Preface
"There was yet another class of persons, - those who were waiting to attend summonses their employers had taken out, which it was optional to the attorney on the opposite side to attend or not, and whose business it was, from time to time, to cry out the opposite attorney's name, to make certain that he was not in attendance without their knowledge.
For example: leaning against the wall, close beside the seat Mr. Pickwick had taken, was an office-lad of fourteen, with a tenor voice; near him, a common-law clerk, with a bass one.
A clerk hurried in with a bundle of papers, and stared about him.
'Sniggle and Blink,' cried the tenor.
'Porkin and Snob,' growled the bass.
'Stumpy and Deacon,' said the new-comer.
Nobody answered; the next man who came in was hailed by the whole three, and he in his turn shouted for another firm, and then somebody else roared in a loud voice for another, and so forth.
All this time the man in the spectacles was hard at work swearing in the clerks, the oath being invariably administered without any effort at punctuation, and usually in the following terms: -
'Take the book in your right hand this is your name and handwriting you swear that the contents of this your affidavit are true so help you God a shilling you must get change I haven't got it.'"
Charles Dickens - from "The Posthumous Papers of The Pickwick Club"
Texts
Recorded
Sonata in C Major, K. 309 - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Kristian Bezuidenhout
1
setting off on adventuring
one among our party wonders what they
are doing
on occasion
a shadow is taking us in
wondering one
finds a possible way out or on
2
each successive iteration
develops the prior iteration
in
groups of like developments
harking back
to successively larger
spans
wrap it up
in a reminiscing coda
3
figuration marks time spans
in metrical and pitch functions
each supporting the other
that is
providing the ground
upon which the other can appear
pitch within and from meter
meter from and within pitch functions
exit through the garden gate
Étude in F minor, Op. 10 #9 - Frédéric Chopin - Garrick Ohlsson
worried waiting
full of fret
all the disasters
that might be
befalling
even as we pace
Fantasiestück in F Major, Op. 12 #7 "Ende vom Lied" - Robert Schumann - Eric Le Sage
our well prepared hero has returned victorious
the swarming kiddos
pester with questions
are told exciting tales
full of peril and
suspense
pausing on the door step
weary of it all
When Stars Are In The Quiet Skies - Charles Ives - Mary Ann Hart, Dennis Helmrich
a hymn feel throughout
and a lullaby
the melodic thread spins off
then reappears
right back where we
left it
or
the tune tosses us playful
skyward
catches
us without fail
Oh Why? (takes 3 and 4) - Little Richard [from Here's Little Richard]
a blues being unjustly arrested
Oh, Lonesome Me - Ray Charles [from Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music]
ironic uptempo setting
I Love My Baby - Nina Simone [from High Priestess of Soul]
two phrases
two adventures
and that's just for starters
Pieces of Dreams - Sarah Vaughan [from Sarah Vaughan with Michel LeGrand]
orchestrated pianistically
Paprika Plains - Joni Mitchell [from Don Juan's Reckless Daughter]
we're going to have a long talk
so sit back
with special effects
for the dream sequence
dramas of arrival home
or distant land
piano is severely limited
in what it does
its notes
designate energies
without being energies themselves
an uninterrupted sequence of several songs
'87 and Cry - David Bowie [from Never Let Me Down]
machined precision drumming
makes the engineer's job easier
music
with restraining bolts
Whoa Mule! Can't Get The Saddle On - Mike, Peggy, and Penny Seeger [from Animal Folk Songs for Children]
goes on as long as it takes
Virgil - Paul Simon [from Songs from The Capeman]
character monologuing for the theater audience
Mary's Place - Bruce Springsteen [from The Rising]
the title occurs nearly
if not quite
25 times
during the
course of the song
Journey on the Longest Day - Steve Layton & Improv Friday [from Summer Mirages]
does the habit of imagining sounds
to have been produced by objects
rather than by wiring
rest
on our (my) experience of sounds
in unsynthesized life?
is there something more primal going on?
do we (I)
need
at some level
sounds to be produced by
objects
whose methods of doing so
are obvious to the eye and hand
graspable in our bodies?
or
is it simply a lack of imagination
on our (my) part
that
I can't grasp the physicality
of the processing by electronic means
(the process can't be picked up and inspected)
possibly
exacerbated
by having become comfortable with music coming out of
speakers
to be a trace of the sound of graspable instruments?
