composition

Mare Nectaris

As I’ve mentioned previously this month, I do worry about these ambient pieces being unenjoyable for others, but two comments on the Song-A-Day site made me feel a lot better about it.  I think my favorite track this year is Mare Imbrium. What could be more beautiful, more emotionally satisfying? I wish I had written that one. Derek Greenberg I think I’ve listened to “Mare Insularum” like five times in a row now. Wesley Thompson These are both people whose work I respect greatly, so getting feedback like this is one of the most valuable external things about Song-A-Day.1The main … Continue reading

Hymnos

The last four days have been electronic or beat-based, so I was in the mood to go back to some orchestral instruments. My sample library acquisitions over the last couple of years have been as much of an expansion for me as when I got my first sampler in the late 80s, my first really good workstation synth in the late 90s, not to mention what digital audio workstations (DAWs) have done to make professional-level production achievable in the smallest of spaces. I’ve made use of the Eric Whitacre choir library before, but wanted to do something that really featured … Continue reading

Laska’s Dream

Note: The first bit of this page is what I wrote back in February when I composed this piece of music as part of the annual Song-A-Day challenge in which I take part. It is immediately followed by a coda with my thoughts on Laska and why the music is what it is. With the frustration of Sineposts not being finished still fresh on my mind, I wasn’t sure what was going to happen with today’s song. Many times when I write anger while I’m feeling it, the results aren’t great. I lose any sense of subtlety (what little I … Continue reading

I’m Going to Candyland

Sitting down in the studio after an evening of socializing, I was in a pretty chill mood. I had two false, though promising, starts that ended up in the sketches folder, but the third time was the charm, as I landed almost immediately on the beat that sparked the rest of the track. I made some pattern edits and then duplicated the kick twice to get the additional notes I needed, then looped that for awhile and built up the various synths. There are pros and cons to being under the influence in the studio. On the plus side, I … Continue reading

Mare Imbrium

If you’ve read past entries covering some of my ambient tracks and how I go about producing them, you’ve learned some of my tricks. Things like drawing in periodic oscillations for moving faders and filters, or copying and pasting tracks between different instruments and finding fun ways to make them interact. And all of that was my plan for the evening, especially after I found the primary sound that would anchor this track. I quickly loaded up the various sounds and zoned out for about an hour just letting the relatively long loop play. While the main chord progression is … Continue reading