A while back I was asked by the extraordinary guitarist and composer Gretchen Menn to write some simple studies for guitar, which seemed like a natural, fun and traditional idea. But so far I've failed. These here are three not-so-simple studies. I like these and I’m writing more, and I’ve promised to get more simple... eventually… really...
The Nines is a classic right hand arpeggio study, with the 9/8 time signature broken into 4-3-2 count. It starts in darker and moody A minor, then going to cheery and pastel A major — from smokey Piazzola to sweet Valentine.
Voices is a study in sustain and continuity, reminiscent of a renaissance vocal motet. Playing guitar, sometimes left hand fingering and the natural decay of the sound limit voice leading sustain. But sometimes lines and notes can be held over within the sympathetic resonances of the whole instrument, and sometimes they are held over magically in the minds of the player and the listener.
It is dedicated to my loved sister Louann.
Monkey Brain is a slur study. The title refers to the mind functioning stream-of-consciousness train-of-thought that we all have leaping and squirming through our brains, in quiet and in chaos, in stress and in peace, pretty much all the time. This must be true for the smartest, and equally true for the not smartest, filling our continuous thought life, as constant as breathing. In previous compositions I’ve written almost every note within some kind of harmonious logic, layered and satisfying, not threatening. This time I set out with the intent of writing every note wrong — if it sounds too good it’s definitely wrong. Mostly it's polytonal — E minor and E flat major together. It’s a quirky experiment, and so far no one has gotten hurt. It is dedicated to Emilia Díaz Delgado’s young, wise and acrobatic mind.