Rx for the Wife - Amy Denio [from The Big Embrace]
flesh and bone drumming
proximity complicates count
proximate nodes
pitch is our name for
pulses of audible sounds
that quickly follow each other
but
that we can't distinguish as pulses
but
we do distinguish
their texture
as a quality of a sound
processed in the immediate
pulses audible as such
are no longer
in that sense
part of the same sound
but rather
individual distinct
moments
processed analytically
a rhythm feel
is not a pitch
feel
One Step Beyond - Willie Nelson [from . . . And Then I Wrote]
plainly arranged clarity of textual expression
allows space to pull the
rug out
Your Mother Should Know - The Beatles [from Anthology]
before the production gewgaws had been applied
errors allowed
a
draft
King of Birds - REM [from Document]
performances are composed for venue sets
groups of plausible venues
in which the performance could work optimally
a recording
for wide distribution
is aimed at a wide array of
possibilities
its generic nature
as a performance
becomes a
requirement
for marketing purposes
I'm OK - Christina Aguilera [from Stripped]
cinematic preamble
for the kids of abusive homes
and to arouse
empathy
for those who suffer such
one is compelled
to
understand her
as being heart-felt about it
Luminary Blake - Waxatachee [from American Weekend]
the voice is remarkable
even through
the made on bedroom equipment
production sheen
Waltz #2 - Star Anna [from Soundtrack]
a waltz
here
is in 12/8
(complex common)
what's
complex about three?
what's common about two?
compositional upspeak
tied into a narrative circle
Pro Lazarus - Bob Dylan [from A Tree With Roots]
trying things on
Die Katzenpfote - Anonymous - Tielman Susato Krummhorn Gesellschaft [from The Glory of the Krummhorn]
an essay in (polyphonic) voice direction textures
Shiz Saad 3 - Greg Sinibaldi [from Frieze of Life]
incidental music to a dramatic work
At The Dark End of the Street - Andrew James Robison [recorded live at The Blue Moon, Seattle, October 4, 2012]
sung as a duet
each voice maintains their own way
at what the song
is
harmony
is difficult for individuals
Company Retreat! - Gaytheist [from Let's Jam Again Soon]
loud
Part VIII of Eurydice - Hilda Doolittle - William Bond [from Quaking Aspen]
Eurydice stakes her claim
Poleganala e Todora - Philip Koutev - Bulgarian State Radio & TV Female Vocal Choir [from Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares]
polychoral
distinct voice combinations
alternate
overlap
Bless The Beasts And The Children - Glenn Tate [from Some of My Favorite Love Songs]
decor music
thrives on uniformity
homogeneity
the ability
to transform
any song
into
the same music
Nothing Golden Can Stay - Red Ribbon [recorded live at The Blue Moon, Seattle, October 4, 2012]
two tempos alternate
quicker instrumental half-time
vocal heavy
and draggy
split the difference at the end
The Talkin' Blues - Al James [from Roll Columbia]
ooze on into the promised land
rural imagery
Virgo's Groove - Beyoncé [from Renaissance]
start easy
into the dance
invocation
invitation
plea
sexual come-on
Rest In The Lord (from Elijah) - Felix Mendelssohn [from 100 Greatest Classics]
each phrase exactly correct and tasteful
we are polite people
and
always can't forget it
Monsoon Season - Pete Comley [from Lost City Music Volume 2]
our need to imagine otherness
exoticism
fantastical realms
distant planets
distant times
conjuring them
here and
now
gulls in flight
become radio chatter frequency sweeps
I recognize that bell
it is a plow wheel
(I am credited with
supplemental percussion on this album)
bragging on the roadie
Stuck in Salina, Kansas - Smokestack and The Foothill Fury [from River Rats and Pipelines]
low episode in a hard life
Rockabye - Robin Holcomb [from One Way Or Another]
living in permanent suspicion
poems of conversation
from within an
intimacy
possibly shared
Well Done - Total Experience Gospel Choir, Pat Wright [from Bits and Pieces]
personal testimony
aspiring to affirmation
Hills (Instrumental) - Chris Brokaw [from Stories]
that lonely guitar reverb
for soulful introspection
what does introspection look like?
