T. 63--Songs from an Imaginary Musical

One day, as I was exploring the online albums of the Vitamin String Quartet, I came across one of their original pieces. It was called “Theme from an ImaginaryMusical.” I listened to the piece and thought, “Wouldn’t it be cool to have a song cycle of sorts which together would make up an ‘imaginary musical’ with instruments as the characters?” There wouldn’t be any singing, just musical instruments playing themes and “singing” together in these “songs” that could play out some sort of plot and feel like selections from a musical. The instruments would effectively work both as soloists, and as accompanists. 

I already had the makings of a ballad theme in my head, so I thought I’d use it as a start for this “song” cycle. I had been wanting to make a song cycle, and now I had a good idea for one. I originally thought to write twelve “songs,” but decided eight would be enough. This is where the idea for “Ballad” originally came from. Let me also make it clear that I never had a concrete plot in mind for this “imaginary musical,” only suggestions. My concept was to write a series of pieces that could suggest a vague plot with interactions of several instrumental “characters.” I do have a suggested song order below, though they could really be played in any order and still convey some sort of story. Even the instrumentation can be flexible for necessity or variety (for example, you could substitute a viola for the violin, piano for vibraphone, or French horn for trombone). Though I am proud of how I’ve put it all together, I am not opposed to musicians taking what I’ve written and providing their own unique interpretations.

From the suggested order below, here is a general plot I’ve come up with: We are introduced to all the characters, as well as their relationships to each other. In general, they are a group of friends and acquaintances. The bassoon has taken a liking to the oboe, though he is hesitant to move forward, much to the oboe’s frustration (“Exposition”). The violin talks with the bassoon and encourages him to follow his heart and marry the oboe (“Encouragement”). The bassoon is very nervous and simply yet sincerely asks the oboe to marry him, and she says yes (“Yes!”). Later, there is a debate between the bassoon and the trombone, which leads to the two of them getting upset at each other, rupturing their friendship (“Debate”). The trombone is especially angry and becomes antagonistic (“No!”). Things have taken a turn for the worse. The oboe and the clarinet lament the conflict and declare their longing for love and their hope for a happier future (“Ballad”). The cello finds himself out alone in the rain, which inspires him and helps him to rise above the pressing challenges (“Inspiration by Precipitation”). In the end, conflicts are resolved and everyone contemplates on the lessons learned, and on their valued relationships (“Conclusion”). This is what I had in mind as I wrote the song cycle, but it doesn’t have to be the only possibility. The songs are intended to have meaning, but the exact meanings are intentionally vague. 
 

1. Exposition—May 30, 2015

During the summer of 2014, a friend of mine approached me about writing a musical based on Pokémon. I was ecstatic! It sounded like a fun idea! My friend was developing a hilarious plot, as well as some song lyrics. He wanted me to write the music, and help with the development of the musical. We had several meetings throughout the summer, in which we discussed and developed three songs: an exposition song, a hilarious rap for Mewtwo (titled, “I’m Awesome!”), and a song of encouragement for Brock to sing to Ash (titled, "Ope Your Eyes"). With other compelling priorities (school, work, family), and realizing the amount of work required for such an ambitious project, the musical hasn't progressed beyond these three songs. However, I decided not to let these songs go to waste, so I used the tunes for this song cycle.

Exposition in this song cycle is directly based on the exposition song intended for the Pokémon musical. I set up this piece so that the audience could be “introduced” to all of the characters and some of the relationships between them. This approach also allowed me to use the same themes multiple times, kind of like a theme and variations piece. I experimented with time signature, instrumentation, and dynamics. This was a challenge to write because of its variety, but I am very pleased with how it turned out. Perhaps my favorite piece in this cycle.

2. Encouragement—Apr. 26, 2015

In the Pokémon musical, my friend wanted a song in a calypso/reggae style that Brock would sing to Ash after he sees Ash all depressed now that he’s “caught ‘em all.” There is humor in the song title, “Open Your Eyes,” because Brock’s eyes in the animated TV show always appeared to be closed. For "Encouragement," I took the melody and the steel drum accompaniment from “Open Your Eyes” and transferred them onto violin and vibraphone parts. I went back and forth between assigning the solo to the flute or the violin. Either one would work, really, but I chose the violin in the score because it didn’t have as many solo parts in other pieces. Apart from the instrumentation, this piece is very similar to “Open Your Eyes.” 

