New songs just finished today!

This was really unexpected! Your weaving of complex chord changes takes my breath away. There is an atmospheric quality here that I can sense more than put my finger on. Clearly I will need repeated listenings to grasp the nuances. My father was a classically trained pianist (Beethoven, Brahms, and Rachmaninov were the soundtrack of my childhood), and I pretty much grew up a rocker, so this is a little outside of my wheelhouse, but I find it compelling. Respect!
 
Howdy to all! Having finished chemotherapy in late April I’ve been catching up on undone projects, readings, and my composing. This new piece has taken about a month to complete. I often times, during the writing, and mixing process, have felt like I was being pushed away from finishing the project. I’m not sure if it was my own unconscious behaviors or if there was some STS interference going on due to the songs message. Anyway, I finally completed it! So, without further delay… I hope you all enjoy! P.S. the best rendition will be with a good sound system as I haven’t mastered it for portable devices.

 
I am curious: Are these midi compositions (written in DAW midi piano roll) or did you play them in real time and then maybe quantize, or did you use notation software and output to midi then DAW? IOW, what is your process?

I hear a bit of Flower Power meets Frank Zappa (or I should say the Mothers of Invention), if that makes sense.

Who are your influences?

PS - At first I thought that was a Godin but the logo looks more like PRS?
 
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Each piece is different. Some start as ideas from noodling on an instrument, some start as ideas on paper. Sometimes it’s a single chord and I hear the rest in my head. I then make sketches of form (see pic below), harmony, melody, instrumentation, and lyrics. All ideas are checked for playability on the specified instruments. After that I notate the music in Finale notation software and create a score, then export as a MIDI file into Logic Pro X. In Logic I have better control over the mixing process as Finale is not a DAW. Once in Logic everything is processed as if a live recording. I find the mixing/mastering process more challenging as each piece requires a different perspective. I appreciate the technology as I love to compose, but don’t play much anymore as I lost all my chops due to the cancer, and finding real humans to record is just ridiculous anymore.

Although a fan of Zappa I wouldn’t consider his music much of an influence. Flower Power I’m not familiar with. Influences would be Yes, Gentle Giant, E.L.P., Kansas, basically 70’s Prog. That led to Classical music. Influences range from Renaissance to Contemporary Classical. At Berklee my major was traditional composition but there was a heavy dose of Jazz in the curriculum so I got a good grounding in Jazz comp as well. My masters work was purely traditional/orchestral composition.

The guitar is a Godin Multiac Nylon String. I also have the same model in a 7 string.

Thanks for giving your time to listen!

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