The Requiem text has been used for centuries in funerary services as a prayer for the dead:
"Grant them eternal rest, O Lord, and let your perpetual light shine upon them."
The text is often followed by the Kyrie, a cry for God's mercy on the living: "Lord, have mercy! Christ, have mercy!"

In a time when death seems rampant, I offer this for all those we have lost and those we fear to lose.

*Please ignore the quality; I don't have access to a full choir, so all the voices are me autotuned, pitched into the correct octave, and with reverb applied to cover up a multitude of sins

Also, if you would like to perform this work, feel free to contact me: gof44678@gmail.com

Requiem: Introit and Kyrie

Elegies are normally written to commemorate the death of an important person. This elegy is written about loss in general. We all face the loss of loved ones, the end of a season of life, the misplacement of a treasured object. Grief in dealing with these losses makes life seem to crawl by, crescendos into passionate outcry, and fades into ever-present whispers in the background of our daily lives.

It's my hope that this piece captures this companion of human existence accurately.

Elegy for Saxophone Ensemble

Recessional

A setting of the William Blake poem by the same name. It is a bittersweet vision of a father looking upon his child sleeping in peace, but knowing that they will awake into a world of suffering and struggle.

31 Days of Composition: Day 1 - A Cradle Song

A little experiment in some different piano techniques.

31 Days of Composition: Day 2 - Machinations

31 Days of Composition: Day 3 - Antique Memories

A funky experiment in a complex meter. Can you guess what it is? 
The chords in the intro were randomly generated, as were the meter and key signature. It's pretty difficult; "fat chance" it will ever be performed in real life.

31 Days of Composition: Day 4 - Phat Chance

Leviathan is a biblical creature about which little is known. Descriptions talk of a fearsome creature of hideous strength living in the ocean's depths. The title is taken from a passage of scripture in Job 41: "I will not keep silence concerning his limbs, Or his mighty strength, or his orderly frame." 

This work attempts to portray a sighting of Leviathan: "nothing on Earth is like him; one made without fear."

31 Days of Composition: Day 5 - his mighty strength; his orderly frame

31 Days of Composition: Day 6 - Heart Without Words

This one has been a thorn in my side! First, Midi saxophone sounds are HORRIBLE. So I wasn't going to let this one out of my sight without multitracking the woodwind parts. Tremolos on piano in Finale: also HORRIBLE. But I don't have access to a decent piano right now, so we'll have to make do. 

TWO DAYS of multitracking 30 measures, and here's the product. Still not great, but that's not what #31DaysofComposition is about. It's just about daily writing. 

I'll probably revisit this one later. It's meant to be for narration and ensemble, and tell a Danish folk tale about a jumping contest between three animals to win the hand of a princess.... 

I mean, we'll see.

Alex Goff 2