Lots of fun and interesting things in the works this spring:
In March, I submitted a new composition for piano and violin to the Hilary Hahn encore contest. My thanks to violinist Jane Halliday and pianist Sam Hodges for playing through this for me and providing valuable feedback for improvement.
I’ve also just submitted a new work for solo clarinet to a call for entries from Arianna Tieghi, an Italian clarinetist. She is putting together a compilation of new solo clarinet compositions from all 50 states…
This week, I’m heading to the recording studio to record a new piano piece I’ve written to help promote a new book by my sister, author Erin Knightley. Erin’s historical romance trilogy is being published on Penguin Book’s NAL imprint. Stay tuned for a free music download later this month.
Finally, below I’ve posted my take on Mozart’s Menuet (K 355). A few thoughts about this little piece: It starts out marked “dolce” (“sweetly” in Italian), but throughout it oscillates between lightness and shade. It does this in a subdued way, not overly romantic. A brief middle section builds up before the emotion is restrained (or released?). I picture someone who appears cool and composed on the outside, while just beneath the surface there is some conflict with which they are struggling. See what you think:
Line & Landscape 