In memoriam

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trigger warning: discussion of funeral services

second trigger warning: SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION

Technically, not a funeral but a memorial: I have long told everyone in my life that after my death I want them to assemble a concert of my music. The gag is that if y’all won’t play it while I’m alive, then by Cthulhu you will play it after I’m gone.

For reasons I can’t get into at this point — a HUGE project may be heading my way fairly soon — the topic came up again in a discussion with my Lovely First Wife, who quite reasonably demanded to know whether I had planned this concert and written it all down. Sure, I said, but when I checked I discovered that I had not. (I thought I had, honestly.)

And so I sat down to figure it out. Truthfully, it wasn’t hard; it’s not as if I have this enormous catalog, after all. It’s not as if I’m Bach or Mozart and have to select only 90 minutes of my favorite works.

The hardest part was figuring out the order of the pieces, and I’m still not positive I have solved that puzzle. More work is required. (Or, you know, let my heirs and assigns figure that out.)

Here’s the lineup:

  • Six Preludes (no fugues): Written for Maila Springfield, goddess; if we’re lucky she’ll come up from Valdosta to perform this. (Maila, go ahead and prep Five Easier Pieces while you’re at it.)

  • Sonnet 18: for men’s chorus and two cellos; it’s quite lovely

  • “Not Really Bad” or “Dear Diary” (or both): These were written for a couple of middle school theatre workshops, the first focusing on villains and the second on unreliable narrators. They’re a lot of fun.

  • from A Christmas Carol

    • “Ignorance and Want”: With text lifted straight from Dickens, this is one of the best things I’ve ever written, a pounding mazurka that points a powerful finger at humankind.

    • “People Like Us”: A banger of a song, a canon for three low-lifes who have rifled Scrooge’s deathbed, cataloging all the lovely items they have collected from him and other rich people.

  • from Mass in C

    • “Kyrie”

    • “Benedictus”

    • “Agnus Dei/Dona Nobis Pacem”

  • “Andante” from Cello Sonata: A gentle, flowing rhapsody that soars

  • Ginny’s Valentine: A lovely new age waltz

  • Five Easier Pieces: A companion to — and partial apology for — Six Preludes (no fugues)

  • Azure Stone: Me channeling Arvo Pärt

  • —intermission?—

  • William Blake’s Inn: …sigh…

  • “Schön” from Am Südpol: Rather than end with the exquisite Epilogue of William Blake’s Inn — and leaving the audience in a sobbing puddle — I’m throwing in the finale to the “penguin opera” that I wrote for a competition in Köln. I didn’t win, of course, but the music is still a lot of fun: penguins and opera singers in a full-throated paean to Music. It ends in an eruption of joy, with steel drums and spectacular choral writing. (NB: On the other webpage, the piece is called “Music!!”)

Needless to say, if any of this music appeals to you, let me know. I’d love to feature your performance of it on this blog.