The “Muse Room” is the room in my house where I make music and my wife makes visual art. Published the first Monday of the month, each issue of Letters from the Muse Room will include news and updates about my music, as well as something that has inspired me creatively over the past month.
Dear friends,
Today is April Fool’s Day, but no joke — I’ve got some music to share with you this month! One “pop” music song, and a “concert” music clip.
I’m the director of worship music at my family’s church in Shawnee, Kansas, and over the last few weeks during Lent we’ve been singing some new psalms. One of the psalm texts, Psalm 143, really struck me, and I composed a new tune for it. I tried to make it a simple melody that would be quick and easy for the congregation to learn, but also something beautiful that would fit the emotion of the words.
You can hear a guitar/vocal demo recording of it, and read the words, on my website here: https://www.ajharbison.com/music/pop/psalm-143.
I’ve mentioned in my last couple of emails that I’m working on composing a piece for speaking chorus, panicpanicpanic. The text is a poem called “Panic” written by my brother, Mark Harbison. I’ve written music to a couple of his poems before (see Light of the World and Fall Colors), but I’m particularly excited about this piece. The poem describes what it feels like to experience a panic attack, in very vivid language, and I’m trying to set the text in a vivid way as well — with only speaking and sound effects, no pitch. (Except at the very end, but more on that in a later email.) It’s pretty intense, but I think it will be really effective with a full chorus.
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Just a quick note on the inspiration front. Recently, driving home from a Kansas City Symphony concert, I saw this bumper sticker on a car in front of me:
There is so much brokenness and ugliness that we encounter on a daily basis — on the news, in our relationships, in our own hearts. Take some time this week to protest by making some time and space for beauty. It could be reading a good book, visiting a museum, listening to music, or making something yourself. Step back from the brokenness, take a deep breath, and experience something beautiful. Fyodor Dostoyevsky wrote that “beauty will save the world,” and that can be true in little ways, as well as big ways.
Peace,
AJ Harbison
The “Muse Room” is the room in my house where I make music and my wife makes visual art. Published the first Monday of the month, each issue of Letters from the Muse Room will include news and updates about my music, as well as something that has inspired me creatively over the past month.
Dear friends,
Happy March! They say it’s in like a lion and out like a lamb; the first part has certainly been true in Kansas City, as we just had yet another snowstorm this past weekend. Here’s hoping the second part holds true too. On the brighter side, my wife and daughter made a New Orleans-style king cake for Mardi Gras tomorrow:
I don’t have too much to share this month on the music front. I didn’t have a chance to record an audio clip of panicpanicpanic, but I promise I’ll send that in April. The main thing I’ve been working on is setting up a new webstore on https://www.ajharbison.com to sell sheet music, and formatting all my scores consistently in preparation to launch an official self-publishing company (to be named, appropriately, Muse Room Press). Mostly behind-the-scenes work thus far, but if all goes according to plan, you’ll be able to purchase scores through my website by the end of this month!
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This past week at work, facing a day of data entry, I decided to listen through all ten piano sonatas of the Russian composer Alexander Scriabin, who lived at the turn of the 20th century (and sported an epic mustache).
His music is not always my cup of tea, but it was fascinating to hear the evolution of his style by listening through all ten sonatas in sequence, as they span his entire composing career. The first three sound a lot like Rachmaninoff and Chopin, while the fourth and fifth sound more like Debussy. Then with the sixth he takes his own turn — numbers six, seven and eight are much more dissonant (but also more unique and idiomatic). The ninth and tenth, though, go back to more of an Impressionistic sound, similar to Debussy but more true to Scriabin’s own voice than the earlier ones.
It’s an exercise I’ve done before with other artists — listening to all U2’s albums through in order, for example. It always makes for an intriguing listening experience, and the broader perspective often brings out things I haven’t heard before in the music. I encourage you to give it a try!
Thanks for reading. See you in April!
Peace,
AJ Harbison
The “Muse Room” is the room in my house where I make music and my wife makes visual art. Published the first Monday of the month, each issue of Letters from the Muse Room will include news and updates about my music, as well as something that has inspired me creatively over the past month.
Dear friends,
Volume 2 of Letters from the Muse Room! See, I’m already keeping my promise of writing more. :) Thanks for sticking around, or, if you’re new, thanks for joining!
