I had been hoping to produce the Miniatures about once a week, but the start of the school year has made that a little trickier than I expected. That is a great excuse to present something from the CD that my church choir recorded a few years ago, namely a lengthy improvisation. If any of the other improvisations are an indication, I am rarely afforded the opportunity to improvise at length during the liturgies due to the relative shortness of the offertories and communions. (I suppose I could go longer with the Prelude or Postlude, but most often forget to record those.) Here, on a CD, I was able to spend the “right” amount of time to flesh out my ideas. I also wore my French influences on my sleave more than usual – Alain, Duruflé, Langlais, and Messiaen. Perhaps, one of these days, I’ll record an improvisation outside of the liturgy to express some of the other ideas I like exploring that are less appropriate to the liturgical setting. I have been spending a lot of time studying the spectral movement and that certainly has influenced my improvisations and compositions. In the mean time, enjoy, and happy Labor Day Weekend!
PS: I recommend headphones for this one – it’s a relatively quiet improvisation.