Monthly Archives: August 2007

The 30 Days Project: Day 11

The Viola in My Life* I love the viola. It has a darker tone quality than the violin, which I find very expressive. I’ve written for it quite a bit, but it’s been awhile. Then I was reminded of it … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | 1 Comment

A Third of the Way Through 30 Days!

I thought I’d post a compilation playlist of the first 10 days* of the 30 Day Project, so that folks can listen to the pieces without having to navigate between posts. Of course you’ll miss my witty explanations and informative … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, milestones, new music | 1 Comment

The 30 Days Project: Day 10

The challenge of writing a loop-based piece is knowing when to add a new element, how many elements to use, and how and when to stop — in a nutshell: pacing. One thing I don’t like about a lot of … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | Leave a comment

The 30 Days Project: Day 9

I’ve got a hocket in my pocket! I’m so sorry, but I’ve just always wanted to say that. Another short ‘n’ sweet one, this time for flute, clarinet and violin. Click play to listen: Thanks for listening!

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | 2 Comments

The 30 Days Project: Day 8

It’s a rainy Sunday here in Detroit metro, and that had me in a slightly melancholy mood. It also had me hearing hymns in my head. When I sat down at the piano today, I started thinking of the hymn, … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | Leave a comment

The 30 Days Project: Day 7

Really short and sweet today! McDoc worked his first OB night shift last night, and even though I got a pretty good night’s sleep, I guess I have sympathy exhaustion or something! Once when I was a master’s student at … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | Leave a comment

The 30 Days Project: Day 6

Fun with Metronomes! I really like the kind of music that evokes ticking clocks — especially ones that aren’t working properly, or multiple ticks out of sync, etc. Some composers I know of who do this sort of thing are … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | 2 Comments

The 30 Days Project: Day 5

I was in a contemplative mood today. I wanted to write something simple, just chords that change slowly. So I started with a 4-note chord and repeated it, then started changing one note at a time on successive repeats. It’s … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | Leave a comment

The 30 Days Project: Day 4

So Fred & Deborah suggested: “Perhaps combine Gershwin, Chopin and Gregorian Chant.” I got 2 out of the 3. (Special brownie points if you can name the 2 tunes I’m parodying!) Enjoy! I confess that I couldn’t play this quite … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | 3 Comments

The 30 Days Project: Day 3

Last night, I told McDoc that I was taking requests for the 30 Days Project, if anyone would like to hear a certain type of piece… fast, slow, happy, sad, dance forms, etc. (I hope no one asks for a … Continue reading

Posted in 30 Days, classical, composition, contemporary classical, contemporary classical music, contemporary music, new music | 6 Comments