Amphibians for Band Movement I

This blog post is about a composition that I am writing for the Band For Today Honor Wind Ensemble. Band For Today http://www.bandfortoday.com/ provides Chicago area schools with band and piano programs and I am honored to have been commissioned by them to compose this composition. I will be attending the premiere on April 18, 2015.

I wanted to write a composition that would have both appealing titles and music for young musicians. I settled on a composition called "Amphibians" that has two movements; "Frogs and Toads" that would use croaking sounds as well as leaps and "Salamanders" that will have music representing scurrying and swimming.

The first thing I did was to listen to sounds of frogs and toads at http://www.soundboard.com/sb/Frog_sounds_audio and I was very surprised by the variety of sounds. I tried to incorporate some of these sounds in the seven measure introduction. The bull frogs are created by the low instruments a half step apart accompanied by the ratchet. The tree frog sounds appear in the clarinets and then the flutes. The use of the timpani and suspended cymbal during the introduction creates an undercurrent of night sounds.

The Allegro section, that begins at measure 8, is in 6/8 time and contains the leaping motif. This motif is made up of wide intervals like a 5th, 6th and octave. Scale-wise material surround the leaps providing contrast and there is occasional use of the bull frog sound for punctuation (section A). At measure 26, a contrasting section begins (section B). This sections uses leaps as well, but this time in a descending direction. This section ends with some chromatic lines indicating that something has disturbed the normal peace of the swamp. Measures 36-43 is a percussion variant of the downward leaps before the opening allegro material returns at measure 44 (section A). Measures 62-72 is another contrasting section (section C). It is in a major tonality with a two part canon creating a feeling of celebration. The leaping idea at the end of this section serves as a transition back to the opening allegro melody (section A). The ending is created by repeating a measure a step higher and by using the descending leaps of the B section. The overall form of the movement is Introduction A B A C A.

I decided to write a poem about the animals in each movement that can be used as a narration before the movement is played. Here is the poem for the first movement:

I. Frogs and Toads

Amphibians breathe with gills, lungs or skin

It depends upon what stage of development they are in

With four legs and a backbone they vary in size

They adapt to varied climates, that makes them very wise

First we will mention frogs and toads

They appear to be similar but have different abodes

Frogs are at home where water abounds

While toads like to live where dry climate surrounds

Frogs have strong, long webbed hind feet

Perfect for swimming and an occasional leap

Their skin is smooth and their eyes tend to bulge

More than this, I’m reluctant to divulge

Toads on the other hand have short stubby legs

They are good for walking and look like pegs

With warts on their skin that can give many a fright

But to another toad, their skin is a delight

The sounds of these creatures are quite varied

From very deep croaks to squeaks that are harried

The music you will hear represents just a few

Then it saunters and leaps like toads and frogs do

I export my Sibelius Music Notation file as a movie (new to version 7.5). I also use Noteperformer software for the sounds. These are sample sounds, but the software also includes an algorithm that reads ahead in the music and phrases the music according to context, therefore making the realization closer to live performance. I  upload these videos to youtube and embed the video for each movement. Be sure to use full screen mode for easier viewing of large scores. I hope that this technology allows the reader to have an easier experience and a more realistic performance. To see and hear what I have discussed, go to http://www.cooppress.net/Amphibians_blog.html. 

As always, your comments are appreciated.
Dr. B

Antics for Elementary Band - Samples of each movement

I interrupted several projects that I am working on to compose a short part of each movement of Antics for elementary band. This composition is being composed as part of a commissioning consortium where each participant contributes a small amount towards the commission fee and receives local premiere rights for up to a year after the composition is completed. The deadline for joining this commission consortium is January 15, 2015 and the rest of the piece will be composed after that date. For more information about the consortium, please visit http://www.cooppress.net/page9/page385/index.html

The first movement of this two-movement composition is "Dolphins in an Aquarium." The general description of this movement is that it is in a moderate tempo and primarily legato. The whole step eighth note motif represents the dolphins swimming. The rising pyramids in intervals of a perfect fifth represent the dolphins leaping out of the water.

The second movement is "Squirrels in a Park" and its general tone is lively and staccato. The movement begins with the low instruments playing a repeated chord built in 4ths. The playful melody appears in the upper woodwinds and trumpets in the key of Bb. Both movements utilize the percussion for rhythm and color.

I export my Sibelius Music Notation file as a movie (new to version 7.5). I also use Noteperformer software for the sounds. These are sample sounds, but the software also includes an algorithm that reads ahead in the music and phrases the music according to context, therefore making the realization closer to live performance. I  upload these videos to youtube and embed the video for each movement. Be sure to use full screen mode to see large score more clearly. I hope that this technology allows the reader to have an easier experience and a more realistic performance. To see and hear what I have discussed, go to http://www.cooppress.net/Antics_blog.html. 

As always, your comments are appreciated.
Dr. B

Modal Suite Movement 3

This is the 3rd movement of a composition for the Tucumcari Rattlers Xylophone and Recorder Ensemble. My comments in this blog post are written for the students in the ensemble as well as other readers. I hope that I can get my ideas across so that what I am doing as a composer is clear to all my readers. 