3. Yes!—Jun. 4, 2015

This piece was written with a more concrete scenario in mind. I imagined a nervous bassoon mustering the courage to ask the oboe to marry him. The bassoon’s opening “dialogue” is adapted from the first few measures of T. 27, Dialogue for Two Oboes and Cello. If I were asked to write lyrics for this piece, I know exactly what I’d write for the repeated bassoon motif: “Will you marry me?” This is followed by the oboe’s “gasp of surprise.” This is my interpretation, of course. I’m sure other possibilities are out there. 

4. Debate—Jul. 14, 2014

Chronologically, this is the third piece I finished for Songs from an Imaginary Musical. I am surprised I got this done so quickly after the second one (“Inspiration by Precipitation”). The main melody that is used over and over was originally intended as a setting for the song of the Sorting Hat from the Harry Potter books. Then one day I decided to see how it would sound with a variation of another theme that I had in my mind. This second theme was intended for a piece that depicted a battle scene at some sort of an arena. This theme is plucked by the cello for most of the piece. With these two themes I developed the concept of a debate between two instruments, with the accompanying instruments (violin and cello) as bystanders. As the main characters of this piece, I chose two instruments I hadn’t used yet: a bassoon and a trombone. Their low tones work well for the scene of an increasingly heated debate. The basic form of the piece came easily enough, so all I had to do was write it. To increase the intensity of the debate, I marked an increase of dynamics and of tempo throughout the piece. This debate isn’t a shouting match, per se, although the discussion between the two players becomes more intense as the two instruments continue to interrupt, speak out of turn, and even debate simultaneously. The violin and the cello keep the setting alive with attacked staccatos and disjointed rhythms. 

A word about how the piece ends: because this piece is meant to be "part of a musical," it (and all other pieces in the “song” cycle) is written with the assumption that the plot would continue after the piece was over. This piece ends right at a climax in the debate, and the sustained note of the violin would provide a transition into the rest of the imaginary scene. 

5. No!—Jun. 5, 2015

This piece is loosely based on the Mewtwo rap written for the unfinished Pokémon musical. There wasn’t much music in the rap apart from words and beat-boxing. I used a single menacing motif throughout, which appears as A-F-D-G in this piece. This was the last piece I completed for the cycle, mostly because I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to do with it. I knew I wanted something to show evidence of conflict, and I liked the idea of having two pieces with opposite and emphatic titles: “Yes!” and “No!” I also knew I wanted to have similar rhythms and meters as the Mewtwo rap. Then there was the other idea to include some cello percussion (what you hear as MIDI drum sounds is meant to be the cello player knocking and slapping the wood of the cello). I admittedly threw all of these things together in a short period of time, seeing that this was the last piece in the cycle and I was excited that I was so close to finishing the whole thing. I think this piece as it is fulfills the purposes I had in mind. It is short, but I didn’t have any reason to make it longer. 

6. Ballad—Mar. 4, 2014

This is the first piece I wrote for the cycle. I wanted to write a duet with an oboe and a clarinet, with a vibraphone accompanying them (at first I wrote that part for piano, but I chose a vibraphone because I preferred its sound for this piece, and I was learning mallet percussion at the time). As I continued to develop the theme of this piece and write the form of the ballad from my mind onto Finale, a different motivation began to emerge. This piece became a little more personal as I decided on a vague backstory. In the imaginary musical, I imagine this ballad to be sung by two lovers (or two best friends, or two family members) who are at this point separated from each other. I intended for the piece to convey a sense of longing, but with unfailing hope for happiness in the future. That’s why I often delay satisfying cadences and resolutions at the end of phrases and in the vibraphone part at the very end of the piece. Writing this piece became a way for me to express my personal longing and hope for a romantic relationship. At the time I composed this piece, I was feeling frustrated and anxious about the dating scene around me, and—as cliché as this sounds—I just wanted to find someone to love. I expressed my longing at that time, as well as my hope in the future, in this piece. I also expressed these thoughts and feelings a lot in my journal, including these reasons for writing this piece the way I did.

