Star Eyes
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Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Creating "Star Eyes"
There's something about looking up and out into the stars that lets me forget about life's struggles, cares, concerns and all the of pettiness this world seemed wrapped in. I guess that's why I like to compose at night. When all is silent and still. Since the release of my first piano CD "The Sound Of Peace," I have been composing pieces on the piano and setting them aside, almost forgetting them altogether like a coin collection. You know it's there and it's valuable, but you just don't dwell on it and life goes on.
Now when I composed most of the pieces for "The Sound Of Peace," I was in deep thought over the passing of my father and lost myself in composing. It was like therapy for me. It all came together so divinely at such a rapid pace. In composing "Star Eyes" I just took my time over the past few years and let each piece be inspired at it's own pace. I was pleasantly surprised to revisit pieces tucked away in my midi keyboard like "Anytime," "Babe In Arms" and "When Love Lost" because they were all composed many, many months apart. Perhaps even spanning 3 or 4 years. I vaguely remembered composing them individually, but the feelings of solitude were present in each one, shedding light into my most intimate performances. Just me, a piano and the stars twinkling at night. I have to confess that I remember feeling sad when I composed "Once Upon A Night" because I had lost contact with a dear friend of mine and I didn't know why they suddenly disappeared. The theme of the song just builds upon a simple melody in a melodramatic way. There's a story in there that I believe most can relate to. Mine was of abandonment. I played for over 8 minutes and couldn't believe it when I finished. Every note seemed to make sense and carry a thought of it's own. When editing for the CD, I felt that 8 minutes was just too long so I cut the intro and called it "Night Prelude." I also cut a mid section in "Chippewa Winds" that seemed to go off on a tangent that I didn't think most people would get. Now I regret messing with it. Sometimes it's just best to let art be art. The cover title was a more deliberate composition. I sat down and kept playing the theme over and over until it seemed to flow and make sense. I admit the other compositions were more effortless. My favorite piece was "After The Fall." I remember listening to the mix with my engineer (I had flown in from Las Vegas) and exclaiming that it was the best track on the album. I decided to put both versions of it on the CD because I felt each one developed differently. The first composition was deliberately composed to flow into "Star Eyes" and I wanted to open in a grandiose sort of way. The comments I received from many asked why it wasn't longer and that it was a favorite. I didn't expect that. Instrumentation-wise, I feel that "Star Eyes" is much simpler than "The Sound Of Peace" yet flows in it's own unique way. I quoted from the bible on my CD a verse from Isaiah: "Lift your eyes and look to the heavens... " Isaiah 40:26.
When I lift mine eyes and look to the heavens I really feel that everything is going to be alright.
"Star Eyes."
Now when I composed most of the pieces for "The Sound Of Peace," I was in deep thought over the passing of my father and lost myself in composing. It was like therapy for me. It all came together so divinely at such a rapid pace. In composing "Star Eyes" I just took my time over the past few years and let each piece be inspired at it's own pace. I was pleasantly surprised to revisit pieces tucked away in my midi keyboard like "Anytime," "Babe In Arms" and "When Love Lost" because they were all composed many, many months apart. Perhaps even spanning 3 or 4 years. I vaguely remembered composing them individually, but the feelings of solitude were present in each one, shedding light into my most intimate performances. Just me, a piano and the stars twinkling at night. I have to confess that I remember feeling sad when I composed "Once Upon A Night" because I had lost contact with a dear friend of mine and I didn't know why they suddenly disappeared. The theme of the song just builds upon a simple melody in a melodramatic way. There's a story in there that I believe most can relate to. Mine was of abandonment. I played for over 8 minutes and couldn't believe it when I finished. Every note seemed to make sense and carry a thought of it's own. When editing for the CD, I felt that 8 minutes was just too long so I cut the intro and called it "Night Prelude." I also cut a mid section in "Chippewa Winds" that seemed to go off on a tangent that I didn't think most people would get. Now I regret messing with it. Sometimes it's just best to let art be art. The cover title was a more deliberate composition. I sat down and kept playing the theme over and over until it seemed to flow and make sense. I admit the other compositions were more effortless. My favorite piece was "After The Fall." I remember listening to the mix with my engineer (I had flown in from Las Vegas) and exclaiming that it was the best track on the album. I decided to put both versions of it on the CD because I felt each one developed differently. The first composition was deliberately composed to flow into "Star Eyes" and I wanted to open in a grandiose sort of way. The comments I received from many asked why it wasn't longer and that it was a favorite. I didn't expect that. Instrumentation-wise, I feel that "Star Eyes" is much simpler than "The Sound Of Peace" yet flows in it's own unique way. I quoted from the bible on my CD a verse from Isaiah: "Lift your eyes and look to the heavens... " Isaiah 40:26.
When I lift mine eyes and look to the heavens I really feel that everything is going to be alright.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
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