I hope you’re staying warm; here in Kansas City we had frost on the inside of our windows this past week:
I thought I’d give you just a short update on the music I’m composing right now. I haven’t had a lot of time lately to compose (mostly because I haven’t had a lot of time lately to sleep, thanks to our baby who is still not sleeping through the night), but when I do have time, here’s what I’ve been working on:
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For this month’s inspiration, I want to shine a brief spotlight on my employer, the Kansas City Symphony. I’ve worked for the Symphony for a little over two years now, on the administrative side, and I’ve had the chance to attend lots of their concerts. Two in particular over the last month have been inspiring to me. The first one was a Classical Series concert, which had four pieces on it:
All four of them were composed or revised in 1919. The four of them together on one concert was a really intriguing look at the crazy variety in concert music at that time.
The second concert I went to was a little different:
My wife and I went to see the Symphony perform the score to the original “Star Wars” movie live as they showed the film on the big screen in the concert hall, and it was so much fun. It gave me new appreciation for John Williams’ landmark score, and also made me think about where the music was placed, and what parts of the movie didn’t have music. The next time you’re watching a movie, try paying attention not only to where music is, but also where music isn’t, and why.
The Symphony did a fantastic job on both concerts, showcasing how versatile and talented the musicians are. If you have an orchestra where you live, I encourage you to support it. Even if you’re not a classical music fan, there may be more to your orchestra than you think!
Thanks again for reading. Here’s hoping for a heat wave over the next few weeks….
Peace,
AJ Harbison
The “Muse Room” is the room in my house where I make music and my wife makes visual art. Published the first Monday of the month, each issue of Letters from the Muse Room will include news and updates about my music, as well as something that has inspired me creatively over the past month.
Dear friends,
Welcome to the first-ever edition of Letters from the Muse Room! I’m excited to launch this newsletter and for you to come along for the ride.
What’s the “Muse Room”?
The Muse Room is the room in my house where I make music and my wife makes visual art — more than just a “music room” (though not less!). My desk has a computer, a pair of speakers, usually a couple of sheets of manuscript paper and almost always a cup of tea.
So what have you been up to? You haven’t emailed us in ages.
I know… sorry! But this time will be different, I promise!
Here’s a snapshot of some things that happened in 2018:
• I wrote a piece for singer/songwriter and chorus with Melanie Penn, called A Journey of Becoming, which she performed with Tyler Wigglesworth’s West Covina High School choirs in California and New York City — one movement of which was performed in Carnegie Hall!
• My piano piece Five Scenes won first prize in the Belvedere Chamber Music Festival Composition Contest, and I got to visit Memphis, attend the festival and hear my piece performed by the wonderful pianist Perry Mears!
• My wife and I had a second baby!
So what’s next?
I have some compositions on tap I’m excited to work on in 2019, including a piece for speaking chorus (no pitches, just speaking and sound effects!), an orchestral piece, and a couple of other possibilities. I’ll be setting up an official self-publishing company to sell scores from my website, and working toward securing further performances of my music. (If you’re interested in performing my music, reply to this email and let me know!) And I’ll be publishing monthly Letters from the Muse Room to keep you posted and share something that has inspired me creatively over the past month.
Yeah, what’s that about?
I wanted to share something with you each month besides just what’s happening with my music — something that’s sparked inspiration in me, whether it’s someone else’s music, a painting, a story, or something completely outside the arts. Something I could show you and say “Hey, this is cool — you should check it out.”
So what inspired you this last month?
Actually, I was inspired to recreate my email newsletter by the email newsletter of another composer. I first learned about Dale Trumbore when my choral piece A Magic Like Thee was chosen by The Singers in St. Paul, Minnesota as a winner of their composition competition; she was another of the winners. I didn’t get to meet her, unfortunately, as I had another premiere on the night of their performance. But I started to follow her online, and since then she’s become one of my best examples to follow for promoting music online and connecting with an audience. Her monthly email newsletter is called poempiecepost; every month she shares a poem (she’s primarily a choral composer), a recording of a piece of hers, and a post — an essay or blog post that she’s written. It’s an excellent format, always interesting, and I always look forward to receiving the next poempiecepost. If you like choral music, I highly recommend giving her a follow!
daletrumbore.com
twitter.com/daletrumbore
To sign up for poempiecepost: poempiecepost.com
Peace,
AJ Harbison
I’m excited to announce that I will be performing again at Paper Birch Landing on Sunday, April 23! The event is called “We Are Family” and will showcase artists and performers from shows in 2016.
