Eighteen.

For tenor trombone.

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I like some of this ... then again, I love minor keys, so it might just be that. The trombone is such an interesting instrument, and requires an excellent player, otherwise you end up with a type of portamento between notes as they move the slide. Good players can just move the slide and nail those positions easily. Lucky for me, the computer is the best technical performer I know. Ha!

Seventeen.

For Eb Clarinet.

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Sort of based on a melody I used for a film score I did. Although I wasn't terribly impressed with the overall finish of the film, the music I wrote for the credits was pretty spot on. I'll eventually return to that one of these days. Anyway, this rhythmic pattern (3+2+3) has been sort of jumping through my head.

Behind ...

I'm a few days behind, I know, but never fear! I will return with a vengeance this weekend.

I was to catch up last night but had some serious computer issues and, while I could have easily written by hand, was unable to just leave the computer until it was functioning again.

To make up: Wednesday, Thursday and (obviously) Friday. Will hopefully be caught up to night, but will at least do two today and the remainder tomorrow.

Sixteen.

Ok, I lied. Waiting until Saturday to catch up was a bad idea, so here is Sixteen.

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For cello, or other low-voiced instrument.

Fifteen.

This is to make up for missing yesterday. I might be a day behind with my parents in town, but I'll catch up this weekend and do two on Saturday, if necessary.

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Fourteen.

For Horn in F. (Remember! It's transposing!)

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Wow. Fourteen. That's just about halfway to the end of Phase II!

I'm very much enjoying writing every day. I have to fight the urge towards complexity -- if I am too complex with my writing, I find it defeats the purpose of writing for the sake of writing. I should maybe have built into the guidelines a two- or three-day period each month where I could work on one single thing. I hate to go back and change the guidelines that I promised myself not to change, but perhaps once I complete Phase II I'll reconsider.

Writing fragments and phrases are nice, but now that I'm writing again I want to do something bigger. We'll see, I suppose.

Thirteen.

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One more from the weekend. Transcribed for viola. I sort of like this, though my relative consistent use of harmonic minor scales is starting to make me think I need to work more on some modes or other types of scales.

Twelve.

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Did the recording with the mellow sounds of artificial flute and two marimbas, though it could certainly be for just about anything. Although, the flute does lend itself well to that melody, I think.

The accompaniment part is sort of meandering, though in a meaningful way. I was exhausted when I wrote this (with one eye opened) so I was literally only half focused ... enough that there is a rough harmonic pattern to the marimba parts, albeit a bit hard to discern.

Eleven.

Woodwind quintet.

This feels like it would belong as a part of something much bigger, like somewhere in the middle. I like ostinato (repeated) passages, especially when they set up what seems to be a theme, that drift off into the background behind a new theme. I also love the color possibilities with this type of ensemble, though the digital rendering loses a lot of that feeling.

This one's a bit long, so hopefully it'll post okay. I couldn't think of any other way than three separate files for the score.



I'll be away this weekend, but the laptop is coming with me so I'll post what I have on Sunday night, hopefully.

Ten.

For harp.

I don't know a single harpist, but in theory it should be playable.

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The weird lines at the top of the score represent the pedal positions. There are three pedals on the left, four on the right, representing the accidentals for notes in the following order: D C B | E F G A. A pedal all the way up changes that note to flat (all across the harp), a pedal in the center changes it to natural, and a pedal down changes it to sharp. In this case, the D B E G A lines are in the center, meaning natural. The C and F lines are below, meaning sharp. (Had any lines been above, it would have meant flat.)

So, this is essentially using D C# B | E F# G A, or a D major scale. I just wanted to try and mark out some harmonies; something about stacked 5ths (the D A E B chord in the beginning) makes me smile.

Nine.

For Bb clarinet. Terrible. Just terrible. Like trying to mash two differently shaped puzzle pieces together.

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I'm not even sure if those sixteenth note passages are playable at that tempo.

