Night Train

Learning New Music Skills Combined with Color Theory

After years of playing piano, by reading the notes but not understanding any of the basics, I've gotten interested in learning about music theory and composition.  Fortunately, I located two very old music publications that my late, great, mother had in her music library (she was a superb pianist and composer) which are quite useful:  Modern Styles and Harmonic Construction for Popular Piano Playing by Marvin Kahn and The Majors and Their Relatives by Eula Ashworth Lindfors.  I'm also trying to wade through the Idiot's Guide to Music Composition and Music Theory for Dummies. 

This new music interest was generated initially by a desire to clean up the poor recordings of much of my mother's music, which led to trying to learn both Cubase and Adobe Audition software.  Playing with the new software enabled me to add musical elements to my mother's compositions (sound efx, loops, bird songs, etc.), which has led to a desire to try my hand at making my own original music.

Recently, I noticed a similarity between The Color Wheel (a circular guide to mixing color) and The Chord Wheel (a circular tool for composing one's own music).  So I associated a different color to 8 chord tracks in a very simple scale exercise, then sought to create a video using those same colors synced up with the underlying chords.  My late, great father's photography has also been accessed with an old photo of me filling in for Mary, in the tune Mary had a Little Lamb which appears towards the end of the video's soundtrack. 

This short 55 second video is perhaps a bit too mathematical, the music too elementary and the whole not very artistic.  But the new learning effort is taking my mind off of negative Corona Virus news and bad behavior societal displays.  Escaping from time to time into nature, music and art are essential for trying to maintain some form of sanity in these trying times.

Beach Circus Mobile

At Home and Around the Neighborhood During Covid-19 Shelter in Place

Top:  Garden flowers in vase with mask
Middle:  My much younger self, the clown my aunt made about 80 years ago, a lamp, and roses in bloom in the side yard.  Photoshop has much improved photo stacking.  This is a combination of 8 images
Below:  Sam reflected in the window of Brookside, the local elementary school, closed for Corona Virus.  

Project Focusing During Corona Virus Stay At Home Orders

The Attraction to Utility Poles and Lines in Landscape Photography

It's good to have a project, during these days of required social distancing.  I always have too many so am trying to focus on one at a time.  Having recently expanded my interest in making soundtracks, with music recorded by various family members, I'm working on creating more video animations for my YouTube Channel that feature new music scores.  This also requires selecting and editing photos based on a common theme.  By current project is "Utility Lines in the American Landscape."  With over 200 images now selected, it will take some quality time to meld them into something of interest.  Then, more fun, going through reams of recorded music to find a good pairing of sound and image.

Three Oranges

Pastel over offset Charbonnel oil print.  Forever grateful for an orange tree in the backyard!

Original Paintings Over Recent Charbonnel Oil Monoprints

11 x 14 oil monoprints overpainted with pastels, watercolor, ink, acrylic, and one paper collage.

Top to Bottom:
1  Blue Flower with Bugs
2.  Strange Journey - Desert
3.  Yellow Vase, Red Vapor

Sheltering in place due to Corona Virus is a good time to immerse oneself in art.