What: We Are Family Members Art Showcase
When: Sunday, April 23, 11 am to 5 pm (I’ll be performing between 2 pm and 5 pm)
Where: Paper Birch Landing, 3740 Broadway Suite 300, Kansas City, Missouri 64111
Check out the Facebook event and RSVP!
My new concert music recording, Scenes and Visions: Concert Music of AJ Harbison, is now available as a free download! Please download, listen and share!
It’s almost here! Scenes and Visions: Concert Music of AJ Harbison will be released as a FREE download on my website (right here) on Friday, September 16. More details in the announcement video below!
I’m very excited to announce the release of a new record, scheduled to drop in the next few weeks! Scenes and Visions: Concert Music of AJ Harbison was one of my final projects for my master’s degree at UMKC, for which I composed, recorded, edited, mixed and mastered all the music. It includes five pieces and nine tracks, and will be available for FREE download on my website when it’s released. The artwork is being created right now, and I can’t wait to share it and the music with you all.
But! In the meantime, you can hear an exclusive preview on my SoundCloud page. I’ve uploaded three movements of Five Scenes for solo piano, along with the full version of I Saw in the Night Visions for solo cello, which is a recording of a live performance. These tracks won’t be available anywhere else until the record is released, so take a listen, like, comment and share!
Welcome back to #illomusicfriday! We’ve taken a break for a long while, as I was finishing school and Eleanor was caught up in other projects. But we’re back, a few weeks late, with a tribute to Prince. Eleanor drew a prince and created a pattern for his cloak, while I took a song by the musician Prince and arranged it in a style that might be more suitable for a traditional prince’s court (string orchestra). Enjoy!
I had such a blast performing at Paper Birch Landing‘s opening reception for their show Merely Posing last week, and they’ve now announced that I’ll be the featured musical guest again at the reception for their new art show, Get Fierce, on June 10! If you didn’t get the chance to check out the last show, I’d highly recommend coming to this one—the art at all their shows has been high-quality and thought-provoking, and it’s a fun atmosphere with free food, drinks, art and music!
What: Get Fierce Opening Reception Gala
When: Friday, June 10, 6 pm to 10 pm
Where: Paper Birch Landing, 3740 Broadway Suite 300, Kansas City, Missouri 64111
Check out the Facebook event and RSVP!
I will be the featured musical guest at Paper Birch Landing‘s opening reception gala for their juried art show, Merely Posing, on May 13! This will be my first singer/songwriter performance in Kansas City and I’m very excited.
What: Merely Posing Opening Reception Gala
When: Friday, May 13, 6 pm to 10 pm
Where: Paper Birch Landing, 3740 Broadway Suite 300, Kansas City, Missouri 64111
Check out the Facebook event and RSVP!
This week’s #illomusicfriday word was “Wisdom.” I didn’t have any immediate ideas, but Eleanor decided to draw an old pig imparting wisdom to his eagerly listening grandchildren. That image, coupled with a score I looked at yesterday in the UMKC library (Br’er Rabbit at the Wolves’ Party by Victoria Bond), gave me the idea to do a short banjo piece. I imagine this would be somethin’ ol’ Grandpa “Brick House” Pig might strum to dramatize the story of the Big Bad Wolf for his young audience.
As I’ve mentioned before, Eleanor and I usually get our #illomusicfriday word from http://www.illustrationfriday.com. But for some reason the site wasn’t updated last week, so Eleanor decided to choose her own word and we went with “Masquerade”. I wrote a new waltz, loosely based on the waltz I did for “Dance” a few weeks ago; but since nothing at a masquerade is what it seems, I tried to give it as many surprising harmonic twists and turns as I could. I tried not to rely too heavily on mode mixture, since that has become a not uncommon harmonic language even in pop music; some of the root notes of the harmonies are drawn from mode mixture, but I kept the melody fully in the “key” of whatever harmony the accompaniment happened to be in at the moment. Eleanor drew an elegantly dressed dog descending an imposing staircase, so I imagine a string quartet and a clarinet providing music for the dancing at the fanciest dog ball of the season!
