Not on the CD: Epilogue and Canine Helicopter Anxiety
So, one of the main problems with obsessing about writing and recording music every day is that I push myself to do something even when the inspiration is not there. A lot of times, that's actually a successful approach; simply messing around will give me the spark of an idea, and away I go. Other times, I just spin my wheels in the mud. The past couple of weeks have been like that. I've been going over and going over the same idea, and it hasn't been going anywhere. And it's another piece for strings, when I really want to be recording something a bit more "rock" sounding. The best thing for me to do in these cases is to take a few steps back, and not even think about music for a few days. So that's what I'm doing. Or trying to do.
In the meantime, as I try to recalibrate my brain, I thought I would share a couple of string ensemble pieces that I wrote last year, using Synful. They are basically two sides of the same coin.
The first, Canine Helicopter Anxiety, has actually been hanging around on the Internet for quite a while now, but I didn't have this blog to draw attention to it when I wrote it and posted it. It's music that I'm very proud of, and I think the string sounds worked out great. It's intended to be a string sextet - two violins, viola, two cellos and bass. It's written in a mode that don't remember the name of! It may not technically be a mode at all - half step, whole step, half step, whole step, half step, whole step, ad nausuem. It's obviously a bit dissonant. I was going for something that would be driving and insistent.
The second piece is called Epilogue, and I haven't published it anywhere before. It's a relatively simple and pretty piece that started its life with my rudimentary piano skills, and turned into a string quartet with bass. This is the type of music that I envision going onto the ending credits of a movie (Movie Producers, you may start calling at any time!).
That's all for now. I would like to hear your thoughts.
PS: Clicking on the links above will play the MP3s.
My recent move took me away from an apartment located in close proximity to a hospital heliport to one on a street traveled by large groups of motorcyclists at least 20 times a day. While I realize that I'm not a canine and you have never witnessed the anxiety visited on me by the sound of a large medivac helicopter hovering 50 feet above my home, you may, if you're so inclined, observe me freaking the fuck out about the sound of 50 motorcycles traveling at high speeds right outside my window. Perhaps you could write a string quartet about the experience.
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These are great. I like them both very much, but Epilogue in particular is (to my ears anyway) great in a way that is quite a departure from what I'm used to hearing from you. Which sounds wrong... what I mean to say is the straightforward beauty of the melody and the relative simplicity of the arrangement are lovely. My reactions to your music are usually all positive, but the words "straightforward" and "lovely" probably don't come up much. I don't know what I'm trying to say anymore. I think I'm was trying to compliment you, then I was worried that it ended up coming out sounding like a knock, so then I tried to re-explain the compliment, and now I'm re-explaining my explanation. You dig?
Anyway, have you ever thought of pitching these types of pieces to an actual string quartet? I don't know how one would go about doing that exactly, but maybe a local music school would think it was cool to have original stuff of this high quality to present. Just a thought.
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Thanks very much for the kind words. I actually come up with more pretty and straightforward stuff than you might think. It's just that I usually end up either editing it or extrapolating the idea beyond what it might have or should have been. I would definitely like to hear these kinds of things played properly with real instruments. I actually had written and even printed out a string quartet to be played at my wedding, but the quartet we hired were so difficult to deal with that I decided not to go through the pain with them, and just let them play what they wanted. After hearing their performance, I'm not sorry about that decision. Probably a school would be a good place to start. I've been holding out for a soundtrack offer that would actually pay for the musicians, but it's been rough going!
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I absolutely think Canine Helicopter Anxiety has both a catchy name and a ferocious sound. It really gives the listener the opportunity to develop the images associated with the music. Really cool. I think your music might best be displayed in a theatre venue, like a play. (just a thought) That would sound amazing! I can't pay you but would be happy to profit from your talent, if only I could produce something, anything =)
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Thanks Art! I appreciate everyone who is willing to take the time to listen. This was a case where I feel like I fully developed the ideas. It visits a few different places, without ever leaving the one tonality. So I'm happy that that is audible!
Certainly you could act in a one-man play about imitating... yourself. You know, Scene One: Art leaves important documents on a bus...
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