*Open this newsletter in a new browser to see embedded videos!
This month…
• new free piece
• Minor 7th Magazine Reviews "City Lights Hide the Stars"
• new publication
• guitar ensemble performance
• some recommendations
Free Piece
This month's piece is titled “Open for Three”. It's a simple piece that uses lots of open voiced triads. These create a wide open sound, allowing for space between the melody and harmony. To make a closed triad an open triad, you move the middle voice up an octave. In this example I show the three inversions of a C Major triad in closed voicings, followed by the same three inversions in open voicings.
In the piece, work on blocking the triads cleanly, and make sure to bring out the melody. I hope you enjoying playing it, or just listening.
I am extremely grateful for James Filkins' review of “City Lights Hide the Stars” in Minor 7th Magazine's spring issue. Minor 7th also included two songs from the album in their latest podcast. You can read the review and listen to the podcast here.
James was kind enough to call me before he wrote up his review and asked lots of questions about the inspiration, writing, performance, and recording of the record. I really appreciated his thorough approach to writing his review. We had a wonderful conversation and realized how much we share in terms of musical sensibilities.
I also love the fact that James made sure to mention of how vital Tom Eaton is to my music. I couldn't imagine recording and producing music with anyone else. I think we make a good team.
New Publication
Guitar Chamber Music Press has just published my newest guitar quartet titled “Moving Parts”. This piece is for intermediate guitar quartets, ensembles, or orchestras. It was inspired by imagining the inner workings of a machine….gears, bearings, pulleys, and belts…all moving in precision.
The publication comes with score and parts in standard notation.
If you teach guitar ensemble and may be interested in having a piece composed for your group, please reach out to me. I am currently composing lots of ensemble music, and I would love the opportunity to write something for your students.
“A Year to Remember”
NJEA All State Guitar Ensemble
A couple of weeks ago, I had the great pleasure of conducting the NJMEA All State Guitar Ensemble in a performance of my piece "A Year to Remember" at the Long Island Guitar Festival. I originally composed this music for one of my Bayonne High School groups in 2023. Here's a video of the performance.
I can't watch the Pirates anymore. My heart can't take the stress.
Kian graduates from Rutgers with his Masters of Social Work next week. We are looking forward to his convocation ceremony. It's crazy how fast time goes.
That's all for May. I hope you and yours are well. Thanks for reading these.
