There have been many hymns to belief, and to disbelief, but not enough to suspension of judgment. Here’s one.
Entries Tagged as '*Music'
Agnosticize
November 2nd, 2012 · 2 Comments
Nine Settings
November 1st, 2012 · Comments Off on Nine Settings
The “Nine Settings” are for voice and piano. The texts are by Giordano Bruno, Marsilio Ficino, Tommaso Campanella, Le Comte de Saint-Germain, Christopher Smart, Guillaume Apollinaire, Francis Picabia, Jean-Pierre Brisset, and James Joyce. I wrote them back in 1983, and have occasionally revised them. They’re based on my occasional praxis of four-pitch diatonic chords, randomized […]
Give Me Clouds!
September 18th, 2012 · 2 Comments
I wrote a couple of rounds on snippets from Remy de Gourmont; here’s one of them.
Fiction
September 12th, 2012 · Comments Off on Fiction
From 1994, clangorous counterpoint travels between the letters of the word “fiction.” We separate narrative into fiction or fact; music deserves the same courtesy.
The Imponderable Pillar of Worlds
September 5th, 2012 · Comments Off on The Imponderable Pillar of Worlds
A round on an epigram from Benjamin De Casseres.
Flookem
August 29th, 2012 · Comments Off on Flookem
Some contrapuntal piano music, from 1993.
Stint
August 28th, 2012 · Comments Off on Stint
According to the dictionary, a “stint” is a “a period of time spent in a particular activity.” That certainly fits this piece for viola and piano, built up of repeated riffs.
Radio Valentine
August 24th, 2012 · Comments Off on Radio Valentine
Following the Thanksgiving show, KPFA invited me back for Valentine’s Day in 1978. I sang some songs, played piano, and played 78s.
All Aboard for Dreamland
August 14th, 2012 · Comments Off on All Aboard for Dreamland
On May 2, 2012, Larry Ratso Sloman and Mark Jacobsen presented a “Live Radio Hour” at Housing Works, in NYC, devoted to Coney Island. They invited me to sing a song about the place; I arranged Harry Von Tilzer’s 1902 tune, “All Aboard for Dreamland,” for viola and baritone uke, and performed it with David […]
A Harmonic Database
August 10th, 2012 · Comments Off on A Harmonic Database
There are 840 diatonic four-pitch chords. A number of years ago, I randomized them; and have often used them as a basis for composition. I don’t use them straight; but re-order, transpose, and add to them in various ways.