SKU: A0.1255098

It was in the aftermath of the 2020 summer bushfires in Australia that soprano Ayse Goknur Shanala rang me from Cyprus to suggest I compose a work about climate change, a subject of concern for me.  My research for lyrics did not elicit anything I considered suitable, so I turned to Derek Dowding, a local poet, singer, actor, raconteur, and a person vitally interested in the future of humanity and of the planet.

Derek and I had worked together before – he brilliantly performed the role of Abelard in the workshopping and concert performances of my hybrid opera “Abelard and Heloise�, which, in 1997, won the supreme CONDA (City of Newcastle Drama Award)  for ‘Outstanding Achievement in Newcastle Theatre’ against some 200 other stage productions in Newcastle’s bi-centenary year.

Derek worked long and late on the lyrics for the work, producing an emotional document covering history, cause and effect.  His words produced musical responses from me which I consider react appropriately to both his words and the subject matter. I hope our listeners will agree.

For the musical treatment I had to consider that the length of the work, through-sung, 20+ minutes, required a recurrent grounding to avoid too many thematic ideas getting in the way of the words.  To that end, I created a quasi-reflective section which appears, rondo-style, quite a few times during the length of the piece.  And, for further cohesion, I built an ABA (ternary) section early to address certain word structures.  Mostly, the various sections followed the stanza structure provided by Derek, with some combinations.  My musical style is essentially melodic, but with dramatic and other episodes, be they tonal, astringent, harmonically indecisive and so on.  In building the work I was principally influenced by the impact and flow of the words.

The work is quite mammoth for both the singer and the pianist.  I was absolutely delighted that Anna Fraser again premiered a work of mine – in 2015 she marvellously premiered another major composition of mine, reviewed here:  
http://soundslikesydney.com.au/reviews/concert-review-the-man-in-the-other-roomacacia-quartetanna-fraser/19830.html

We can only hope that the new work ultimately adds to the chorus of warnings and concern about the climactic future that awaits if we continue to ignore or postpone dramatic and urgent attention to addressing the causes of climate change.

A living orb cloaked white and blue and green
Revolving and evolving, tight-hugged in orbit flight
We ride her back; dependent, fragile offspring.
Suckling all the while …but have we bonded?

A world unlike any other world we’ve seen
Gifted with Water, Air, Earth and perfect Light.
The essentials of life. Freely, these gifts she brings.
Free for all but how have we responded?

                                                                     Poem© 2020 Derek Dowding
Ross Fiddes
January 2023.

SKU: A0.1135655

This is a shortened version of the song to fit nicely on two pages (I needed a shorter version for the circumstances I'm under). The melody and lyrics are like the original as far as I can tell, but I did make changes to the harmony. Usually these changes to the harmony are to enhance the word painting, or to have it be more idiomatic to guitar. A version like this is ideal for someone who wants to play a very fancy version of the song on solo guitar, though adding vocals in should still be fairly easy. I personally sing a lot better if I can play the melody first on guitar because then I know exactly what I'm doing. Versions like these can really be as simple or as complex as you want, if you want something simple, just play the chord diagrams and sing!

1. Guitar Arrangement Lead Sheet Style
2. Guitar Tab
3. Chord Charts
4. Less stereotypical chords
5. Fingerings and letter names added to aid in sight-reading
6. Voice leading considerations
7. Making the music idiomatic for guitar

Tips:
1. Notes with the stem direction going down are background harmonies that should be played quietly. This hidden meaning tends to only happen with polyphonic instruments such as piano and guitar. You'll eventually notice this anyways because there is no lyric underneath the note.
1. Slurs are notated to the make the music easier and better sounding for guitar not vocals, though of course it often mimicks slurs similiar to a vocalist.
2. Fmaj7(#11) is not in the original and is a key change since it includes an F and not an F#.
3. Sometimes it can look like the melody does not contain a key change, but then when you anaylze the letter names of the chords, you will find that there is indeed key changes in the chords. The Beatles is a good example of a band that does this often.
4. E minor and G major chords technically only need 2 or 3 notes. This is one simple but effective strategy to have less cliche chords.
5. The F(#5)(#11) chord in the second to last measure could probably be just an F major chord.
6. The E natural in measure 42 could be an Eb if the harmony is too avant-garde for you. Made sense to me because of word painting and I wanted a keyless and dreamy feeling for the end. 
7. G/B chords are arguably nicer than a full G chord, though of course the decision is ultimately up to. It is better because the chord is imperfect, it causes the audience to not clap too soon. I also only strum the chord up to where the vocal melody is happening, that way the main melody is always in the spot light, and I find songs are easier to sing this way.

SKU: A0.1460309

En 2012 se hablo? bastante del calendario maya y de una interpretacio?n que causo? un gran impacto a nivel mundial por sus presagios fatalistas. Sin embargo, entendi? que estas Profeci?as Mayas, ma?s alla? de predicar destruccio?n, enunciaban el inicio de un mundo nuevo, uno que todos nosotros debemos construir. Me inspire? en el tema y decidi? escribir 31 composiciones, una por cada di?a del mes de diciembre —pra?ctica que desde entonces mantengo, siendo el pasado diciembre mi 11o an?o consecutivo. 

Ahora, en 2024, el equipo de la Fundacio?n Copistas Acuario —presidida por mi amigo y disci?pulo Samuel Beethoven—, me honra con la siguiente edicio?n de composiciones para piano, luego de haber tambie?n publicado mi libro «A ti Estudiante» en 2019. 

En cada una de las piezas se presenta una propuesta distinta y diferenciada. Cada ti?tulo es alusivo al di?a correspondiente segu?n los almanaques y muchas veces en conexio?n con la numerologi?a. Es un libro interesante para estudiarlo y ampliar el repertorio, pero que sobre todo busca elevar la capacidad interpretativa. 

Siempre he tratado de enviar un mensaje de vida a trave?s de mi mu?sica y en esta obra, adema?s, quise expresar la fascinacio?n y el asombro que este pueblo antiguo y misterioso me causa. Se dice que este pueblo desaparecio?, pues deci?an venir de las estrellas, especi?ficamente de las Ple?yades; tal vez regresaron a su origen co?smico de la misma manera en que vinieron. 

¡Emba?rquemonos, pues, nosotros tambie?n en este fascinante viaje musical que hoy presentamos ante ustedes! 

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In 2012, there was a lot of talk about the Mayan calendar and an interpretation that caused a great impact worldwide for its fatalistic omens. However, I understood that these Mayan Prophecies, beyond preaching destruction, enunciated the beginning of a new world, one that all of us must build. I was inspired by the theme and decided to write 31 compositions, one for each day of the month of December —a practice I have maintained ever since, this past December being my 11th consecutive year. 

Now, in 2024, the team of the Fundacio?n Copistas Acuario —chaired by my friend and disciple Samuel Beethoven,— honors me with the next edition of piano compositions, after having also published my book “A ti Estudiante” in 2019. 

Each of the pieces presents a distinct and different proposal. Each title is allusive to the corresponding day according to the almanacs and often in connection with numerology. It is an interesting book to study and expand the repertoire, but above all it seeks to raise the interpretative capacity. 

I have always tried to send a message of life through my music, and in this work I also wanted to express the fascination and amazement that this ancient and mysterious people cause me. It is said that this people disappeared, given they claimed to come from the stars, specifically from the Pleiades; perhaps they returned to their cosmic origin in the same way they came. 

Let us, then, also be embarked in this fascinating musical journey that we present to you today!