I was working hard on my thesis again this week (almost done with revisions!), so I stole from it again for this #illomusicfriday. The word was “Dragon,” and Eleanor decided to draw an ominous but idle one, sitting on her hoard of treasure, and I happened to have an ominous motive in my thesis which is played by the bass clarinet, bassoon, and contrabassoon. Sadly, in the Logic sample library (the only one I have right now), there was no bass clarinet and no contrabassoon; so this version is played by two bassoons (panned left and right) and a regular clarinet. The motive is imitated exactly by the two higher parts, but offset by a couple of beats, until they come together for the final chord, which I diminish (with the clarinet) from a minor triad to an augmented one. Her drawing is a work in progress, as is my thesis!
This week I was hard at work on my thesis, the composition which is the culmination of my entire academic career (but no pressure or anything), and I didn’t really have time to write something new for #illomusicfriday. But it just so happened that a passage I wrote for my thesis fit well with Eleanor’s concept for this week’s word, “Childhood.” Both of our pieces aim for the mystery and seriousness and inner worlds of childhood, rather than something light and fun. I used all three of my music/audio applications for this piece: Sibelius (a music notation program, which I’m using to actually write and engrave the score for my thesis piece), Logic (a digital audio workstation or DAW; I thought I’d try using Logic’s instruments rather than Sibelius’s, but it turned out that Sibelius sounded a little better), and Pro Tools (another DAW, which I used to edit the audio file from Sibelius).
This week’s #illomusicfriday word was “Village,” and Eleanor and I decided to go with a fairly standard interpretation. She drew up a town street; I wrote a folk melody and orchestrated it for a group of street performers. Folk songs, particularly in Western cultures, have some interesting and consistent features: simple, repetitive melodies and rhythms; straightforward harmony; often pentatonic or modal scale material. I mixed the last of these a little—parts of the melody are pentatonic, while the end of each phrase has a flatted seventh, making it Mixolydian. But there are also normal sevenths too. It’s an eclectic folk song!
This week’s #illomusicfriday process, and product, turned out differently than usual. The word was “Shelter,” and Eleanor and I were both excited about it. She started working on a piece with a small cave providing shelter from a large storm, and inspired by that I created a piano riff with my favorite pair of reverbs (two Space Designers in Logic—one for ambience and one for shimmer), and some cool delay, to abstract the rain from her piece. Then she realized that she wanted her piece to be a fully-developed drawing for her portfolio, which she wouldn’t be able to finish by Friday. So instead of posting that, she decided to substitute a piece from her last portfolio called “Shooting Stars,” which also shows a cave as a sort of shelter, but with a different feel. I took the piano riff, made it into shooting stars instead of rain, and added a bass line and some subtle electronic percussion—using the same Logic instruments that I used in my fixed media piece And See The Flaming Skies. I know I’ve said this before, but I really feel like this one might be my favorite #illomusicfriday yet—I love this piece of hers, and the music adds a new element to the world she’s created. I want to see this in a movie. And maybe we’ll do an extended/altered version of this piece when she finishes her “Shelter” drawing!
https://youtu.be/tN02nVn1YDY
Normally the word that Eleanor and I use for #illomusicfriday comes from IllustrationFriday.com. But the children’s book organization that she belongs to, SCBWI, also puts out a monthly illustration prompt, and we opted to use that word this week instead. For “Dance,” I reached far into the mists of the past and pulled out a waltz for piano I had written back in 2002, I believe right before I started my undergrad at Cal State Fullerton, and orchestrated it for a string orchestra. Ironically, Eleanor ended up illustrating a girl playing a piano….
This week’s #illomusicfriday didn’t go as planned—though they usually don’t…. I originally set out to create a film noir clip, since that’s what first sprang to mind on reading that “Mystery” was this week’s word. I ended up with a film noir-ish progression, played by a harp, but with some cool effects added with the free Vinyl plugin from iZotope—giving it an old, ill-preserved soundtracky vibe. (Hopefully.)
A little late, but worth the wait! Eleanor created a planet with an awe-inspiring aura of mystery, and I tried to do the same in my music, putting in some sci-fi-ish sounds along the way. Star Wars Episode VIII, anyone? J.J. Abrams, take note….