This seems to be developed from Crane II, which was recorded immediately previously. It also sounds related quite a bit to a harmonic theme in "Glacier Discovery" (the third track on "Passages") – it shares phrase lengths and harmonic relations. But it is more florid, more active, and ultimately more mistake-ridden and uninteresting — it ends up sounding too much like noodling. Hence my dropping the F-bomb at the 3:20 mark (parents, cover your children's ears!). Then I glissando, to figuratively wipe the slate clean and start over.
I'll say, though, I've no idea how I got the sostenuto pedal and the low register depressed in the middle of the improvisation. Literally – I don't remember. It makes for a fascinating and shimmery texture. But if people don't realize that what you are doing is organic, they think it's just some Enya effect. And I will admit that it makes me play a little like Enya. By which I am less than thrilled. And you can hear it when, at the end, I realize just how banal I've become and have to wipe the slate clean again.
Why am I posting this? Maybe to show you that sometimes the good stuff just won't come out.
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Recorded on September 1st, 2008, at Magic Closet Studios, in Portland, OR.
Let us continue through these outtakes, these aborted takes. This one gets its overdone reverb effect from the magical middle pedal of the piano, the one that's rarely used. It is called the sostenuto pedal, it keeps raised any damper that is already raised when the pedal is depressed. This means you can sustain some notes while keeping others dry. However, I prefer to use it in a subtler manner.
If a key is played softly enough, the hammer does not strike the strings, but the damper is lifted. So the strings are left ready to vibrate. When other strings in the piano are played, the wonderful phenomenon of sympathetic resonance causes some of the open strings to quietly vibrate. Only the closely related notes will ring sympathetically. That is, if I strike a C, the others C's will ring, as will some G's (not as loudly) and a few E's (quieter still). (It's a little more complicated than that, but I don't need to get all technical on you...)
I like to prepare the lowest and/or highest registers of the piano, the ones that I rarely play in, and let them be the resonators. That is what you hear in these next two recordings.
Crane I - 2m37s
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Recorded on September 1st, 2008, at Magic Closet Studios, in Portland, OR.
Crane II - 39s
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Recorded on September 1st, 2008, at Magic Closet Studios, in Portland, OR.
I love how austerely this piece begins. It is open and empty. I left the sustain pedal down for much of it, giving an extremely wet texture. It doesn't stop, either — as I throw more notes in, leaving the pedal down, they all mix together in a swirl. Unfortunately, I lose it and abort the piece at 4:35. So I suppose this is what's called an "outtake", but the beginning was too lovely not to post.
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Recorded on September 1st, 2008, at Magic Closet Studios, in Portland, OR.
The goal of this blog is to post, on a semi-regular basis (I try to update it weekly), recordings of piano improvisation sessions, for people to listen to, and possibly comment on. These pieces are free improvs – stream-of-consciousness creations. Each improv session yields multiple pieces. A new piece starts when I sit down to play, and ends when I get up. Some pieces are split into movements, based on significant shifts in musical direction, usually with a complete stop. For more info, please read the introduction.
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