I won't bother trying to explain or justify it. Sometimes, it's just not there.

Eight.

A very short song featuring lyrics from the poem Reflections on Ice-Breaking by Ogden Nash. (Of whom I am a huge fan; I wrote a series of madrigals based on some of his animal poetry.)

click the image for a clearer view

I don't like how it ends, but I needed to end it before I got too carried away. I can't help but laugh a little at this one, because it's really just not the right thing to do, but sometimes music needs to make you laugh a little bit, even if no one else gets the joke.

This is for piano and voice. Likely a tenor or soprano, but I'd love to see a bass singing this with a very pleasant falsetto. Any takers?

EDIT: I absolutely had to fix the ending.

Phase I complete!

Since I've succeeded in making through the past 7 days (with only one post coming a day late)* I'll be moving on to Phase II, which will last for an additional 23 days until June 10th.

This week I'll be forcing myself to correct my poor habit of writing at the very end of the day. I think having a fresher mind might not lead to some better work.

Thanks for those of you who have been keeping up. Feel free to post your comments! If you don't like it, there's a good chance that I don't like it either, so don't feel afraid to say so. The only way a composer gets better is with criticism, and without any former instruction (which still feels a bit weird) I'm sort of running through the woods with a blindfold on.

So, comment away. Here's to the next 23 days!

Seven.

Dark little solo for bassoon. (I'm lovin' the double reeds this week, apparently.)

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I got a little lost with what to do towards the end, and wasn't sure where the clef change would fit best, despite its necessity for that part of the phrase.

So, tomorrow starts Phase III. Still need to get in the habit of doing this earlier in the day, but I'll be fine. Let's see if I can make it three more weeks!

Six.

Little ditty for violin. I'm absolutely positive my bowings are way off, but it's been a long, long time since I've written for violin and, unfortunately, I do not have one handy that I could ask very quickly. But hey, if someone's a violinist and could comment it'd be much appreciated.

click the image for a clearer view

Since UNO never had more than 1 string player at any time and since I considered myself practical in that I mostly wrote for what I had handy, I never had much of chance to write for strings. It seemed that when I did, though, they would often correct my bowings despite whatever effort I put into making them right. If I make it to Phase III, I think I'll use some string instrument for the first of the "one instrument for an entire week" guideline I set for myself. Definitely the one I need the most work on.

Five.

Making up for yesterday. Got home pretty late from the Commencement ceremony and just crashed.

This is a short melody for English Horn, probably one of my favorite instruments. It lies in this weird place between the oboe and bassoon and has this sort of haunting sound to it. (Honestly, the recording I put up doesn't do this wonderful instrument justice.)

click the image for a clearer view

In Music Inspired by the Wheel of Time, the opening theme in the first movement is played by the English horn. Follow the link if you want to hear how a real one sounds.

And, if anyone was wondering, the software I use is Finale 2006c with the Garritan Personal Orchestra for the notation and audio work, GIMP for creating the images, and RazorLAME for converting to mp3s.

Clean up.

Ok, swapped out all the older PNG files for JPGs.

Also added the little embedded player to last night's piece. What do you think? Keep it, or toss it?

Four.

Ok, this may have been a bit much for me, seeing as how out of practice I feel, but what the heck. French horn trio. I was trying to do a short fanfare, then got tired very quickly and the whole thing just seemed to slow down a bit.

click the image for a clearer view

For those of you who try playing this on some instrument and notice the pitches don't match up, remember that the French horn is a transposing instrument. This is written for a horn in F: in a sense, a written "C" is a sounding "F." (One of these days I'll explain some reasons for transposing instruments ... just not today.)

Three.

Note to self: save your file before accidentally hitting the power chord. Ha!

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I love quick little rapid passages like this. It's almost treating the instrument more like a rhythmic instrument than melodic.

