Irish Echoes

A selection of tracks from artists that I particularly like that have real feeling or mood, Ones I would have liked to have composed myself (and some I did!). I hope you enjoy these artists/composers too.

Essentially Piano

Thinking about my daddy and me.  Our last picture together.

Many thanks to David Dunham for mastering my track. @david-dunhamuser589535203

I Wish

An arrangement (NOT a 'reimagining') of the well-known song from Donegal known as 'She Moved through the Fair', written for the Irish pianist, Fiachra Garvey.

A Song from Donegal

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/album/3ROhTHrVNxzfcoLKJvhTbY
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjIFwZ_Puog


The inspiration for this track is a vision where I am not sure whether it is a faint memory from some childhood holiday or whether I have dreamt it  :
Standing on the edge of a rocky cliff, gazing out at the tumultuous ocean below. The waves crashing against the rocks with a thunderous roar, the force of the water sending a spray of mist and foam high into the air. In the distance a lone lighthouse
overlooking the scenery. A glimps of the power and majesty of nature and our own smallness in comparison. 

Composition-wise: The piece consists of three parts (@0:01, @0:59, @1:45) that always start with the same 5 note-motive but then develop into three distinct variations with different characteristics but throughout the track there is a certain sense of dramatic scenery.
The left hand is throughout the piece mostly in octave jumps (which became quite challenging condition-wise at the end of the piece) that segment the 4/4 beat into groups of 3-3-2 (the only notable exception is the part @0:35ff with its chromatic baseline).
The right hand alternates between lyric parts such as in the beginning or @0:59ff and rhythmic syncopic parts such as @2:30ff that leads to the final where the right hand preceeds the left hand by a beat to create a sense of energy.

The track has been recorded on a Roland FP-90 and mastered in Cubase by adding compressor, reverb, a Stereo enhancer and fiddling a bit with the EQ. 
The picture was created with Stable Diffusion.

Lighthouse On The Rocks (Solo Piano)

This piece was inspired by listening to a piece of music by my good friend Jean-Pierre Dubois (JiPé)....he allowed me to use his theme, for which I'm very grateful....

I hope you will enjoy listening...

Art picture is by Larisa-K on Pixabay.....

Une Fantaisie Poétique

Everyone knows that the British love their dogs, this little dog was no exception. Bloomer was born in Athens and lived there with my daughter for many happy years. She was quite a little character, so it was a great shame when we lost her a few years ago.

When I wrote this song, I could hear the two syllables of her name resonating in my head, so this became a song to remember her by, I hope you enjoy it.

For A Little Shaggy Dog

7:12 AM

You Stay, I Go

Finally completed. This piece incorporates a Cork reel from Petrie's Collection of Ancient Irish Music, as well as a new reel tune I wrote myself. I suppose that's a Cork reel, too, since I live here. I hope you like it.

From the Madhouse: Céilí (Completed)

Completed. This incorporates two Irish reels, 'The Country Girl's Fortune' (a Connemara reel) and a shorter reel from Clare, as well as some reeling strains added by myself. It's very short, but would serve well as an amusing and exciting encore.

Reeling at Mourne (Completed)

'Dancing In Plague Time' was completed on July 22, 2020. Its predecessor, 'Reeling at Mourne', was based on actual Irish reel tunes, whereas this one is original stylized Irish dance music (slip jig and reel) with occasional quirky divagations. The title refers to the time of lockdown in 2020, when the piece was written, and reflects both my interest in Irish traditional musics and the need to keep up our spirits during this difficult time.

Dancing In Plague Time (Op. 101, July 2020)

The Irish title means 'Christmas Snow'. The piece was written for me by R.A. Moulds and I am very pleased to be able to present its first recording. Thanks for writing something for me, Rod. 'Flexibly throughout' was right up my street. Boy, did those fast little canons at the end take a lot of work!

Sneachta Um Nollaig (R.A. Moulds)

R.A. Moulds studied music at the University of Southern Mississippi.