is it transparent to visual
inspection
Track 8 - Arbor Towers [recorded live at Victory Lounge, Seattle, July 15, 2017]
this is rather nice
put some juice on the chorus
starts with solo
drums
settles back to just guitar and bass
toward the end
drum sneaks in among the guitarist's fingers
This Year - Robber's Roost [from Rage & Reason]
everything is nothing as it seems
I Just Can't Stop Loving You - Michael Jackson [from Bad]
the camera loves his voice
Blown Away - Black Plastic Clouds [from Electroplate]
far more together in the studio
than they were live
segregated
sounds
but used so baldly
it's refreshing
in a way
all
the seams show
rehearsal's footprint
Missed Exit - CEP [from Drawing the Target Around The Arrow]
deconstructed heart beat
in offset filters
Blue and Yellow, Yellow and Gold - Mikey and Matty [from It Came To Pass / Not To Say]
Seattle's favorite blood harmony vocal group
Hallelujah Chorus (from The Messiah) - George Frideric Handel [from 100 Greatest Classics]
give the choir their melody as a prelude
so they remember how it goes
was this originally sung by men and boys?
(yes)
imagine the Fleetwoods doing this
First Song of Spring - Tomten [from Cremation Songs]
whistle like birds
flutes stand for birds
unspecified mood
Missing Words IV: I. Erkenntnisspaziergang (Cognition-Stroll) - Eric Nathan [from Missing Words]
squirrel burst motion
resolving into toy steam engine face-off
staged transpiration
calming spirits have taken the field
the toy steam engines return
to stomp the ending
Ant Farm - The Young Fresh Fellows [from The Men Who Loved Music]
getting all social analytical
Zaarmu - $.99 Dreams [from Brood of Bau]
return to the exotic shores
with its swarms of ravenous biting
insects
not unlike an aural interpretation
of a cover
on a 70s
sci-fi
mag
jungle planet
issue
Friends of Friends - Porn Bloopers [from Blooper Reel]
they seem to be trying to use the cymbals
as vocal microphones
Yesteryear - Jessica McMann, Benton Roark - Re:Naissance Opera [from Music from The Apocrypha Chronicles]
the calming spirits
weary
have returned
All In The April Evening - Hugh S. Roberton [from 100 Greatest Classics]
plummily pronounced
sentimental piety
Anglican barbershop men's
ensemble
Hotel Limone - St. Paul de Vence [from St. Paul de Vence]
barely gets started and stops
Consequence - Ephrata [from Ephrata]
shimmery surface
shines effortlessly
no dust no grime
Trouble (radio edit) - Doug Kolmar [from So Said Life]
talking to the current affairs page
Selections from The Nutcracker - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky [from 100 Greatest Classics]
leaning in
to the ir-reality
of this particular ir-reality
children have such wild imaginations
yes
but this is grownups
making believe
they have a child's imagination
but
it
isn't
it's grownups' imaginations
each imagined object
is
coherent
within its setting
which is not a necessary contingency
for children
for adults
it's our way of rationalizing
and taming
our own imaginations
Night Ship - Byron Au Yong [from Yiju]
sticks
paper
exhalation
inhalations
various mouth
shapes
and dynamic gestures
a poem of sounds
Something Is Missing (Mean Jeans) - Alone In Dead Bars [recorded live at Victory Lounge, Seattle, July 15, 2017]
don't stop partyin'
inertia
and the forces that act upon it
on the edge of one
and an other
a prayer is lifted
If I Was Your Girlfriend - Prince [from Sign O' The Times]
dial past possibility
channels an intimacy of artifice
Soft Eyes - Low Hums [from Low Hums]
effectively composed pause
between stanzas
Track 9 - Marjorie Palmer [from Make a Joyful Noise]
I'm going to sing you a song
(as part of a service)
we're on page
348
Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling
