After the piano sets the mood, the men come in with the text. Later (not too much later, since the piece is only 2 minutes long) there's a call and response between men and congregation, the latter to be led by the Praise Team. It's designed so that the congregation won't have to be taught ahead of time, but just repeat what the men sing.
I particularly liked in retrospect the way that the piano brings its phrase to a close between the first call of the men and the Praise Team/congregational response. As a result it sounds as though the response begins a new section, rather than responding to the previous call. That feeling changes as the call and response continues. I like the moment of uncertainty and ambiguity.
This piece should be a neat way to start the service. Here's the link to the pdf and the mp3 of the electronic realization. I hope its...
music to your ears also.
...although not as much as I thought, since we've been hiring help. We spend most of our time at Dad's place, so there's a certain amount of cleaning up for the three of us--it really messes up my composing time!
Since I thought this piece might work for both groups, I gave it a strong Gospel flavor (the piano part is going to be fun). The piano sets up a two-measure pattern, with slight variations and a few harmonic changes in each iteration. Finding a text for the singers, since I am following the lectionary with this set, proved difficult since I had already taken the best text for the men's anthem. The Episcopalians use a different psalm than the Presbyterians for February 19 (the day this will all be sung), and it offered some inspiration.
The piece works pretty well. After the piano sets the mood, the men come in with the text. Later (not too much later, since the piece is only 2 minutes long) there's a call and response between men and congregation, the latter to be led by the Praise Team. It's designed so that the congregation won't have to be taught ahead of time, but just repeat what the men sing.
I particularly liked in retrospect the way that the piano brings its phrase to a close between the first call of the men and the Praise Team/congregational response. As a result it sounds as though the response begins a new section, rather than responding to the previous call. That feeling changes as the call and response continues. I like the moment of uncertainty and ambiguity.
This piece should be a neat way to start the service. Here's the link to the pdf and the mp3 of the electronic realization. I hope its...
music to your ears also.
Sunday, January 01, 2006
happy (musical) new year
Wishing my (few) loyal readers a very happy new year. For me, the year has started well. Last year ended with a snore. I managed to hold out until the Mountain time zone, but couldn't last until Pacific. My best friend awakened me with a kiss just after midnight (I'm not sure that it was so much to greet the new year as to get me to stop snoring! In any event, both goals were satisfied.). What would my first post of 2006 be without a new piece of music!
I was lamenting to Marianne on Friday that the previous day's piece was probably my last composition of 2005. She said that if I didn't write something earlier, I'd probably have a piece done before I went to bed on the evening of the 1st. Two days was plenty of time for another piece, but there were various things to do, including a pleasant Saturday with Marianne staffing The Yarn Boutique. We planned on leaving around 3:00, but customers kept us nicely busy for several hours more. That cut rather severely into my composition time!
This afternoon, however, proved to be quite different. After a morning at church (attendance lower with Sunday falling on the 1st, but with a good level of energy and spirit nonetheless), we returned home for a relaxing afternoon. Swedish pancakes for lunch, using a package I gave Dad in his Christmas stocking (my recipe from scratch is better, IMHO). After playing a few computer games, fighting the urge to nap (no, I don't know why I fight that urge!), I decided to try my hand at what I hope is the first of a set of six introits--short choral pieces--I'll create over the next three months.
My planning calendar lists the lectionary texts for each Sunday. The first introit was needed for January 22; the psalm for the day (Psalm 63:5-12) offered interesting possibilities. You'll find the link to the score at my website. I've also produced an electronic realization, also available on my website.
Because this piece is an introit--a piece that starts off a church service--it is not intended to be a full-length anthem. On the one hand, it's easier to write because it doesn't have a lot of development of musical ideas. On the other hand, I found myself wanting to develop musical material further and had to hold myself back, since I wanted to keep the focus on a short piece of text. From the point of view of the choir director, I didn't need to have two pieces that require a lot of rehearsal on the same Sunday (I have a pretty busy rehearsal schedule for the hour before worship begins already).