The Mixolydian Mambo is a syncopated dance movement. The mambo originated in Cuba and then became popular in Mexico and eventually in other countries. Its key characteristics are the use of Latin percussion instruments and the use of syncopation. The use of Latin percussion instruments was easy to accomplish as I wrote for bongos, claves, and maracas. The syncopation was more of a challenge because of writing for young musicians.

First of all, syncopation means accenting a beat or part of a beat that normally is unaccented. By doing so, tension is created because it goes against the normal pattern. In its simplest form, accenting beats 2 and 4 of a 4/4 measure would be syncopation as beats 1 and 3 are normally stronger. In the Mixolydian Mambo I do some of this by having the recorder players shout "hey" on beat 4 of measures 21-26. The bongo rhythm creates another form of syncopation by doing the rhythm eighth, eighth, quarter. This in itself is not syncopation, but by changing the pitch pattern, syncopation is created. Higher sounds feel stronger than lower sounds. The pattern goes high low high for the first to beats and then high tones align with the normal stressed parts of the beat (down beats). Then it switches to low high low and the stress then falls on the upbeat of beat 3, therefore creating syncopation. The third form of syncopation that I use first occurs in the xylophones at measure 3. A normal rhythm in 4/4/ would be 4 quarter notes where each quarter note occurs right on the downbeat. I use the rhythm quarter note, eighth rest eighth note, quarter note, quarter note. Therefore where one would expect to hear a note on beat two, one hears silence and the note occurs on the weak upbeat of beat two.

I used the D Mixolydian mode (D,E,F#,G,A,B, C, D) for most of the piece except for measures 31-34 where G Mixolydian occurs (G,A,B,C,D,E,F,G). I don't actually have the F in this section as that would involve changing the bars on some of the instruments, but the tonality shifts to G and adds variety to repeated material. The form of this movement is Introduction (1-4), A (5-10), A' (11-16), an ostinato (repeated rhythmic pattern) interlude that builds in intensity (17-29), grand pause where there is total silence for 4 beats to let the tension relax (30), a shortened A (31-34), A' (35-39), and an ending similar to the introduction (40-43).

I export my Sibelius Music Notation file as a movie (new to version 7.5). I also use Noteperformer software for the sounds. These are sample sounds, but the software also includes an algorithm that reads ahead in the music and phrases the music according to context, therefore making the realization closer to live performance. I  upload these videos to youtube and embed the video for each movement. I hope that this technology allows the reader to have an easier experience and a more realistic performance. To see and hear what I have discussed, go to http://www.cooppress.net/Modal_Suite_blog.html. 

As always, your comments are appreciated.
Dr. B

Modal Suite Movement 2

This is the 2nd movement of a composition for the Tucumcari Rattlers Xylophone and Recorder Ensemble. My comments in this blog post are written for the students in the ensemble as well as other readers. I hope that I can get my ideas across so that what I am doing as a composer is clear to all my readers. 

Lydian Lament uses the F Lydian (FGABCDEF) scale. In order to express sadness, a lot of music uses the idea of a descending half step (the closest distance between any two notes in Western music). In the Lydian mode, this interval occurs between scale degrees 8 and 7 and 5 and 4. The metallophones begin the movement with the 8 to 7 half step (F to E) that quickly expands to a larger unsettled interval, the diminished 5th (F to B) or tritone (the distance between these two notes is three whole steps, therefore a tritone). These two measures are repeated in measures 3 and 4 with harmony added. The glocks expand the idea in measures 5 and 6 by using a melodic line of FECBF (this uses both half step intervals as well as the tritone) before settling with the more stable interval of a perfect 4th (D to A). The recorders play the descending half step motive at measure 7, this time using C to B. It is answered by the xylophones doing a repeated eighth note pattern during the recorder's sustained note. The harmony in these two measures goes from tension (use of the tritone) to resolution (minor triad).

Measures 14-15 create a little bit of optimism by avoiding the half step and the tritone in the quarter note to half note motive. However both of these are used in 16 and 17, but with gentler harmony. This section builds to a climax at measure 21 and then gradually returns to the sadness by measure 26. Measure 26 to the end uses similar ideas to the beginning and leaves the listener with a feeling of unresolved tension.

In this movement I suggest using found objects in the percussion section. The Tucumcari Elementary School was recently involved with a project that created art from found objects and that art also created sound. I am excited to see what sounds the group decides to use in my composition.

I export my Sibelius Music Notation file as a movie (new to version 7.5). I also use Noteperformer software for the sounds. These are sample sounds, but the software also includes an algorithm that reads ahead in the music and phrases the music according to context, therefore making the realization closer to live performance. I  upload these videos to youtube and embed the video for each movement. I hope that this technology allows the reader to have an easier experience and a more realistic performance. To see and hear what I have discussed, go to http://www.cooppress.net/Modal_Suite_blog.html. 

As always, your comments are appreciated.
Dr. B