A dreamy child, I was given to extravagant fictions, imaginary journeys that scattered my mind and dimmed my perceptions.  The benefit of these fanciful excursions was that I was never bored: there was always something fascinating to engage me in even the dreariest surroundings.  The drawback: a tendency to drift, disconnected from the world of physical objects and human interaction. But there … [Read more...]

At some point in my younger days, I got it in my head that a musical composition, like a chain, was only as strong as its weakest link.  That meant that the final stage of the compositional process was a meticulous search for those weak links, to remove them or strengthen them, making the entire composition as sturdy as could be. More recently, I considered whether a musical composition might … [Read more...]

Artistic collaboration is finally getting the respect it deserves.  No longer looked down on as Art by Committee Meeting, interdisciplinary work is being celebrated for its ability to bring multiple voices into a single event, to create a whole greater than the sum of its parts. We see this in arts reporting; we see it in arts funding.  In arts reporting, there is an added benefit: it’s much … [Read more...]

Young composers are frequently pointed to late Beethoven as an example of the highest achievement of their art, and late Beethoven indeed rewards repeated study.  But there are lessons in late Beethoven that have little bearing on composers who are still finding their way through the compositional process.  Late Beethoven is impossible without early Beethoven: it is innovation built on a … [Read more...]

A few months ago, a friend informed me that he was including my Mister Blister on an upcoming program of unaccompanied violin music called Solitude.  I have a happy relationship with Mister Blister, which I wrote maybe ten years ago, but the notion of solitude stuck in my head, and I asked if I could write him a new piece with that title.  He said by all means, and now the piece is done.  It … [Read more...]

We live in a democratic culture – in so many aspects of our day-to-day existence, there is at least the perception that the majority should rule.  This goes for our elections, it goes for artistic trends, it goes for interpersonal interactions -- at least in theory. In the interest of fairness (as well as self-preservation) it is important for the majority to listen to non-majority voices.  If … [Read more...]

Alex Ross’s thoughtful essay on vicious uses of music left a few interesting stones oddly turned.  At the conclusion, he asks us to “renounce the fiction of music’s innocence,” citing the damage that music can do.  “Either music affects the world around it or it doesn’t,” he says.  It’s a curious dichotomy, as is this one: “It is a mistake to place ‘music’ and ‘violence’ in separate … [Read more...]

Straddlers of the 20th and 21st centuries have witnessed a remarkable shift in human-made devices.  For ages, contraptions have been devised and refined based on ancient principles: the lever, the gear, the axle.  Now many of these mechanical artifacts have been replaced by digital, and still more operate in a hybrid universe, marrying mechanical and digital principles, sometimes awkwardly, … [Read more...]

I’m off to Seattle this week for a couple performances of Resonance by the Seattle Chamber Music Society (SCMS).  Resonance is scored for violin and three cellos, and I’m really fortunate to have an outstanding group playing it: James Ehnes on violin and cellists Robert deMaine, Edward Arron and Jeremy Turner.  Resonance is dedicated to the memory of cellist Toby Saks. I met Toby, the … [Read more...]