There Will Be Fire

This weekend will mark the premiere of my first electroacoustic work, which will be performed as part of the Hartt Dance Division's senior dance recital. Each of the five senior dancers has been collaborating with a Hartt composer; the seniors are creating the choreography, and the composers are supplying the music. (One would expect it to be this way, although I'm sure it would be a very interesting recital if the roles were reversed.) The dances are being performed by other dance students at the Hartt school. In addition, each of the senior dancers will be featured in a solo performance choreographed by an outside professional dancer.

The piece that I have crafted for the senior with whom I am collaborating (Tiffany Goudreau) is titled A Fresh Start. The title—and the inspiration for the piece—came from one of Tiffany's original concepts for the choreography. (Her concept has since changed, but the music has adapted and still fits – one of the quirks of a collaborative process like this one.)

To the Max!

A screenshot of my first Max patch, called BJEOEHTNHCOAVGEEN. For a slightly higher resolution, click here.

Just as this spring semester was starting, I wrote a blog post previewing the classes I would be taking. The image I included at the top of the post was a screenshot from Max/MSP (also known simply as "Max") and was accompanied by a caption that read "By the end of the semester, this image—a screenshot from Max/MSP—might make sense to me."

It has been a few weeks, and while I don't think I can make total sense of that image, I am well on my way. I have already put together a few "patches" (that is Max-specific programs); I cannot profess to be an expert at this point, but I have learned enough both to do some basic but entertaining things and also to realize that I am just beginning to scratch the surface.

In this post I will write about the first patch I created in Max, which I have called "BJEOEHTNHCOAVGEEN" (more on that title a little later). The assignment given to the class was intentionally vague: "Make a patch that does something." Like a number of other people in the class, in interpreting that directive I decided to have some fun.

Why I Write Music

When I recount to others how I have ended up studying music composition at the Hartt School after spending my undergraduate years at MIT, they often ask me "How?" or "Why?" (or in some cases, "Why!?!?!?!?!"). To be sure, these are valid questions, and I am always happy to oblige in answering them. Simple as it may seem, writing music was what made me the happiest at MIT. It certainly wasn't the only thing that made me happy there, and it would hardly be the only area I would study if I had four more years to spend there.

Still, writing music was—and continues to be—what gives me the greatest satisfaction. The gratification that comes with finishing a piece of music and—better yet—the thrill that accompanies hearing my music come to life as it is played for the first time, are feelings not quite like any others I have experienced.

But there is far more in writing music for me than the glamor that (hopefully) comes with a premiere (should I be lucky enough to get one). And while having other people perform my work is something of a power trip—especially for pieces written for larger ensembles—it's certainly not that, either. (That is a dangerous train of thought to follow too closely: while musicians are inevitably following your "orders" of what notes to play and what sounds to make, music would be appreciably more difficult to come by without them.)

Blizzard!

The description for my blog includes the phrase "anecdotal, tangential goodies," and I am aware that thus far the content has focused on the more serious and academic side of things (not that that can't be fun in its own right). But with an historic blizzard having just made its mark on Hartford and the rest of the Northeast, I figured it would be fun to share some pictures.

The city of Hartford woke up this morning with 27 (yes, that's twenty-seven) inches of snow on the ground.  Not quite as much as Hamden, CT (40 inches), but it's up there, even topping my hometown of Jamaica Plain, MA (25.5 inches).

So here are some photographic highlights, with captions included:

Springing into the Semester

By the end of the semester, this image—a screenshot from Max/MSP—might make sense to me.

Despite the fact that here in Hartford we are looking at single-digit and negative wind chills tonight and tomorrow, the semester is just starting to warm up. [Hold for laughter...] With today being the first day of the spring semester at Hartt, I wanted to take a post to highlight what's on tap for this semester.

Because I am working on my artist diploma, I am allotted nine credits, which translates into three classes. My weekly composition lessons ("advanced composition") count as one of these classes; the other two classes I am taking are the "computer music seminar" and "Stravinsky and modernism." Here is a breakdown of each class:

Advanced Composition

Regarding the music I hope to finish this semester, my plan is threefold. First, I want to finish the string quartet I began in the fall that was shelved after I was selected to write the violin pocket concerto (Huldufólk). When I postponed work on the quartet in the fall, I had completed a draft of the entire first movement, but I envision needing at least two more movements before the work fully takes shape. As composers have traditionally held the string quartet medium in special regard, I intend to do the same.

Elementally, My Dear...

Warning: Do not use image above in place of a periodic table.

Part of the craziness that was the end of last semester included my final projects for the electronic music class I was taking. One of these projects was the electronic dance piece that is getting premiered in March, about which I will write more after I have finished revising it. Another one of these projects was an original suite I composed called The Elements. Before all you chemistry nerds out there get super excited about a collection of 90 (or 100 or 110 or however many total elements there are out there now including the synthetic ones), let me warn you that there are only four movements: one for each of the natural elements, according to the ancient Greeks. Subsequently, the four movements of The Elements are (1) Air, (2) Fire, (3) Earth, and (4) Water.

Each of the four movements also fulfilled a particular requirement that was part of the project option I selected (the other components of the final portfolio were essentially free composition). Specifically, this project option had to be exactly four movements, each one having limitations in terms of the source material that could be used. As I go through each movement below, I will explain in greater detail how the sounds for each had to be constructed. (The movements were ordered according to my artistic preferences and not based on the order in which the restrictions were listed in the assignment.) And, after each movement’s explanation, I have made the music available for listening.

About 2013

Sunrise (7:15 am) as viewed from my apartment on January 11.
(Studies show that pictures of sunrises work best when blogging about one's goals for the new year.)

Ah, 2013. As a recent NPR Sunday Puzzle pointed out, 2013 is the first year to have four unique digits since 1987, which also happens to be the year in which I was born. 2013 also has four consecutive digits, which hasn't happened since 1980. But when I decided to put together this post and to title it "About 2013," I was thinking more along the lines of my aspirations for the new year. So if you are looking for the mysterious connection between the numbers involved in 2013 and the meaning of the universe, you can take a detour at a site like this; otherwise keep reading.

A Premier Premiere

Me with Donna Cover (my 7th grade English teacher) at the premiere of The Lady, or the Tiger?

Well, it turns out that the sun did rise on December 22, 2012, which is great news because things were just starting to get exciting. As I noted a few weeks ago, I was on top of the world following the premiere of my piece for wind ensemble and narrator, The Lady, or the Tiger? I also noted that I was at the end of my semester, and combined with a lengthy winter break—which is just a little over half over—I also have been on break from blogging. But this latter break ends now with some updates and reflections from the end of the semester (and the end of 2012).

First up, and the primary subject of this particular musing, are my thoughts on the premiere of The Lady, or the Tiger? As I wrote the day after the concert, the premiere was "both a humbling and exhilarating experience." The December 12 concert marked the first real performance of any large ensemble work I've written. What made it even more special was that the ensemble that premiered the piece is one of which I have been a part for the last two-and-a-half years, and one I have come to cherish.