ComposerNate

Arabic Blues - Composer (2008)

2009-05-22T14:51:00.019+02:00

Arabic Blues - it has that hip umph
TNR: guitar, harmonium organ, bass drums, tambourines, trumpets

The fourth song of thirteen on the Composer (2008) album, Arabic Blues was one of few where I played each instrument. It's still odd for me hearing my ideas, let alone my performances, laid one atop another.
This quick song was of the first evolved from my playing around with the arabic scale (E F G# A B C D# E) on guitar.

Let's Go Out Dancing - Composer (2008)

2009-02-09T16:04:00.020+01:00

Let's Go Out Dancing
TNR: voice, guitar, trumpet, piano, tambourine, bass drum ER: viola

Didn't you say we'd go out tonight? Or was it in my dreams.
Left to me, we'd never part.
Oh, let's go out dancing! The days fly by so fast,
and you never hold me much anymore.

Troubled now by crazy thoughts, please give your relief.
Tell me, show me, hold me... hold me.

songsheet download

The Composer (2008) album should be considered my post-graduate work, three years spent focused on audio engineering; the music was completely written, recorded, mixed and eventually mastered myself. A few friends joined in performing, but I played most instruments myself as well. I even made all of the artwork and production. Everything up to professional specs (in my opinion), and done mostly in my cellar and bedroom. Crazy, no?

Let's Go Out Dancing was written relatively later than the album's other songs, and one of the last recorded (12th of 13). It makes the best single, as it's rather catchy and relatively easy to videoize, being guitar and voice led.

Perfect Day - SongStealer (2005)

2008-10-15T13:00:00.013+02:00

Perfect Day - Lou Reed
TNR: voice, guitar, percussion ER: violin
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When Erik Redford and I performed out, this seemed our nicest closer, so my arrangement closes this SongStealer (2005) album.
Originally released on Lou Reed's "Transformer" album (1972), again on the Trainspotting soundtrack (1996) before being re-recorded for The Raven album, Perfect Day has become something of a classic, probably the only of Lou Reed's work I like beyond that with colleagues The Dirty Three. When recorded, I assumed this was written straight forward to a lady love, discovering later likely written for heroin.

Song to the Siren - SongStealer (2005)

2008-10-05T12:39:00.016+02:00

Song to the Siren - Tim Buckley
TNR: voice, guitar, bass AW: voice
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Amy Wenninger's haunting backing vocals allows my arrangement to stand proudly beside Tim Buckley's, adding a lovely touch of class to the SongStealer (2005) album. The bass effect during each bridge is the only non-acoustic instrument for this collection of cover songs.
Studio released on Tim Buckley's 1970 album Starsailor, I first heard Song to the Siren covered by This Mortal Coil during my darkwave years.

Black - SongStealer (2005)

2008-07-26T01:00:00.012+02:00

Black - Pearl Jam
TNR: voice, guitar ER: violin
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This arrangement was written specifically for Erik Redford on violin, and is probably my favorite of the SongStealer (2005) album. I consider it better than Pearl Jam's 1991 original. Note the slyly syncopated guitar.

Dark Eyes - SongStealer (2005)

2008-07-13T13:00:00.011+02:00

Dark Eyes - traditional Russian romance
ER: violin TNR: guitar
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Probably the most famous Russian gypsy romances, perhaps their anthem, featuring violinist Erik Redford.

Rasposchol - SongStealer (2005)

2008-07-05T13:00:00.005+02:00

Rasposchol - traditional Russian gypsy
ER: violin TNR: guitar
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One of the more famous Russian gypsy airs, violinist Erik Redford made me proud.

Mary Jane's Last Dance - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-29T14:56:00.016+02:00

Mary Jane's Last Dance - Tom Petty
TNR: vocals, guitar, percussion AW: backing vocals
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I'd intended to add a rockin' guitar solo, then liked it enough without. Maybe another day? Backing vocals sung perfectly by Amy Wenninger. Audiences would always sing along with "she's standing in her underwear", placed at the 3/4 mark.
Tom Petty's Mary Jane's Last Dance (1993), is often falsely referred to by me as Last Dance with Mary Jane.

Green Eyes - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-24T13:00:00.014+02:00

Green Eyes - Coldplay
TNR: vocals, guitar, percussion, bass AW: Irish flute
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My ex-girlfriend Jessi has large, green eyes. Rather than "a rock", it sounds here that I'm singing "Honey, you are Iraq". Otherwise, I should have taken a rhythmic pause in the guitar, playing some silence, and given Amy Wenninger another shot at the Irish flute line.
Green Eyes was originally written and recorded by Coldplay (2002).

