SONG BLOG 2 - Twenty Minutes of Excessive Music

This one visits a concept I've been thinking about for awhile. Namely, a large scale structure suitable for improvising, with enough of a form to provide direction. In other words, I've made a set order of certain stopping points (melodies/ideas) along the way and left the rest up to inspiration. The music takes a cue from the overall feeling I get from two of my favorite solo violin pieces, the Bach Chaconne and the Ysaye Ballade. This experiment also explores the relationship of F major to D major, the starting and ending keys, using augmented chords to help us get there and stopping in B flat for a visit as well. Some similar chords and scales are also in the Ysaye. At least that's what the serious liner notes might talk about.

You can think of this piece is as a set of six or so ideas that we travel through. It is similar in its concept to the "Connected Themes" I've been working on with the Orange Mighty Trio, which take a different approach to the same idea of a long form comprised of different module-like parts.

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SONG BLOG 1 - Live at Uncommon Ground

These are tracks from a recent performance at Uncommon Ground in Chicago. You can hear the chatter of the crowd after Jeff Altergott's CD release set, which had just ended before I started. It's like you're there, in the spirit of some of those old jazz recordings.

I was playing for tips and I am now releasing these tracks as a sort of virtual performance, the first installment of my song blog. You can "tip" me using paypal with a credit card, if you so desire. But mainly I want you to enjoy this snapshot of this solo performance, my first performance in Chicago.

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1. Leather Britches + Sally Goodin'

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2. (between talk)

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3. Fiddler's World

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4. (between talk)

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5. Shenandoah

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6. Jimmy's Anthem + Mystery Theme

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