24 Preludes Finally Completed

[trentpmcd]

I have been away from the forum for quite a while – well over a year. A lot has happened and, unfortunately, little of that has to do with writing music.

Recently I finally finished my series of Preludes. This project has spanned over 4 years….

I was taking composition lessons back in 2006 and did 3 preludes for the instructor. I then decided to try for a full set of 24 – one in each major and minor key. Often these preludes were used as a kind of writing lab, letting me experiment on a small scale some idea or other before I tried the idea on a larger scale.

Another thing I tried with these preludes was making each prelude act as both the piece alluded to by the previous prelude and act as a prelude to the next prelude. For instance a prelude may end in dissonance which is resolved at the beginning of the next. Or the first motif of one may be a variation of the last motif of the previous.

Anyway, the first 19 have previously been posted, the last 5 are new. All of them, old and new, are posted below. Hope you enjoy.


(A little note – remember that I am doing a circle like this (cap=major, lower=minor) – C-a-D-b-E-c#-Gb-eb-Ab-f-Bb-g - Eb-c-F-d-G-e-A-f#-B-g#-Db-bb )

1 – Prelude in C Major
2 - Prelude in a minor
3 – Prelude in D Major
4 – Prelude in b minor
5 – Prelude in E Major
6 - Prelude in c# minor
7 – Prelude in Gb Major
8 – Prelude in eb minor
9 - Prelude in Ab Major
10 - Prelude in f minor
11 - Prelude in Bb Major
12 - Prelude in g minor
13 – Prelude in Eb Major
14 – Prelude in c minor
15 – Prelude in F Major
16 – Prelude in d minor
17 – Prelude in G Major
18 – Prelude in e minor
19 – Prelude in A Major
20 – Prelude in f# minor
21 – Prelude in B Major
22 – Prelude in g# minor
23 – Prelude in Db Major
24 – Prelude in Bb minor

Note - #s 9, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 24 are rendered with the Authorized Steinway. All others are rendered with the GPO Steinway.

[sd cisco]

Hey Trent, Great to see you back around!!
I was missing these preludes of yours, now you've finished a set of 24! Of the new ones, #23 really stands out for me and also #24. However, I enjoyed them all in one way or another.
Since last year, I upgraded to the Garritan Authorized Basic and I bought a Studio Logic weighted 88 keys to play it on.
Thank you for posting and re-posting, I think this "cumulative" listing is great, perhaps I should try it, like you had suggested for Kabul Suite.

Welcome back!

Best regards,
sd cisco

[trentpmcd]

Thanks sd. Kind of funny, I just received a note you sent me over a year ago about Canada and Cape Cod. I guess I haven't been reading my messages...

The GA Steinway is great. I need a good keyboard to input my music.

All along I posted the whole series to that point at the bottom while featuring the new piece(s) but with it being finish, I think featuring the whole thing was needed.

I do remember hearing one or two parts of your Kabul Suite. I think with multi-movement pieces it makes it easier to post all of them with each new installment.

Thanks again.

[FLWrd]

Listening to the one in C. It sounds like Chopin to me! The rendering is a bit mechanical at points, but the whole piece is very Romantic, and very enjoyable. Then I picked d. A wonderful miniature, in a much more modern style. And the A is more substantial, and a bit in between both styles.

I'd say this is quite an accomplishment. I'll be listening to a few more of your Preludes in the future. Thanks for sharing.

[trentpmcd]

Thanks Theo! The prelude in C was the first one I did. I was studying Chopin at the time and was looking for that style, so thanks your great complement. I may someday re-render this with the GAS and try to get a more natural feel.

Stylistically from almost neo-Baroque to pretty modern, verging on atonal. With all of that I think (hope) they all fit together as a unit.

Thanks again for listening and commenting. Hope you enjoy any of the others you may listen to.

[RichR]

trentpmcd,

I have only listened to a couple of these, but the writing sounds solid. I like what I hear. It is contemporary sounding without being alien and non-melodic. Those are my terms for compositions that refuse to let the ear be part of the listening experience. You have crafted a nice set of preludes. Now I just have to find the time in this busy season to listen to them all.

Thanks for the listen.

[trentpmcd]

Thanks, Rich, for listening and commenting. Although I enjoy music that isn't all that accessible I usually write from a very melodic point of view. I guess it's just part of my nature...

I'm glad you've liked what you've heard so far. I can't expect anybody to listen to more than a couple or a few. Except for the last 5 all of these have been posted before, some on many occasions so some people may remember one or two of them.

Thanks again for your comments.

[Steve Johnson]

Trent,

I listened to a few of your preludes this morning, and I just finished with all of them a few minutes ago. Really imaginative piano writing, and the ones that stick out in my mind are #s 2, 11, 12, 16-20, and 23. (I found #s 2, 12, 19, and 20 to be downright haunting.) I think my favorites are #s 2 and 23 -- I've listened to them about 5 times, but I'll definitely be listening again to the others I've mentioned as well!

Steve

[trentpmcd]

Thanks Steve. I'm flattered that you worked your way through all of them in a day. Thanks for pointing out your favorites - I went back and listened through these ones again.

Thanks again for listening and for your comments.

[FLWrd]

I'll add a few more observations. Nr. 22 strongly reminded me of Shostakovich' preludes: a fugue-like theme, with a few subtle harmonic shifts, set against a dark background. Nr. 2 has similar qualities, but is more like French impressionism, and is wonderfully played, with a few pauses and breaks in the dynamics. Nr. 11 was a bit less in my ears, more capricious, but nr. 20 had great subtlety. Ranging from searching, wandering to downright fierce, and back to doubting. Very worthwhile.