The Man Who Sold the World - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-16T13:00:00.016+02:00

The Man Who Sold the World - David Bowie, Nirvana
TNR: vocals, guitar, percussion ER: violins, viola
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Written by David Bowie (1970), I'd not heard The Man Who Sold the World until covered by Nirvana (1993). Here with Erik Redford dueling himself on violins and viola, I've given it more gypsy flavor, especially at the closing. Still unsure what Bowie's lyrics mean.

Folsom Prison Blues - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-12T13:00:00.013+02:00

Folsom Prison Blues - Johnny Cash
TNR: vocals, guitar
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To sing "I killed a man in Reno, just to watch him die" with any amount of sincerity is a challenge that should not go unappreciated. To provoke more feeling and energy, I invited the engineer's wife Amy Wenninger to watch in studio so as to record more a performance. She had over a drunk jazz-pianist friend who had been hitting on her and generally being a nuisance, and he insisted on sitting in as well. When he started bopping about, then actually getting up to dance - while I was recording - I burned with an anger authentic enough to help.
I'd recorded several earlier versions, all too fast, high and fake to share here. Folsom Prison Blues was originally written and recorded by Johnny Cash (1956).

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-09T13:00:00.008+02:00

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
TNR: vocals, guitar, percussion, whistle AW: backing vocals
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Harmonizing with me is Amy Wenninger. Though she whistles much nicer than any I know, it felt somehow too pretty, feminine, and 'in tune' to close such a gritty song. The bass drums remind of boats knocking dock.
(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay was originally recorded by Otis Redding (1968).

What a Difference a Day Made - SongStealer (2005)

2008-06-05T01:29:00.028+02:00

What a Difference a Day Makes - Dinah Washington
TNR: vocals, guitar ER: violin, violas
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After Tanakh, I began working under my own name, deciding it best to build a legacy with something I'd carry for a lifetime. In University, they taught to write a fugue, 12-tone, for string quartet, jazz ensemble, choir, etc - but never a song. For that, I now studied folk like Johnny Cash, Bob Marley, Willie Nelson, Loyko, The Beatles and an enormous amount of Neil Young, in total arranging some 120+ classics.
Fascinated by gypsy music, I wrote lines for violinist Erik Redford and we performed around Richmond. Before my move to Germany, we made the SongStealer album (2005) with engineering mentor Matt Wenninger at Romper Room Music in Mechanicsville, VA. Artwork by mom Catherine Wenninger.
What a Diff'rence a Day Made was first recorded by The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra (1934), later by Frank Sinatra, The Four Aces, Andy Russell (1944), Tony Bennett, and Esther Phillips (1975) - though it made me fall in love with Dinah Washington (1959). Nearly a year after my first recording here of violin and guitar, I went back and added a second and third line of Erik Redford on viola.

I've Got the World on a String - SongStealer Demo (2003)

2008-06-04T13:00:00.002+02:00

I've Got the World on a String - Frank Sinatra, jazz
TNR: vocals, guitar
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Before really striking out under my own name, I recorded a quick 4-song SongStealer Demo at Matt Wenninger's Romper Room Music in Mechanicsville, VA. Folsom Prison Blues and Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay were then rerecorded for the album proper, while this recording and Bob Dylan's Don't Think Twice, It's Alright were pretty much left behind.
I've Got the World on a String was originally written in 1933, then popularized by Frank Sinatra (1952) as well as Tony Bennett, Bing Crosby, Cab Calloway, Louis Prima and Céline Dion.

Gently Johnny - Tanakh (2002)

2008-06-02T12:32:00.047+02:00

Gently Johnny - Irish folk tune
TNR: acoustic guitar, trumpet, flugelhorn JP: voice DL: electric guitar, backing vocals DC: violin VA: backing vocals, cello, upright bass, flute
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Tanakh (2000-2002) was a neo-folk ethnic collaborative, this song recorded at Sound of Music in Richmond, released on the album Villa Claustrophobia: me on acoustic guitar, trumpet and flugelhorn, Jesse Poe singing lead, David Lowery on electric guitar and backing vocals, Dan Calhoune on violin, plus a half dozen others I'd rather know the names of on additional vocals, cello, upright bass, flute, etc.
Together for two years, the best lineup with tabla and violin, the tabla player left for college so we added a drummer and lady bassist, playing shows around Virginia before finally touring northern Europe, me inexplicably on electric bass. We'd more recordings from our time together, none appropriate here.
My favorite memory with Tanakh is sitting on stage, bass drum and cowbell and vocals mic in front of me, trumpet underseat and flugelhorn at my right, phonofiddle and cello to my left with electric guitar behind them, and my clarinet propped centerstage. During performances, I went from one instrument to another then another, in heaven.
My worst memory is of the singer lying to us regularly, and stealing.

