- Shorts #42: Lacewing2023/02/01
This piece was commissioned and titled by Tim Walters. This piece has two instruments – one uses the Ringz Ugen in SuperCollider and the other is a Sine wave which is phase modulated by another sine wave where both are tuned to the same frequency. It is in harmonic minor, …
- Shorts #41: Catalyst2022/08/16
This piece was commissioned and titled by Andy Bannister. Explaining why he picked this title, he said, “My thought process for this, is that the first half sounds like a catalyst for a reaction towards the latter half which could also be interpreted the sound of a substance or object …
- Glass2021/09/17
This piece was composed using SuperCollider and a synthesiser for Irene’s birthday. It was presented as a part of an installation at the Rupture Gaming Festival in Kent. The source material is recorded with an analogue modular synthesiser. The SuperCollider program takes that material and granulates it, dramatically changing the …
- Sawtooth Minimalism2021/03/06
My colleague, Jackie Walduck, was showing students how to create phase music by putting loops out of synch in a DAW. Then I went home from teaching and created a PD patch to play low-pass filtered sawtooth waves, as an example for a different class. I got curious how much …
- The Last Christmas: III Misterioso2019/01/06
As per holiday tradition, I have again produced a Christmas album, although only an EP this year – or a virtual chamber ensemble playing once piece in five movements. This movement is the odd one out, using the same MIDI data for pitch and rhythm as the other movements use. …
- Santa Loves You2017/12/23
Santa Loves You I was extremely startled to hear the religious content in the second verse of Here Comes Santa Claus. It seems the authors were responding to criticism of the secular/commercial focus of most Santa-based songs and thus were trying to have it both ways. The addition of God …
- Sledge Trudge2017/12/22
Sledge Trudge Some songs have hidden dystopian meanings or inner, subtle depth. And some are just dull but still popular. From Kenny G’s wholly regrettable key changes to the Ronnette’s questionable special effects, the recorded history of pop acts covering Sleigh Ride is one of desperation to make anything interesting …
- The Santopticon (He Sees You)2017/12/21
The Santopticon (He Sees You) He sees you when you’re sleeping. All of my Christmas songs this year are fundraising for the Hackney Night shelter, which my wife has been volunteering at. There are very few shelter beds in East London. This roving shelter makes up a large percentage of …
- Funky (The Slow Jam)2017/12/17
Funky (The Slow Jam) This uses three different audio sources. In this version, there’s no effort to do beat matching and the playback rates are all based on the same minor pentatonic scale, but without coordination between the rates. I like the end. All of my Christmas songs this year …
- Walking in a Winter No Man’s Land2017/12/16
Walking in a Winter No Man’s Land Perhaps the strangest part of the lyrics of the original song is when a snow man demands to know if the narrator is single and the narrator immediately suggests polyamoury: [The snow man will] say ‘Are you married?’ We’ll say ‘no, man. But …
- Lettuce, No2017/12/13
Lettuce, No Yet another deconstruction of a baby boomer favourite. The title was provided by a member of the Mastodon social network, @emdeesee. All of my Christmas songs this year are fundraising for the Hackney Night shelter, which my wife has been volunteering at. There are very few shelter beds …
- I Saw the Mummy Killing Santa Claus2017/12/12
I Saw the Mummy Killing Santa Claus The uplifting choir bits at the very beginning and very end of this 1950s Christmas pop song sound a bit like weird moaning when slowed down. Many of these pop songs have virtually no instrumental parts, so the only sections that aren’t full …
- Der Tannenbaumherumtanz2017/12/11
Der Tannenbaumherumtanz This piece uses the sax solo from another baby boomer favourite Christmas song. The title was provided by a member of the Mastodon social network, @mattamatic@wandering.shop. All of my Christmas songs this year are fundraising for the Hackney Night shelter, which my wife has been volunteering at. There …
- Deviation from the Norm will be Punished Unless it is Exploitable2017/12/06
Deviation from the Norm will be Punished Unless it is Exploitable This was inspired by (and titled from) my favourite holiday meme. All of my Christmas songs this year are to fundraising for the Hackney Night shelter, which my wife has been volunteering at. There are very few shelter beds …
- Out in the Cold2017/12/04
Out in the Cold I kind of hope this is the last year I ever have to hear ‘Baby it’s Cold Outside’ as anything other than a bad example. It comes from a romantic comedy from the 1940s, as a sound track to a scene in which the female lead …
