photo credit: Darcy Mc Marcy
Deeply into Jimmy Web’s songwriting walkthrough book Tunesmith, which although goes off on verbal distractions of unclarity, also rings with practical experiences and is also a good review of some basic tonal techniques in musical composition, and a good basis for guiding me through my own jazz memories.  
Reading a [...]

Continue reading " Contrast Thoughts "

photo credit: MUAZ BAHAJJAJJ
One of the cool things about dealing with words and music is the workflow is so much less complicated and portable than the usual trappings of instrumental writing I have for myself.  Within that personal world, I would always be thinking about the end result – the orchestration, dynamics, voicings, different [...]

Continue reading " Simple "

Moving to a new place…hence in and out of writing.
Mostly listinening to Tori…a number of albums…well produced…amaising.  The live stuff is really tight.  3-4 note hooking motifs in accomp or melody.  Classic contemporary pop song writing…excellant lyrics…
I got in the wrong part of the industry
This is just as valid as any art song

Continue reading " Distractions "

No improv last night as table tennis distractions abound.  Sqeezed in a bit of reading of John Adams, the last chapter.  He’s tried to explain away his failures which just makes him come off myopic in his own intellectual world.  The usual pattern is that he gives some historic timeline of events of how a [...]

Continue reading " Last Chapter "

Ok, well…not much of a week in progress.  I wash hoping to come back last evening and start flushing out the last segment of the interval chain, but instead finished up my thanks you notes to the cast.  Finally, I’m done with that – took me exactly one week.  Last weekend, I finished the third [...]

Continue reading " Composing Status Update #62 "

Mixed bag of trinket tasks this weekend.  

Worked through segment three of the interval cycle.  Wanted to start segment four but I ran out of time.  
Played around with a couple of ideas for two new works.  I should really start thinking of moving on to these – which are chamber works and not such [...]

Continue reading " Mixed Weekend "

Last evening, I went back to the table tennis club to throw my hat into the ring once again to become better at this – losing to a grandmama. No problem.  My stroke is getting better, but my legs and lower back are stressed out a bit.  Hardly can walk from the stiffness, and I [...]

Continue reading " Pain "

Lovely weekend.  Weather was terrific.  I found time to finish the harmony for segment 2 – at least a rough draft of it.  Not final but outlines most of what we made.  We can refine later when we have the full pass.  Still unsure how I will imbue movement into these chords.  When to start [...]

Continue reading " Lovely "