Just between you and me
Something became real
The secret won’t be shared
The laughter made me heal

Yeah the rains will come and the floods will flow
And the hot days come and the cool nights go
And we know 
We know how things will go
Between you and me 

When you looked at me and your hand reached out
And it washed away the remaining doubt
You know me and I know you
Between you and me
We’ll figure it out

Took a lotta strength
To do what you did
You kept your hands on the wheel
Kept your feelings hid
Yeah the tears might not run down your face 
But the silence it fills up the space in between
Between you and me

I dreamed we were climbing a maple tree
We were 12 years old and we felt so free
And I saw the light between you and me
Between you and me
Is infinity

Music and lyrics by David F Wagoner

Just Between You And Me

I can’t see over the Southhampton hedges, it’s good to be taken seriously, but no more serious then you are, there’s the sound of a festival in the street, see all the skinny people eating ice cream- it sure is heaven when you’re not in hell.

Avenue Bee

This track is dedicated to Noodle, our son's gorgeous little dog who recently left the world. He will be missed very much.

Noodle

Beat production - Fat Pockets / @fatpockets
Verse 1 - Fat Pockets / @fatpockets
Verse 2 - Lou Brindell / @fidelitycastro

Mixed and mastered by Fat Pockets.

This is a Mega Royal production! Don't Sleep!!!

Ai.Butterfli feat. Lou Brindell

A Lifetime Away [piano improvisation]

Four walls 

talk to me 
tell me anything 
that you don’t want to see me 
even that, it will fit me

Look at me 
I got you some chocolates 
I know you used to love it 
Today I don’t know, I don’t know anymore 

Where are you? 
We die of your absence 
of this indifference
your mind dances
between these four walls

talk to me 
hear your voice again 
to finally feed hope 
one day we’ll see you again

Remember 
that you guided our steps 
you were our king 
how to do without you 
we don’t know anymore 

Where are you? 
We die of your absence 
for you nothing matters 
you live in silence 
between these four walls

Where are you? 
We die of your absence 
please take the hand 
that I hold out to you
if there is a chance 
then talk to me
even if it hurts
I need to know 
if you know it’s me 
who's standing here in front of you.

Quatre murs (translated)

This is a track from 'falcon's 2nd Album, Lost for Sleep.  The track came about after Mike & Kit chatted about the incress in  domestic violence during the 2020 Covid thing.

Lost for Sleep

Behind The Headlines : falcon

Eclipse Stereo

The song contradicts my life since I don't have a night life! I mean, I take a lot of medication for my mental health illness and I get up very early in the morning! In fact, I'm also phobic and I have certain schedules for going out into the big city! But let's dedicate this song to my adolescence, which in the 80s did have a night life and went to discos!

Nightlife Moods

Contemporary work for String Quartet, Woodwinds and Percussion.

My Method of Composing and Producing

I'm sharing my method of composing and producing music recordings in case other composer-producers like me might find ideas worth exploring in their own work. I use this method for Classical, Avant-Pop or Neo-Folk Instrumental genres, not for Ambient and Soundscape pieces. Non-composers might find this explanation interesting, but having a bit of music theory background will definitely help. I consider myself a humble learner when it comes to music theory. 

I owe a debt of gratitude to British musician and educator Gareth Green, whose Music Matters online courses and free YouTube lessons have taught me so much over the past few years. Thanks to his instruction, I’ve moved from struggling to compose music by trial and error to something more enjoyable and productive. The knowledge I've gained has taken my work in new and expanding directions. As the saying goes, “Theory is not a cage — it’s a map. It doesn’t make the journey for you, but it keeps you from getting lost.” 

When I start a new piece, I begin by choosing a key, and picking a scale drawn from one of these sources:
 
1) Western Tonal / Functional Harmony - major or minor chords I II III IV V VI VII
2) Modal Harmony - Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, etc.
3) Slonimsky's "Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns" 
4) Messiaen’s "Seven Modes of Limited Transposition" 

For many pieces, I also decide on a progression, one as a simple as I IV V, or something more elaborate.  

Next I create a "scales and progressions" piano track in my DAW (digital audio workstation software) and enter the chords I to VII in my chosen key. These harmonized scales serve as a basis for writing multipart harmonies and finding pivot chords for key modulations. 

At the start, I know what instruments I want to use, making adjustments along the way. I tend to write chord parts first, then melodies created through a mix of improvisation and direct input in the DAW. Sometimes I start with a melody.

I develop melodies and variations of a phrase by some combination of: a) passing it from one instrument to another, transposing it by an interval that sounds pleasing, b) reversing it, c) inverting it around the tonic (first) note of the scale. These are well-known methods. 

After completing a section, I choose another scale and maybe a new key and repeat the process until I have a draft of the entire piece. Then I export a recording and listen to it “offline”, take notes of errors and new ideas, and incorporate them back into the piece. Often this “compose / listen / compose” cycle is repeated many times. These iterative cycles include adding new ideas, polishing transitions between sections, changing the arrangement, and incorporating expressive details like accents, and articulations (staccato, sustain, portato etc.). I’m often working several different pieces at once. 

Last is mixing and mastering: balancing the loudness between instruments and adjusting elements like reverb, compression, and equalization. I tend to mix as I compose, even though many producers frown on that approach. I find mixing as I go helps me envision the completed piece and make adjustments to the choice of instruments; it self-inspires me when the piece is starting to sound good.  At the end I do a final mix, but as the saying goes, “A mix is never finished — it’s surrendered.”

In the end, this method gives me a basis for exploration and creativity and helps me stay focused. The goal is always to make a piece of music that feels expressive, cohesive, and emotionally resonant.

Suite for Chamber Ensemble 2024

Suite For Chamber Ensemble 2024

Couples in love.  Washburn R305 Guitar, Gibson A2 mandolin.

The Lazy Waltz

I like Soundcloud because it's a friendly community for sharing our music. When I like your music, I say how it affected me, maybe something about how you wrote, performed or produced it. I have musically diverse interests: pop/rock songs, jazz-rock fusion/prog instrumentals; acoustic guitar. Main instrument is guitar, I'm not a keyboard player or singer, but hopefully I can do enough there to make my work sound ok.

Noodle

Steve Matthews