Categories
Quirky

Father and Son Communications

After yesterday’s highbrow post, something s little closer to the earth:

My youngest son, Theo, is kind of an air head. You tell him to get dressed and a few minutes later he wanders back having brushed his teeth. You tell him to brush his teeth and he puts on his shoes. My wife and I find ourselves saying things like, “Look at me, I’m going to give you an instruction. Are you listening? Repeat what I said,” etc. His typical defense when he doesn’t want to do something is, “I have other interests.” As if to say, “Mom, Dad, your desires for me are nowhere near as urgent as what I’d like to be doing right now.” Back and forth it goes.

He and I were joking about this as I dropped him off at school, and I told him I was going to write a song about it. Think of it as a bite-size rock opera with two characters, a father and a son. Here’s the MP3.

There are words coming out of my mouth
There are ears attached to the side of your head
Do you see that I’m looking at you and making sounds?
Why can’t you do what I say?

I have other interests (2x)
Like reading books and memorizing Pi
I have other interests (2x)
That thing you just said already slipped my mind.

You’ve got goo filled to the brim of your skull
It’s called a brain. It’s a useful thing for processing instructions.
Why can’t you remember the things that I say?
Is your plan to slowly drive me nuts, son?

I have other interests (2x)
Like drawing cartoons and watching TV
I have other interests (2x)
Wait—were you saying something to me?

AHHH

La la la

Categories
Art Music Church Hallel Psalms

Hallel Post-Glory

I spent the day writing just as fast as I could and spent the evening doing a read-through of my Hallel Psalms with some friends. Here is part of the fruit of our labors. Once again, I’ll come up with a better title for the piece at some point in the future. For now, the name “Hallel Post-Glory” identifies it as the movement in the larger Hallel piece that comes after the song “For the Glory of Your Name.”

It’s always fun to hear a composition played by real musicians (as opposed to Finale’s robotic playback) for the first time. That just never gets old.

Listen and look.

Categories
Quirky

Laugh and Sing

Hot off the press and 34% more ridiculous than ever before: Laugh and Sing.

I read the instructions for the week 4 FAWM challenge, Mix Modes, and I couldn’t resist. This is an utterly morose song on the theme of joy and laughter. Added bonus: it’s sung in my very best taking-it-way-too-seriously open mic style.

Some people ask why I’m happy,
Smile at each person I see.
The wonder what is the secret
To living joyfully.

I always smile right at them,
Tell them, “The spring in my step
Comes from two words that I live by
That lead me to true happiness.”

I love to laugh and sing,
Laugh and sing.
I share the joy that’s inside me
Let the merriment ring:

Ha, ha, ha, ha…

Categories
Hallel Psalms Psalms

Hallel Post Sunrise

For those of you just tuning in, my FAWM project is a cantata of sorts. I’m writing a congregation-friendly song for each of the Hallel Psalms (113-118) and filling it out with instrumental interludes and hallelujahs. This is one of those interludes, written for alto recorder, flute, two violins and a continuo of bass and guitar.

Why the title “Post Sunrise”? It is the interlude that comes after (“post”) Psalm 113: From the Rising of the Sun.  This is just a working title. Once the whole cantata is assembled I’ll give each movement a proper name.

Hear Finale play the score (MP3) and follow along with the ears of your eyeballs (PDF). (It comes just before Tremble before the Lord if you’d like to hear it in sequence.)

Categories
Quirky

You’re Gonna Die (So Happy Birthday)

Some people might think that a birthday song that starts with the words “You’re gonna die” is inappropriately morbid. I, on the other hand, think that a realistic sense of our mortality leads to living a full, fruitful life. Wiser men than me have come to the same conclusion. (You know–Solomon in Ecclesiastes.) Whether you’re blowing out 6 candles on your cake or celebrating 75 years like my mother is today, sing this song and then get out there and live like you mean it!

MP3, PDF

Categories
Church Congregational Songs Hallel Psalms Psalms

Psalm 115: For the Glory of Your Name

This is my second attempt at Psalm 115. (The first is here.) It’s interesting to see the two different directions one Psalm can go musically. The first version was prettier and more compact, but I like the earthiness of this one better and it will fit into my Hallel Psalm collection better. All that’s left from my Hallel project is a song for Psalm 118 and some instrumental connective tissue!

MP3, PDF

 

Categories
Quirky Rock and/or Roll

2 Love Songs

Yesterday was Valentine’s Day, and love is in the air. Also music.

At the very end of yesterday and the very beginning of today I had some quick ideas that I recorded and uploaded to FAWM. Just in case you’re not following me there, I decided to post them here, too:

I’ve Got to Go

Perfect

Categories
Art Music Church Hallel Psalms Psalms

Hallel Prelude

Now that I’ve got most of the Hallel Psalm songs done, I can begin working on the instrumental parts of the piece. This “Hallel Prelude” (also known as “Hallel? Ooh Yah!”) is the lead off piece and will segue directly into the previously written “From the Rising of the Sun.”

All of the instrumental movements will be played by friends: alto recorder, flute, 2 violins, and a continuo of guitar/bass. The ensemble’s name is tentatively “The Grand Rapids Greg Scheer Consort of Old-Sounding New Music.” I’m open to other suggestions, though…

Sorry about the MP3 demo. I’m using Finale’s “Export to Audio File…” feature, and there’s something funky going on with it. Usually it just sounds robotic. This time it sounds robotic and distorted.

MP3, PDF

Categories
Church Congregational Songs Hallel Psalms Psalms

Psalm 117: All You Nations

This, the shortest of Psalms, is made up of two, diminutive sections. The first is a call to all people of the world to praise God, the second gives the reason for praise: God’s steadfast love. In a process very unlike rocket science, I have dedicated a verse to each of those themes. I was pleased that I was able to get all the lines of the first verse to begin with the word “all” and the second with “great.” It’s not a big deal, but little touches like this help tighten up a song.

 MP3, PDF
Categories
Quirky

Polyphonian Rhapsody

This is going to be one of the weirder things you’ll find here. And that’s saying something.

Here’s the story: over at FAWM they issue a weekly challenge to spur creativity among the Fawmers. Last week’s challenge was to write a song about a city, and this week’s is to write a song using a pentatonic (5 note) scale. I woke up with the deliciously ridiculous idea of a song in which different characters played the roles of different scales. Before I knew it, I was composing an operetta and singing all the parts.

Take a listen to the MP3. If you’re a true music geek, you’ll laugh out loud when the pentatonic scale is told that he’s just feeling blue. If you don’t get it, well…

Pentatonic:
Hey baby don’t get a bee in your bonnet,
but you’re making me feel pentatonic.

Chromatic:
I don’t think that word means what you think it means.
You’re just feeling blue that’s all.
You’re just feeling blue, that’s all.

Pentatonic:
Is this your way of being ironic?
Cause I’m still feeling pentatonic.

Chromatic:
I’ve told you a dozen times:
You’re all one hue–that’s you.
But me, I’m colorful and free.
I’m like the rainbow stretched across the sky.
Never monochromatic, never static,
quite dramatic: I’m chromatic!

Pentatonic:
Hey baby , don’t you sing me a sonnet.
I may be simple, but I’m pentatonic.
When the people want to rock on and on it,
I’m quintessential, I’m just the tonic.

Harmonic:
Why can’t we live in harmony?
Why can’t we let each other be?
Let’s all join our voices into one phonic
living in peace is so harmonic.