By writing a three-measure phrase for piano, and then choosing to repeat that phrase, with one exception about 2/3rds of the way through, I limited my harmonic motion and reduced my melodic choices. As choral material is repeated, changes are made to accomodate changes in text. There's also a response that the lower voices make to the soprano lead that gets longer each time it returns (I wanted to give a sense of freedom and expanse within a limited musical universe).
The exception I just spoke of? I repeated the first measure of my three-measure phrase six times (=two phrases in length), with each repetition off by about a third in pitch from the preceeding measure. By the end, we're right back where we started, having cycled through almost two octaves. If all that jargon leaves you cold, try this: I needed some contrast, and wanted a climax point. Changing the underlying material and speeding up the rate of harmonic change gave me the freshness and peak that I wanted. (I may not be working in the university now, but the professor just refuses to go quietly!)
Even though the psalm selection had 8 verses, I paraphrased and excerpted from not much more than three verses. I really wanted to do more; maybe I'll return later in the year and create a fuller anthem version. I like the piece. I hope any listeners and singers (especially my choir) do to.
In any event, it's music to my ears in very early 2006.
I was lamenting to Marianne on Friday that the previous day's piece was probably my last composition of 2005. She said that if I didn't write something earlier, I'd probably have a piece done before I went to bed on the evening of the 1st. Two days was plenty of time for another piece, but there were various things to do, including a pleasant Saturday with Marianne staffing The Yarn Boutique. We planned on leaving around 3:00, but customers kept us nicely busy for several hours more. That cut rather severely into my composition time!
This afternoon, however, proved to be quite different. After a morning at church (attendance lower with Sunday falling on the 1st, but with a good level of energy and spirit nonetheless), we returned home for a relaxing afternoon. Swedish pancakes for lunch, using a package I gave Dad in his Christmas stocking (my recipe from scratch is better, IMHO). After playing a few computer games, fighting the urge to nap (no, I don't know why I fight that urge!), I decided to try my hand at what I hope is the first of a set of six introits--short choral pieces--I'll create over the next three months.
My planning calendar lists the lectionary texts for each Sunday. The first introit was needed for January 22; the psalm for the day (Psalm 63:5-12) offered interesting possibilities. You'll find the link to the score at my website. I've also produced an electronic realization, also available on my website.
Because this piece is an introit--a piece that starts off a church service--it is not intended to be a full-length anthem. On the one hand, it's easier to write because it doesn't have a lot of development of musical ideas. On the other hand, I found myself wanting to develop musical material further and had to hold myself back, since I wanted to keep the focus on a short piece of text. From the point of view of the choir director, I didn't need to have two pieces that require a lot of rehearsal on the same Sunday (I have a pretty busy rehearsal schedule for the hour before worship begins already).
By writing a three-measure phrase for piano, and then choosing to repeat that phrase, with one exception about 2/3rds of the way through, I limited my harmonic motion and reduced my melodic choices. As choral material is repeated, changes are made to accomodate changes in text. There's also a response that the lower voices make to the soprano lead that gets longer each time it returns (I wanted to give a sense of freedom and expanse within a limited musical universe).
The exception I just spoke of? I repeated the first measure of my three-measure phrase six times (=two phrases in length), with each repetition off by about a third in pitch from the preceeding measure. By the end, we're right back where we started, having cycled through almost two octaves. If all that jargon leaves you cold, try this: I needed some contrast, and wanted a climax point. Changing the underlying material and speeding up the rate of harmonic change gave me the freshness and peak that I wanted. (I may not be working in the university now, but the professor just refuses to go quietly!)
Even though the psalm selection had 8 verses, I paraphrased and excerpted from not much more than three verses. I really wanted to do more; maybe I'll return later in the year and create a fuller anthem version. I like the piece. I hope any listeners and singers (especially my choir) do to.
In any event, it's music to my ears in very early 2006.
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