More Original Compositions

This is a laid-back little tune.  Something about it reminds me of the way cats saunter.  It also has a kind of spanish feel to it, so I named it 'The Cat.'

El Gato

Bransle

Another dance tune.  I wrote the melody and second line in about an hour.  The last voice took a little longer to complete.

Ditty Canon

This tune has elements of a ditty, and a kind of reversed logic to that of a canon.  A 'ditty' is a tune that has only one part.  A 'canon'   is a melody that can be started at a later time than the original voice to produce harmony, each voice playing the original melody.  This tune is a ditty with separate voices, each of which is harmonic with the rest (hopefully), but separate from the original voice.  Like I said, it's kind of a reverse canon.

I went walkabout, and this was the tune that followed me.

Walkabout

The Funeral Cortege

Six black horses wearing black plumes pull the funeral cortege of the dearly departed, attended by mourners all in black.  The mourners weep and wail for their loved one,  while a somber band of musicians play this dirge.  Hey -- guess what?  This is not the merriest of tunes!

Dave Ricker -- may he rest in peace -- loved to play american music on the fiddle and the banjo.  This tune reminded me of him, so I named it accordingly.  Dave would not be amused.

The Dave Ricker Polka

This tune was an attempt to convey the depth of the love I feel for my wife Susan.  I think the tune came out nice, but it still falls far short of the love I feel for her.  She is my inspiration, my heart, and my best friend.    Geeze... if I couldn't communicate it through the music, I'm sure I'll never convey it in words!

For You, My Love

Blues for Jazz trio.  The motivation for this one is kind of self explanatory, don't you think?

Taxation Blues

The Grim King Of The Ghosts

I wrote this tune a looonnnggg time ago.  I composed it on a Commodore 64, which should give you an idea of how long ago it was.  This was one of my first attempts at composition.

There's something nice about having a hearth.  There's something nice about this tune, so I named it accordingly.  Go figure.

The Hearth

Trio in B flat

This tune has an unusual meter in the 'B' part... at least, it is unusual from the standpoint of my usual compositional style.  In fact, I wrote this tune as an experiment in shifted accents.  I think it works!

Thanksgiving

I had a nosebleed.  It lasted for two days straight.  I very nearly died of blood loss.  I was hospitalised for a week to rebuild my blood count, and when I got out of the hospital I came home and wrote this tune as a paean to the saint(s)/god(s)/goddess(es) who upheld me when I was dying, and saw fit to let me remain on this earthly coil a little bit longer.  This may not be the best tune I've ever written, but it is from the heart.

Crescent Beach Promenade

The Vancouver Morris community hosted an ale in British Columbia.  The Crescent Beach promenade was quite near where we stayed, and it felt the tread of many a morris dancer as we went on a grand processional.   This tune reminded me of that, hence the name.

Marmalade Fanfare

I was reflecting on how the various voices blend together to make the whole, and 'Chutney' didn't seem an appropriate title for a fanfare.  Nuff Said?

Back

Home