Blog

First, I have to say Happy Birthday to my brother.

I’m currently working on an orchestral overture.  I felt the urge to write, so I’m actually sitting down to do it.  I have general ideas (hazes) of what I want to work with.  I’m hearing something extremely rhythmic.  Rhythm has been on my mind of late.

I went to the Zakir Hussein concert a few weeks ago in Houston.  What amazed me was their ability to play such complicated rhythmic patterns above a basic 16 beat “measure.”   In other words, they would play extremely complicated rhythms over a 16 beat cycle.  Even before that rhythm was on my mind.

I was thinking that now that I was in Houston the rhythm of life was so different than Midland, Paris, or NYC.  I also got into a discussion about rhythm with the principal violist from the Houston Grand Opera.  (A friend of mine.)  We were discussing how rhythm is fundamental.  (Ok, and reading, too, but for musicians, rhythm.)  I’m not saying that rhythm has to be mechanical.  It can have flexibility and it doesn’t have to be strict, BUT it must progress logically.

The other thing that keeps running through my mind is a rather metallic feel.  I want a juxtaposition of a chorale-like idea with a very metallic/mechanical sound.  Now, if we can only see how to make it work.