7. Inspiration by Precipitation—Jul. 5, 2014

This duet was inspired by two songs: “Rainy Day” by Coldplay and “Singin’ in the Rain.” When I find myself walking alone in the rain, I often sing these songs to myself. At times, I came up with other melodies and put the words from “Singin’ in the Rain” into my melodies. I had the image of a person (me) walking along, admiring the raindrops around him, and feeling inspired to sing, to create something positive. I imagined the vibraphone representing the rain and the cello representing myself feeling happy, refreshed, and inspired by the rain. As I developed the concept and form of this piece, I enjoyed using rhythmic variety in the vibraphone part that could come from variations of just a few musical ideas. 

My first draft of this piece had two verses (repeating measures 26–91, the "chorus,"with slight rhythmic variation for the vibraphone), which made it over six minutes long. Since the other pieces in this set are no longer than three or four minutes, I decided to cut the second verse entirely. I still have the longer version on file, but the shorter version (which now lasts just over four and a half minutes) is the official installment in the cycle. 

8. Conclusion—Apr. 26, 2015

When I heard the opening measures of the King’s Singers’ arrangement of "Greensleeves," I instantly loved it and I wanted to write something like it. This is the motivation behind a lot of my pieces in general, wanting to create something that I enjoy hearing, to create music that I like (see Steve Reich quote in the Introduction). I couldn’t think of any other place to put this piece in the cycle, so I thought it would be fine for a concluding piece, especially if all the instruments are involved (like in “Exposition”). The flute hadn’t done much yet, so I made it the featured soloist, with some support from the trombone. I really like using the “full chorus” effect, so I did that for the third verse of the song. The melody is certainly inspired by Paul Simon’s "Scarborough Fair." This conclusion to the song cycle is intended to be contemplative. What is the subject of contemplation? Why is everyone involved? Is this truly the end of the musical, or is there more after this song? For this song, as well as all the others in this cycle, I leave such questions open for exploration and interpretation.

T. 62--Leading Edge Theme

A friend of mine, Sam Wright, was working on the staff of a BYU science fiction/fantasy publication called Leading Edge. The staff wanted to start a podcast, complete with some sort of introductory jingle. Sam was acquainted with my composition skills (we had previously worked together on three Pokémon-themed songs, more about that when I talk about T. 63), so he asked me to write this jingle. The guidelines were that it should be about ten seconds long, and the staff wanted it to sound similar to the opening theme of the popular TV show, How I Met Your Mother. 

I listened to the How I Met Your Mother theme and came up with a short melody that sounded similar. I then spent an hour working out the bass, chords, and instrumentation for the melody. I spent another hour recording my own beatboxing and singing, and finalizing the sound files. I wasn’t sure exactly what instrumentation Leading Edge wanted, so I made four versions: piano with vocal, a cappella, string quartet, and string quartet with beatboxing. I had a lot of fun making this little theme, and Sam and the rest of the staff liked it as well (they preferred the piano/vocal version). The plan was to have a podcast up and running in in early 2015. As far as I know, it never came to fruition (at least, nothing has happened with it at the time of this post). Even so, I am very grateful for this opportunity to do what all beginning composers are asked to do at some point: write a short, fun, memorable jingle. 

