I’ve been honored with an invitation to blog regularly at The Master’s Artist.
As my friend (and now co-blogger) said, "What is this place coming to?"
Nevertheless, I will pop my head up on The Master’s Artist every other Tuesday, beginning today.
A snatch from my inaugural piece (unless you count my guest blog a few weeks ago, but since that was a trial run, I suppose we can still call this one the inaugural post):
In my college music composition study, I worked on a violin
unaccompanied sonata for an upcoming master class. For the first
movement, I took a five-note motif and stretched it, condensed it,
turned it upside-down and inside-out. I layered it in fugue and
counterpoint. I syncopated its rhythm with hemiola.
In other words, I made that sucker work.
For the second movement, from the same five-note motif, I created an idyllic, fairy-inspired melody.
Proud of my gut-wrenching, music-changing first movement, I showed the work to my professor.
“Nice
ideas in the first movement, but the second movement is where you
really shine.” He pointed his long, bony finger at me. (Okay, so it
wasn’t really bony, although it was long, but bony fingers make better
stories.) “In this lyricism, I begin to see you.”
Harsh words to take as a young composer. It got worse.
Read the rest here.
Update: Sorry the links were not previously working. They’re working now.
Advent holds ideas of waiting, anticipation, peace, hope, incarnation, justice. I think of Mary, her hands rubbing her belly. I think of the shepherds, searching Bethlehem. I think of the wise men, following a star. All waiting.
