Morning Prayer
http://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/114189.html
Morning Prayer was started in early January 2007 on Sibelius 4. I first wrote about it on the 17th of January:
My final work in progress is a piece for soprano sax and others. Others include both electric and upright bass players, piano and vibes, plus a large assortment of percussion. The piece is built on unceasing drones, ostinatos, pointillistic percussion and quarter tones. The current working title is is “Morning Prayer”, but my wife does not like that title, so maybe I will change it.
I continued working on the piece all through 2007 until early November when, if I remember correctly, I upgraded to Sibelius 5. The changes to the play back system in Sibelius 5 meant I had a lot of work to do to convert Morning Prayer so I put it on the back burner for awhile while I learned all of the quirks of Sibelius 5.
In April of 2008 I publish an Poem/outline for Morning Prayer:
Morning Prayer
Prelude:
Darkness all around me; I awaken slowly from a dream that I do not remember.
Morning Prayer:
In the pre-dawn darkness I begin to pray.
Wasuremono:
I wander through a barren landscape in search of something I have forgotten. A name eludes me, a question unformed.
Dream Time:
I fall into a dream; paths merge and diverge, the past and the future converge, merge and diverge. A truth (The Truth?) lies just beyond my consciousness.
Nightmare:
A repressed memory strikes like lighting, heralding the arrival of dark visions. Is this madness?
Dancing:
The sound of dancing drives the darkness away. In the center of a village I dance under a pagan equatorial sun.
Sleep:
Exhausted I fall to the ground and begin to dream
Postlude:
In the pre-dawn darkness I awaken slowly from a dream I do not remember.
While a little work was done on the piece in April of 2008 I soon put it back on the back burner and did not revisit it until August of 2008 with just a little work done then, but I had “converted” it to Sibelius 5 by then. In 2009 only a little work was done on the piece in March, June and November.
In November 2009 I wrote a piece called Eous [http://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/89516.html] which would eventually end up becoming the fourth movement of Morning Prayer.
In April 2010 I returned to working on the piece, as I wrote at the time:
The Return of Morning Prayer
Well after a hiatus of two years I have finally returned to working on my piece “Morning Prayer”. As it stands now it 146 pages, 738 bars and almost 36 minutes long.
I am still struggling with the fourth movement and what I want to do with it. Still considering inserting a new movement between the current fourth and fifth movements. (Possibly the piece Eous ). Or additional movements to follow the current fifth movement, perhaps possibly a “postlude” similar to the prelude to round the piece off. We shall see.
In September of 2010 I wrote:
So what have I been doing since April?
Well I created an MP3 of what exits of “Morning Prayer” and loaded into my mp3 player at the end of April, I then took a walk every night for about six straight weeks while listening to the entire 36 minutes of music. What I came away from this experiment is that I am happy with the prelude, which is finished. I am happy with the first movement which is 99 and 44/100ths finished. I am happy with the second movement which is 99 percent finished. I am happy with the third movement which is 90 percent finished. I am pretty happy with the fifth movement, some doubt about the “second theme”, but overall happy with it and it is about 80 percent finished. And I know what needs to be done with it, and I just need to take the time to do it.
That just leaves the troublesome fourth movement. I have altered it several times, have tired different approaches; making it only drum and bass, making it an acoustic piano feature, using a bunch of synthesizers, using synthesizer pads with free soprano sax lines over a driving bass/drum ostinato and even considered replacing it whole sale with my piece “Eous” But nothing seems to work, so I have put the piece back on the back burner.
Which brings us to August of 2011 more than four and a half years and three versions of Sibelius after starting Morning Prayer I have decided to share with you a 98 percent finished Morning Prayer and a very Raw recording of it. Be warned; it is 39 minutes of self indulgent navel gazing.
Morning Prayer
http://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/114189.html
Morning Prayer was started in early January 2007 on Sibelius 4. I first wrote about it on the 17th of January:
My final work in progress is a piece for soprano sax and others. Others include both electric and upright bass players, piano and vibes, plus a large assortment of percussion. The piece is built on unceasing drones, ostinatos, pointillistic percussion and quarter tones. The current working title is is “Morning Prayer”, but my wife does not like that title, so maybe I will change it.
I continued working on the piece all through 2007 until early November when, if I remember correctly, I upgraded to Sibelius 5. The changes to the play back system in Sibelius 5 meant I had a lot of work to do to convert Morning Prayer so I put it on the back burner for awhile while I learned all of the quirks of Sibelius 5.
In April of 2008 I publish an Poem/outline for Morning Prayer:
Morning Prayer
Prelude:
Darkness all around me; I awaken slowly from a dream that I do not remember.
Morning Prayer:
In the pre-dawn darkness I begin to pray.
Wasuremono:
I wander through a barren landscape in search of something I have forgotten. A name eludes me, a question unformed.
Dream Time:
I fall into a dream; paths merge and diverge, the past and the future converge, merge and diverge. A truth (The Truth?) lies just beyond my consciousness.
Nightmare:
A repressed memory strikes like lighting, heralding the arrival of dark visions. Is this madness?
Dancing:
The sound of dancing drives the darkness away. In the center of a village I dance under a pagan equatorial sun.
Sleep:
Exhausted I fall to the ground and begin to dream
Postlude:
In the pre-dawn darkness I awaken slowly from a dream I do not remember.
While a little work was done on the piece in April of 2008 I soon put it back on the back burner and did not revisit it until August of 2008 with just a little work done then, but I had “converted” it to Sibelius 5 by then. In 2009 only a little work was done on the piece in March, June and November.
In November 2009 I wrote a piece called Eous [http://www.scoreexchange.com/scores/89516.html] which would eventually end up becoming the fourth movement of Morning Prayer.
In April 2010 I returned to working on the piece, as I wrote at the time:
The Return of Morning Prayer
Well after a hiatus of two years I have finally returned to working on my piece “Morning Prayer”. As it stands now it 146 pages, 738 bars and almost 36 minutes long.
I am still struggling with the fourth movement and what I want to do with it. Still considering inserting a new movement between the current fourth and fifth movements. (Possibly the piece Eous ). Or additional movements to follow the current fifth movement, perhaps possibly a “postlude” similar to the prelude to round the piece off. We shall see.
In September of 2010 I wrote:
So what have I been doing since April?
Well I created an MP3 of what exits of “Morning Prayer” and loaded into my mp3 player at the end of April, I then took a walk every night for about six straight weeks while listening to the entire 36 minutes of music. What I came away from this experiment is that I am happy with the prelude, which is finished. I am happy with the first movement which is 99 and 44/100ths finished. I am happy with the second movement which is 99 percent finished. I am happy with the third movement which is 90 percent finished. I am pretty happy with the fifth movement, some doubt about the “second theme”, but overall happy with it and it is about 80 percent finished. And I know what needs to be done with it, and I just need to take the time to do it.
That just leaves the troublesome fourth movement. I have altered it several times, have tired different approaches; making it only drum and bass, making it an acoustic piano feature, using a bunch of synthesizers, using synthesizer pads with free soprano sax lines over a driving bass/drum ostinato and even considered replacing it whole sale with my piece “Eous” But nothing seems to work, so I have put the piece back on the back burner.
Which brings us to August of 2011 more than four and a half years and three versions of Sibelius after starting Morning Prayer I have decided to share with you a 98 percent finished Morning Prayer and a very Raw recording of it. Be warned; it is 39 minutes of self indulgent navel gazing.
Morning Prayer
Ursus Demens