Brno - VCU (2001)

2008-06-01T18:41:00.022+02:00

Brno - modern gypsy
TNR: trumpet AW: piano
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This old Czechoslovakia rotary-valve trumpet had been manufactured in the city of Brno. With a seam running down the brass bell, plus unique rotating valve system, it gave off a warm and sliding tone, inspiring this tune and my lazy lip. Premiered here for my VCU Composition Recital (2001), it was never performed again: me on trumpet with pianist Amy Daugherty Wenninger.

Tobit's Prayer - VCU (1997)

2008-06-01T16:56:00.026+02:00

Tobit's Prayer - gentle wedding song
FB: flute TNR: baritone TM: soprano

Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers, and blessed be Thy holy and glorious name forever. Let the heavens and all Thy creatures bless Thee. Thou madest Adam, and Eve his wife to be a helper and support; from them the race of mankind has sprung. Though didst say, "It is not good that man should be alone. Let us make a helper for him like himself." I now take this, my beloved to wife, not out of lust, but in true marriage. Grant that she and I may find mercy, and grow old together.

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Written for my sister's wedding, she and her husband chose verses from the Book of Tobit which I then reversed in order. Since performed a number of times, this recording's from my VCU Composition Recital (2001): Professor Francile Bilyeu on flute and vocal duet between myself and the lovely Terri Murphy.

Psalm 150 - VCU (1996)

2008-06-01T15:58:00.021+02:00

Psalm 150 - lively gospel anthem
TNR: baritone solo TM: soprano solo FRIENDS: choir, djembe, tambourine

Hallelujah! Praise the LORD! Praise him. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise God in his holy temple; praise him in his temple in heaven with trumpet sounds, with lute and harp. Praise God for his acts of power, praise him for his excellent greatness. Praise God for his mighty deeds, praise him for all his greatness with drums and dance, with strings and reeds.
Praise ye the Lord, praise God in his sanctuary, praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts, praise him according to his excellent greatness! Praise him with the sound of the trumpets, praise him with the psaltery and the harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance, praise him with stringed instruments and horns! Praise him upon the loud cymbals, praise him with the high sounding cymbals! Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.
Let everything that breathes - praise the Lord!

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Commissioned by Toni Klughart for Resurrection Lutheran church choir, who chose the verse; it premiered at their Homecoming Evening Service (1996).
Recorded during my VCU Composition Recital (2001): me as male soloist, female soloist Terri Murphy, and our friends for backup choir, djembe.

How Oft, O Lord, Thy Face Hath Shown - VCU (1999)

2008-06-01T15:02:00.015+02:00

How Oft, O Lord, Thy Face Hath Shown - personalized hymn
TNR: baritone MW: tenor AW: alto TM: soprano

How oft, O Lord, Thy face hath shone on doubting souls whose wills were true! Thou Christ of Peter and of John, thou art the Christ of Thomas too. He loved Thee well, and calmly said, "Come, let us go, and die with Him." Yet when Thine Easter-news was spread, 'mid all its light his faith was dim. His brethren's word he would not take, but craved to touch those hands of Thine. When thou didst thine appear and spake, he saw and hailed his Lord divine. O Savior, make Thy presence known to all who doubt Thy word in Thee; and teach us in that word alone to find the truth that sets us free. Amen.

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While Minister of Music at Saint David's Episcopal, I chose music based on scripture within the liturgical year. For Easter, I sympathized with these hymn lyrics of religious doubt, resetting them for my adult choir.
Recorded during my VCU Composition Recital (2001): me as baritone, Matt Wenninger singing tenor, alto Amy Daugherty Wenninger and jazz soprano Terri Murphy.

