Shades of Silver and String is an online album of guitar and flute compositions based on hymn tunes. The combination of guitar and flute is a favorite around the world. There are practical reasons for this: both instruments are C instruments and together they cover a relatively wide gamut of range and tone quality. Furthermore both instruments are widely played, thus there many potential performers that are drawn together.
My inspiration these pieces will be largely based upon favorite hymn tunes of mine, but some classical influences have found their way into some of these pieces. Because I was raised a Lutheran, many of my favorite tunes come from that tradition. Also, having been the band director at an Episcopal church for many years, many of their great hymn tunes have become favorites of mine. As always, part of the joy of the process is letting myself go in directions entirely unforeseen.
The recordings are MIDI creations.
My inspiration these pieces will be largely based upon favorite hymn tunes of mine, but some classical influences have found their way into some of these pieces. Because I was raised a Lutheran, many of my favorite tunes come from that tradition. Also, having been the band director at an Episcopal church for many years, many of their great hymn tunes have become favorites of mine. As always, part of the joy of the process is letting myself go in directions entirely unforeseen.
The recordings are MIDI creations.
|
The Beauty of the EarthThis piece is an arrangement of a hymn tune traditionally called Dix by Conrad Kocher in 1838. It has been used in many different hymns, including one titled "For the Beauty of the Earth," written by Folliott S. Pierpoint in 1864. With such a simple and lovely melody it was an obvious choice for the first composition in this collection. The opening and closing chords are jazz chords, couching the main theme of the piece with a diffuse harmonic structure. (Posted 9-13-10; Updated 10-21-10)
Click here to view the score (@ www.scoreexchange.com) |
O, My SoulThis piece is inspired by an old tune from William Walker's The Southern Harmony, and Musical Companion, originally published in 1835. I like this book because it represents a time when singing was considered an invaluable part of a person's education, and it taught more than just simple singing--most of the songs are in three-part harmony.
The tune from which I drew musical inspiration is titled "Wondrous Love," but the words to the song frequently repeat "O, My Soul... O, My Soul." It's a sad and haunting tune, despite the title "Wondrous Love," which otherwise suggests a joyful melody. Because the continued proclamation of "O, My Soul" sounds almost like a lamentation of sorts and fits the character of the melody so well, I chose to use that as my title. (Posted 9-16-10) Click here to view the score (@ www.scoreexchange.com) |
|
|
The Tie That BindsThis tune ("Blest Be the Tie That Binds") is attributed to Johann G. Nageli (1773-1836) and was one of the many that was harmonized by Lowell Mason (1792-1872) for early American hymnals. The tune's basic format is simple and sweet with thirds that bob up and down in a triple meter that, in my mind, hearkened to some traditional folk tunes of Ireland.
In my composition I emphasized this feature, and from the very beginning of the piece one can hear an original melody of mine that is reminiscent of a folk melody. The guitar and flute each take turns in the musical forefront, however the flute part is particularly challenging and dominant for much of the piece. The middle section where the flute plays two voices simultaneously is a technique that many great Irish folk flutists use when embellishing a traditional melody. (Posted 9-27-10) Click here to view the score (@ www.scoreexchange.com) |
|
O Sacred Head, Now WoundedThis melody is wonderfully Renaissance in nature (both rhythmically and melodically), despite being written in the 16th century by Hans Hassler (1564-1612). In fact, to my ears, it sounds like something that was written far earlier (say 14th century).
I used two versions of the tune in my composition, but the difference between them is not melodic, but rhythmic. The first version is almost a-metric; that is, it has difficulty fitting properly into a regular metrical scheme. This is common with many of the old medieval Latin chants, and I think that Hassler was drawing upon this tradition when writing the melody. I kept this ametric feature when I first introduce the main theme, and you can hear how there are pauses in what seems--to our ears--strange places. The second version of the tune I referred to is very metric, and fits neatly into common time. Finding common rhythmic ground between these two versions was part of my challenge in writing this piece. The opening is a melody of my own invention, only suggesting some of the intervals that are to come in the hymn tune. The parallel sixths in the guitar are effective and fun to play, especially if one can work it up to speed. (Posted 10-8-10) Click here to view the score (@ www.scoreexchange.com) |
Tune My HeartThis piece is a reinterpretation of the hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing". The tune is a traditional American tune called "Nettleton". Only in brief do I directly refer to the original hymn tune in the middle of the piece, but the rhythmic similarities are strong between my own tune and the original.
The original hymn was written by Robert Robinson (1735-1790) and was set to Nettleton. He was a Methodist preacher and hymn writer who wrote the work when he was only 22 years old. I had always liked the tune, but I was made musically aware of the piece when I discovered Charles Ives' String Quartet No. 1, which uses the tune extensively. Further, I have played (and particularly like) an arrangement of the hymn for flute trio titled "Fantasia on Nettleton" by Jim Engebretson. The first line of the hymn is "Come, Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy grace." I liked the words, "Tune My Heart" and they became the title for my composition. (Posted 11-19-10) Click here to view the score (@ www.scoreexchange.com) |
|