Hymn-A-Week 41

So in the approach to Holy Week, here's a tune for Go To Dark Gethsemane. Or any other hymn of similar rhythms (Rock of Ages, say).

Nine more for fifty!

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This hymn tune by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Voluntary in G-sharp Minor - Rhythmic intensity?

PDF presently placed in position, properly posted.

Once more I go to the well of techniques from the games of my youth, this week playing with a more repetitive, driving idea. The left hand can be very light, providing rhythmic intensity while harmonic tension comes from the legato chords in the right.

Of course, if this were proper '80s or '90s chiptune music, it would loop without end, but I think that my left hand would seize up before I could make it through a second repetition. Someone with a less-damaged left hand would do better, probably, but even then there are limits to endurance.

The piece is intended to be played on two manuals, but with only one the only overlap is in measures 35-36; I'd suggest just dropping the low B from the right hand rather than worrying about holding it through the repetition.

So that's that! Next week, E Major.

Copyright info and a reminder: I'm looking for money! I like money. It helps me buy food, which helps me continue to write music.

Voluntary in G-sharp Minor by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!

Hymn-A-Week 40

This week, inspired by Lauda Anima (John Goss' tune for "Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven"), I wrote this tune.

I'm starting to get a little tired of writing these hymns, to be honest; it may be time to put up this project in place of some of the others I've been thinking of. We'll see what happens when I get to #50 in May.

Legal things to think about, and request for support below!

This hymn by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!

Voluntary in B Major - A little look back

PDF here!

After last week's rapid-fire fiasco, I decided to look a little bit backwards. My compositional roots are in game music - not that I've ever had any used in a game - so I thought it would be time to reexamine some of the techniques and constructions I used to use to write one of my voluntaries.

Musically and tonally, this feels like "village" music, calm and quiet, a break from the adventure, although not without some tension, both in the overarching structure and in some of the more dissonant harmonies. I could easily hear this on an endless loop fading into the background while wandering about the countryside conversing with the peasantry looks for the next hint.

Regardless. End stuff!

Volountary in B Major by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!

Hymn-A-Week 39

New hymn day! I had a friend choose a number at random from a hymnal, which turned out to be "O Holy Spirit, By Whose Breath" to the tune Veni Creator, so I used that for a meter (ignoring the coda) and she gave me a key as well (A-flat) and a little while later, out popped this!

Not a lot else to report! The usual end-of-post-things below.

This hymn by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!

Voluntary in E-flat Minor - Toccata in... twenty?

Yonder lies a PDF!

So it was time to try my hands at writing a quasi-French-style toccata. Not sure that I quite got there (among other things, I kind of feel that there's a lot left on the proverbial cutting-room floor) but this is a fun little escapade nonetheless.

The upper staff belongs to the hands. Divide as you see fit. The lower staff is for the pedal.

The late posting is due to an unavoidable government day job! I'll be done with that soon enough.

Some news! I have plans to start making some recordings of these pieces. And I have some equipment to make it happen, thanks to my wonderful partner. So hopefully after a couple trial runs I'll start to have something to show for all this practice!

Copyright info and donation button below!

Voluntary in E-flat Minor by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!

Hymn-A-Week 38

I opened a hymnal randomly to "Eternal Father, Strong to Save," and decided to use that rhythm for some slightly harmonically unusual hymn tune. I think it's rather fun, myself.

Interested in using this hymn tune? Copyright info is below. Interested in helping me continue to write them? A donation link is also below!

This hymn by Mike Cutler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Your donations can help me keep writing these! Click to feed a composer!