For the Beauty of the Earth - VCU (1998)

2008-06-01T13:37:00.021+02:00

For the Beauty of the Earth - familiar lyrics reset
MW: baritone TNR: tenor AW: alto TM: soprano

For the beauty of the earth, for the Glory of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies: Lord of all, to Thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise. For the beauty of each hour of the day and of the night, hill and vale, and tree and flower, sun and moon, and stars of light: For the joy of ear and eye, for the heart and mind's for the mystic linking sense to sound and sight: For each perfect gift of Thine, to our race so freely given, graces human and divine, flowers of earth and buds of Heaven:

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In hymn writing, it's typical to name the melody specifically, as it may be switched out to various lyrics and verses. This Ronda Melody was named for my mom.
Grabbing the attention of Saint David's Episcopal, Richmond, this hymn landed my first directing job as their Minister of Music. Each week we had something of mine performed by either kid's band or adult choir, plus I'd sing regularly and perform on various instruments (flute, clarinet, djembe, trumpet, guitars, piano, mandolin, flugelhorn, etc.) - a fantastic learning experience. Regrettably, I hadn't yet a recording studio.
Recorded here for my VCU Composition Recital (2001): baritone Matt Wenninger, me singing tenor, alto Amy Daugherty Wenninger and jazz soprano Terri Murphy.

Benediction Canon - VCU (1997)

2008-06-01T12:44:00.021+02:00

Benediction Canon - quick acapella round
MS: soprano solist DBC: choir

Lord, send us on our way with knowledge of your love, and guidance to serve; Lord God, our father.

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The fourth from a set of benedictions and amens, premiered here by Derbyshire Baptist Church choir. Both rehearsed and directed by David Schwoebel, soloed by wife Michelle Schwoebel, I was able to sit in audience and enjoy it all quite stress free - happy at my mom's second wedding (2005). The lyrics were my own.

Psalm 130 - VCU (1996)

2008-05-31T21:46:00.038+02:00

Psalm 130 - sacred choral male fugue
TNR: bass MH: tenor ??: counter tenor

Out of the depths have I called to you, O LORD; LORD, hear my voice; let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication.
O Israel, wait for the LORD, for with the LORD there is mercy; O LORD; LORD, hear my voice.
If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, O Lord, who could stand? For there is forgiveness with you; therefore you shall be feared.
I wait for the LORD; my soul waits for him; in his word is my hope. My soul waits for the LORD, more than the watchmen for the morning.

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A choral fugue of straight biblical text, performed in University Convocation (2000?). Singing above me are the amazing tenor Matt Hasmer, whose style always wet my eyes, and a red-headed counter tenor whose name I have regrettably forgotten but was blessed to work with at Centenary United Methodist, Virginia.
As with most of my sacred choral music, the lyrics were prayer to the God of my family, whom I was desperately yearning to also believe in.
Recorded poorly in mono, this was however the work's most accurate and passionate performance.

Piano Etude No. 1 - VCU (1996)

2008-05-31T20:31:00.020+02:00

Piano Etude No. 1 - lightly free
TNR: piano

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A favorite of my father's, the melody is rhythmically flexible according to whim, so I never wished it written down. Even recording it just this once feels somehow restraining. To my knowledge, no one else has ever played it, leaving it special to me - though it's simple enough for a child's learning piece.

Psalm 69 - VCU (1996)

2008-05-31T20:16:00.011+02:00

Psalm 69 - sacred choral anthem
TNR: baritone soloist BUM: choir

Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.
O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God Lord of Israel. Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink. Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up. Hear me, O LORD; for thy lovingkindness is good: when I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach. Turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.
I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving. Let the heaven and earth praise him.

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My first church anthem written, premiered at my first church job (1995?) backed by the Berryman United Methodist choir. I'd come of age to question the religious beliefs of my childhood, found them lacking, and my young voice here offers authentic pleading for guidance, using text direct from the KJV. Recorded in mono onto cassette from the balcony, more professional performances later hadn't the same urgency.

Midi Class Project 4 - VCU (1996)

2008-05-31T20:01:00.017+02:00

Midi Class Project 4 - fun
TNR: synth
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My second year at VCU, after deciding for a composition degree, I took Loran Carrier's Midi Composition class. Constructing timbres by layering and tweaking, most of the class ended up with atmospheric soundscapes, mine more melodic and heavily rhythmic. I'd share all four projects, proud as I am, but they were recorded to tape (1996?) - then dubbed warpy and somehow ended up mono. This is what could be mastered presentable from the best of the four. Dig that drum solo.