T. 61--Some Themes and Variations (On Seas and Many Oceans)

I am quite proud of this piece. I came up with another cool pirate-y theme when I was in high school, but I didn’t really start writing this piece until my freshman year at BYU. It was just another musical idea I thought was worth developing, and it starts with the triplets played by the first violins in the beginning. I had a few other good ideas about how to set up the other string parts to make really interesting harmonies and rhythms. I kept going until I had written 50 measures. After that, I didn’t know what to do, but I was really pleased with what I had written so far. I liked how I had the cellos playing the melody with a neat bass line; I liked the “wave” effect in the violins and violas beginning on measure 40; and I loved the feeling of drama and adventure that is anticipated in the first twelve measures, later realized with the setting of the main theme. But after all that, I had nothing. I played around with it in my head on occasion over the next few years, but I didn’t make much progress until I returned to BYU after my mission. At measure 50, I decided to give the theme to the violas and that resulted in a new setting of the theme, but soon I was stuck again. My nameless piece remained until I heard about the Vera Hinckley Mayhew Student Creative Arts Contest. One of the eight categories was music composition. I was determined to enter something for the contest and decided it was the perfect excuse to finally finish this piece.

To come up with ideas, I turned back to my previous compositions that were inspired by stories of pirates and eighteenth century mariners: Pirates Rock! and Voyage. I toyed with the idea of unifying the pieces into some sort of trilogy. I eventually settled on the idea to play around with other themes in my piece, namely the bass line of the main melody. I treated it as an independent melody (I’ve noticed that this bass melody is similar to the classic “Dies Irae” theme that many other composers have used, such as Berlioz in the final movement of his Symphonie Fantastique.). I took this bass theme and split it up, turned it upside down, and gave it to different instruments to continue the drama and to unify the piece while still giving a variety of textures. (Starting on measure 70, the second violins pluck the upside-down bass melody, and I think it sounds similar to the bass line of Carl Orff’s O Fortuna.) 

What to do after that? Why, introduce a new melody, of course! But this isn’t an entirely new melody; it is taken from Voyage. Using ideas from Voyage, as well as textures and themes used previously in this piece, I kept writing and writing. I was getting more and more excited about this piece as it was finally coming together after five years in the making. What better way to finish it off than with the very first main melody, but embellished by the eighth-note pattern in the cello line? I think this would be such an exciting piece to hear from a live string orchestra. Throughout the entire piece I was going for grandeur, excitement, adventure on the open seas. I named this piece after ideas that inspired it (seas and oceans), and after the concept of themes and variations that I intended for the piece. Before I submitted this piece to the Mayhew Contest, I showed it to my friend, co-worker, and fellow student composer, John C. Leavitt. His comments were valuable to me: 

“Great job! You have done exellent [sic] work here. You make great use of contrary motion (bass voices moving up while upper voices are moving down) which makes for cool texture. You also do a great job of distributing melodic lines amongst different sections - your performers will appreciate that since it will be interesting to play. I think your use of a triple meter is effective in the imagery of an ocean - rolling waves, a lot of swirling motion. Often there were moments where it seemed very minimalist to me which was cool. Overall the form was strong too as you return to the opening sequence in the end. I can't wait to hear a performance! Great work!!”

I didn’t win anything from the contest, but I completed this great, fun piece that I can be proud of (and I am!).

T. 60--Winter Winds: A Snow Chant

Winter in Provo, UT, is lovely. I love to watch large, fluffy snowflakes slowly descend from the sky. As I walked around campus between classes, a calm winter melody came to my mind. I imagined a wind quintet depicting this lovely winter scene, and it would begin with the clarinet playing my new theme. As soon as I had the beginnings of a new piece, I went on Finale and wrote the first page and a half. I wasn't quite sure what to do next, but I did want to give the impression of a cool, polyphonic renaissance chant. That’s why I give this wind quintet the slightly clever title of “Winter Winds: A Snow Chant.” 

The faster, polyphonic theme that begins with the flute and oboe (after the clarinet solo) is actually a phrase recycled from “I Know Where The Sun Hides.” I enjoy taking old themes and modifying them to fit new settings. The recycled phrase actually works quite well with the slow clarinet theme, since the two themes have similar melodic contours. I played with that a bit near the end when I have the quintet play both themes at once. The overall feeling of the piece is meant to invoke a mental picture of a beautiful snowy day, which you might see while standing alone in a wooded area. I had hoped this piece would be longer and turn out a bit better, but I simply ran out of ideas for the piece. I could always come back to it later. In any case, I decided to tie up all the loose ends by ending the piece the same way I started it.