sung chorally
congregationally
a certain amount of getting pulled along
after the piano
time allowed
for pitch scoopers
to
scoop
I like the voice that pierces through all
in its own unique
glorious
concept
of micro-intonation
Anyway - Emily Stranger [from Labor of Love]
tag on syllable
to finish the
word
after long protraction
interrupting breathing
a statement group
to be repeated
variously
no end to extend to
Say No Brother (Crack Attack Don't Do It) - Boogie Down Productions [from Criminal Minded]
a lecture
We Have Really Nice Things - Youth Rescue Mission [recorded live at The High Dive, Seattle, April 6, 2012]
perfect alignment
firmly planted
stretched out tempo
arrives
heavily on its ones
MOB - Camarones Orquestra Guitarristica [from Feeexta]
made of simple parts
clearly labeled and packaged
into its place
within the stanza groupings
Thinh không (Ether) - Halla Steinunn Stefánsdóttir - Halla Steinunn Stefánsdóttir, Lương Huệ Trinh [from Strengur]
small made big
close to an other
made close to me
partial
irregular
cyclicity
it doesn't move
from place to
place
but
shifts
within its own geology
becomes
a different object
past the caesurae
you may want to put
that down
and step back
now
sticks on a tight drum
an effect
much like
making it up
as gone along
100 - Brandi Carlile [from Bear Creek]
that drum is annoying me
she's singing the song
but is she singing
with her musicians
or to them
or in front of them
House of Flames - The Maldives [from Mad Lives]
composed song
with string band vibe
in a psychedelic state
Pink Floyd
and Fairport Convention
do shrooms together
Resolved - James Falzone [from So Far Still]
melody and meter play a chasing game
out on the figuration fields
take a deep breath before embarking
Green Monkey Meat Part 1 - Tildy Bayar, Benjamin Boretz, Frank Carter, Bruce Huber, Penelope Hyde [from Inter/Play]
knowing each of these people
I can easily imagine them
all in the
same space
making this sound
but
as to who might be behind
which sound
I am at a loss
though
it's likely Bruce on the
guitar
focusing down into the thick of it
where who's who
isn't who's
there
there has been a shift of instruments
in the face of X
some step
back
to Y
specific placement of sounds
the audio projection
if I move around
the furniture changes places
Real World (Pere Ubu) - Cowgirls, The [from Compilation]
outside commercial aspirations
Wild Me - Bad Cop / Bad Cop [from Warrriors]
approaches with fangs bared
slogans declaimed
70's Bike Chase - Tom Swafford [from Rough Spaces]
bursts of two or three
each figure unique
In Session at The Tintinabulary
November 19, 2023
Cabot - Keith Eisenbrey
this week's arrangement of a tune from an 1846 shape-note song book
November 20, 2023
Banned Rehearsal 1088 - Karen Eisenbrey, Keith Eisenbrey, Aaron Keyt
Postscripts
Drops
Keith Eisenbrey 6: 1984-1988
Working with narrative forms, both explicit and implicit, playing games with memory, and finding ways to set texts.
Keith Eisenbrey 5: 1984-1988
My first years back in the Puget Sound area, working with the experience of repetition and with relationships between the vertical and horizontal pitch realms.
Keith Eisenbrey 4: 1983-1984
Finishes up the music I wrote while I was in New York (state) under the ostensible supervision of the academic world.
Keith Eisenbrey 3: 1982-1983
Written in Red Hook, NY, and Malabar, FL, as I was beginning to think about thinking about music.
Keith Eisenbrey 2: 1981-1982
What occupied my time toward at the end of my undergrad days and in the year before I went east for a while.
Keith Eisenbrey 1: 1979-1981
Keyboard works I composed while an undergrad at the UW.
All are free for download.
Skaldmud's Doodle Gallery
listening journal doodles from 2013
