VIDEO: Nocturne No. 2: Passionate Melody of Life

[lateromantic]

In May of last year I was commissioned to write a piano composition in honor of two pianists in the Phoenix area who were struggling for their lives against cancer.  It was suggested that the new piece might be similar in style to another piano nocturne that I had written many years ago, so it became my Nocturne No. 2 for Piano.  My objective in the piece was to capture the infinite beauty of life and to inspire the two honorees to embrace that life passionately and vigorously.  Departing from my usual tradition of using strictly generic titles for my compositions, I therefore subtitled it "Passionate Melody of Life."

One of the two pianists passed away before I could complete the work, never even learning of its existence.  But the other loved the piece, learned it, performed it locally, and even recorded it for her YouTube channel.  As of now, she has lived far beyond medical expectations and - tentatively - has emerged the victor in her struggle.

I recorded the piece a few months ago for this video.  I hope you enjoy it!

I also created an alternative version of the video, which shows the lines of the score:

I look forward to your comments!

[ted]

Like your other works, this one is characterised by deep sentiment and what amounts to a longing for some other ideal reality, expressed through meticulous attention to detail and craftsmanship. I find your interweaving of brief lyrical phrases particularly attractive. It isn’t quite what people call counterpoint in the usual sense of that word but whatever its name don’t stop doing it, it is very effective. You must derive immense satisfaction from knowing your music has helped someone in such an obvious and practical way.

[lateromantic]

Like your other works, this one is characterised by deep sentiment and what amounts to a longing for some other ideal reality, expressed through meticulous attention to detail and craftsmanship. I find your interweaving of brief lyrical phrases particularly attractive. It isn’t quite what people call counterpoint in the usual sense of that word but whatever its name don’t stop doing it, it is very effective. You must derive immense satisfaction from knowing your music has helped someone in such an obvious and practical way.

Thanks, ted!  Yes, that is very satisfying.

I suppose most people associate the term counterpoint with canon and fugue, where a melody is posed against itself (in some form), but it really applies more generally to the art of interweaving melodies, so yes, I think of myself as a contrapuntalist even in a work like this one, and I regard counterpoint as a central skill for a good composer.

By the way, that "other ideal reality" you describe is what I believe is possible for us in this one.