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“Where There is Light” performed
As time allows, I have been collaborating with lyricist Emily Thompson over the last few years on an original musical centered on Hades, the Greek god of the Underworld. The […]
“When Time is Over” to be performed in Bulgaria
Soprano Sofia Dimitrova is performing my song cycle, “When Time is Over” on July 17 in Varna, Bulgaria. The song cycle is based on texts by Emily Dickinson and the […]
Another element of music?
My friend Haim Avitsur participated in a performance of “Orbits” for 80 trombones, soprano, and organ. (Haim was not the soprano, and he doesn’t play the organ!) The piece is […]
Scoring tip for Mac users
If you are entering the word “apple”¬†in to your notation program for a song lyric, is it “app-le” or is it “ap-ple?” Instead of going to your dictionary or looking […]
Finale 2010, Sibelius 6
This is sort of an informational post for those who might not be clued in. Both Finale and Sibelius have announced new versions in the last few weeks. I had […]
Violin Sonata recording posted
It took a while, but I have finally been able to post a sound file of my Violin Sonata on my website. Head to the Listen section and you’ll be […]
What the voice can do
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about composing for the voice.¬† I typically look for a text and recognize quickly if I think it will work for me as a […]
Creating music | Writing about music
I write music, and I also write about music. So this quote from singer-songwriter Andrew Bird has some resonance for me: Ultimately, I think that writing about music is a deliberate […]
An interesting change of perspective
I had a chance to meet Raoul Pleskow today and hear a fascinating lecture by him. He said something very interesting that reflected a useful change of perspective. When writing […]
Danger music? Elastic scoring?
Danger music? What’s that? Elastic scoring? Hmm! I found these and many other interesting subjects in Wikipedia today. I thought I would share them! See these pages about: Category: Musical notation
Emcee at NYCC Concert
I was the master of ceremonies at the recent April 5 2009 concert presented by the New York Composers Circle. What a successful afternoon of music and performances! There was new music by
What’s the opposite of creativity?
Students of the great German philosopher Hegel are familiar with his notion of the dialectical process. It is commonly summed up as the way a prevailing thesis is confronted by […]
Postconventionality and creativity
Ruth Richards’s excellent book, Everyday Creativity features an essay by Mark A. Runco called “To Understand is to Create.” In this essay, Runco argues for three stages of creativity, picking […]
Respect for copyright
I’ve argued before in this blog about the constricting elements of copyright: that the material you are looking for is harder to come by in legitimate form. (The full score […]
Music is medicine
There seems no end to scientists trying to tie all the abstract loose ends of music into a neat little bow. The latest efforts explore the ways music can take […]
Thank your muse!
Recently I posted about courting the performers who can help you have a successful career. This prompted one of my staunchest supports — a muse, you might even say — […]
Schoenberg the sentimentalist?
I’m reading Howard Gardner’s influential book on multiple intelligences, Frames of Mind. Gardner adds this quote from Arnold Schoenberg, “hardly known for his sentimentality”: Music is a succession of tones […]
Bob Dylan on audiences
Bob Dylan has an interview on his website in which he has some interesting things to say about audiences and styles. About the craft of creating music, for instance, he says: […]