My previous post was about how I ‘find’ my ideas, and the techniques I use to do so. As you can probably tell, I’m not one who has a lack of ideas. That’s not to say they’re all good ideas, but nevertheless, the initial sparks come easily. When ideas come Read more
No matter what our profession, we all have the same dilemma at one point or another: how do we begin? Whether it’s an artist staring at a blank canvas, a programmer staring at an empty coding screen, or a writer with a blank notepad. I’m also sure that it’s a Read more
A while ago I posted my programme notes for Circles. A work for chamber orchestra (two oboes, bassoon, two horns, strings), The basic structure of the piece is based upon one I have used in several pieces over the last few years. Fundamentally, these consist of an A and B Read more
A couple of weeks ago, I posted some notes about Summer Rain – a semi-structured piece I had almost finished. True to my word, here are my final notes! Layout One of the first key problems with this score that I picked up on as I was writing the post, Read more
Composers are often asked about what in particular influences their work. I find this a particularly troublesome question. So many things have undoubtedly had a huge influence on who and what I am musically, and on my developing compositional voice – from jams in music departments of schools I went Read more