Not much to say, really, other than I'm glad I've made it three days ... but I need to do this when I get home from work, rather than before I go to bed. Or early in the morning. Hopefully I'll settle into a rhythm at some point.

Two.

For your viewing and listening enjoyment ... just barely into what would technically be day 3, but it took me some time to get the image file and sound file created. I really need to figure out a better way of doing this, as the PNG files have always been my least favorite format for images.

click the image for a clearer view

I kind of like this one. Playing with more of a focus on intervals and creating tension following some consonant sounds. I'd like to revisit this one once the project is over. Flutes sound wonderful in general so I think this would make a nice duet. It could use further development -- both parts stay within a relatively close range, and it doesn't due the instrument justice considering its flexibility.

One.

Well, I never promised works of art for this project, so if that's what you have come for you can turn away. Here is what will hopefully be the first of many.

click the image for a clearer view

Those of you with rudimentary music theory knowledge might pick up on the decidedly "minor" sound of the phrase, though I was making an (small and failed) effort to really avoid a tonal center. The last couple measures, though, seem completely out of place but could work if the phrase were expanded some. What's done is done, though.

Feels good to be writing music again. Sort of like when you hold your breath for awhile and then suddenly gulp down a lot of air. Head rush.

Creative Commons

All compositions and text published on these pages will be licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License. More information regarding this license can be found at the Creative Commons website.

Updated Guidelines

Updated guidelines. Changes in italics:

• Minimum of 12 measures;
• Fragments or phrases allowed: no piece needs to stand on its own;
• If a day is missed, it must be made up the following day or as soon as possible;
  
• Once Phase III begins, the first full week of every month (Sun-Sat, 7 days) will be dedicated to one single instrument (schedule will follow);
  
• Multiple compositions on one day will not count as a "bank" for following days;
• One "skip" per month will be allowed, because life can get a little nutty;
• After May 12th no changes will be made to these guidelines;
  
• Scores will be posted; and
  
• If possible, real recordings or digital renderings will be posted.

There may be some more updates to the guidelines before May 12th, and I know it seems goofy, but once I get started I want to make sure that I have very strict rules to go by.

I've gotten a lot of positive feedback on the project and I'm very anxious to get started. I've had more than a couple people who seemed interested in started some sort of 365-day project of their own. If you do start something and keep a public record of it (blog, LJ, etc.) let me know and I'll post the link!

Coming soon ...

For those of you who might not know me, I graduated in '06 with my master's degree in music composition from the University of New Orleans. Since then, I've been working as an administrative assistant at UNO and as a part-time student in the master's program in public administration, while occasionally teaching evenings as an adjunct for UNO's Department of Music.

I have found myself with so little time that it is becoming increasingly hard to get myself started on any composition projects. This is somewhat troublesome to me, as I find my overall mood dependent upon my creative output ... which has been next to none. Sure, I've worked on some small film scores, but nothing serious. As I would like to continue on with doctoral studies in composition once the MPA is completed, it is important for me (both professionally and personally) to continue to compose.

So, I present to you The Daily Composer, starting on May 12th. In line with the ever-popular meme "365," where people post one photograph they take every day, I'll be writing one composition per day.

My guidelines/goals are as follows:

• Minimum of 12 measures;
• Fragments or phrases allowed: no piece needs to stand on its own;
• If a day is missed, it must be made up the following day or as soon as possible;
  
• Scores will be posted; and
• If possible, real recordings or digital renderings will be posted.

I am notorious for being overly-optimistic, but I feel that these are realistic goals. I suspect some days I will be able to produce more than 12 measures, but anything less than that would likely not be useful. As stated, these pieces do not need to "stand on their own" as I hope to produce material that, once the project is complete, could be developed into larger-scaled works.

I'll be running the experiment in three phases:

• Phase I: 7 days
• Phase II: 30 days (inclusive of Phase I)
  
• Phase III: 365 days (inclusive of Phases I and II)
  

So, see you on May 12th.