A rag and some swing

[ted]

The rag is one of a number of pieces I used to write for my father, without whose help, after all, I would never have had such remarkable teachers and probably would never have enjoyed music the way I do now. His technique wasn't the best in his eighties but he never seemed to have any trouble playing anything I wrote for him.

The other piece is Sefton Daly's Brief Candles. Daly was an Australian composer and a very accomplished swing pianist. Brief Candles is dedicated to Noel Coward and there is an interesting anecdote about it. I have little reason to doubt its truth as my teacher told me much less believable stories which turned out to be true.

According to my teacher, Daly and Coward turned up at his place with Daly complaining that he had written the first strain of this piece and was stuck. My teacher, remarking that he should change the key, sat down and improvised the second strain on the spot. Daly said, "That's it ! Can I have that ?" He wrote the rest himself and Brief Candles came into being.

Anyway, whether the story is true or not (I feel it probably is) Brief Candles is a delightful piece, and I still find it as hard to play well now as I did at fourteen. It has a heft of tenths and fat chords which have to sound reasonably light.

[rachfan]

Hi Ted,

I thought your "Vivacity Rag" was great!  It has the echoes of traditional ragtime style, yet it's also imbued with a fresh, contemporary sound, which captivates the listener and holds interest.  A fine piece, beautifully played.

This was the first time too I had heard Daly's "Brief Candles".  You're right, it is a delightful work.  You play it with fine fluidity, clarity, and a fluency for "swing".  A very engaging performance. 

Thanks for posting these two pieces.     

[ted]

I am pleased you like them. I am in the process of relearning all the stuff I wrote years ago so expect some more. If sufficient interest is shown in these old styles, then I could probably write more pieces. I have gone in other musical directions for a few years but it isn't something you ever forget how to do.