Paul Cantrell - Podcast Details

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In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 117.1 (remastered)This is the first recording I posted to In the Hands, so it seemed fitting that it be the first to go out in its remastered form. It’s a piece Brahms wrote late in life, a lullaby. He included a motto at the top from an old Scottish folk song, which in modern English is roughly: Sleep, my child, now sweetly sleepIt grieves my heart to see you weep. Brahms is perhaps the most humane composer I know, most especially in these last piano pieces of his. I wrote last week about th...2015-11-1400 min

In the HandsThe Broken Mirror of Memory, Part 1The Kickstarter project for The Broken Mirror of Memory has passed its first major milestone! I’m now able to pay for printing the CD, and distributing in online music stores. Huzzah!! In celebration, and as a huge thank you to all the awesome backers who have pitched in so far, I’m posting part 1 (out of 4) of the piece. Here it is! Paul Cantrell The Broken Mirror of Memory, Part 1 Pat O’Keefe, bass clarinet Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (2:00 / 2.4 M) This music comes right out of t...2012-10-1800 min

In the HandsThe Broken Mirror of Memory, Part 2 The Broken Mirror of Memory is now released! (Fanfare!) And the best place to get it is straight from the artist. (That’s me!) In this episode is one track from the new album. This is part 2; you heard part 1 in the last episode. The bass clarinet has a kind of talking quality throughout part 2 that involves some unusual sounds you might not have heard before. You’ll hear a few bends and microtonal adjustments, and in many spots, Pat actually sings through the body of the instrument while playing. This does not produce two dist...2012-10-1800 min

In the HandsImprovisation: RozerToday’s improv is a bit of fun with one of my favorite sounds from extended piano technique, made by damping a low string with a finger or two at about the point where the copper winding ends. This sound also makes a prominent appearance in the second movement of The Broken Mirror of Memory. RozerPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:50 / 2.7 M)I have been practicing some new material to record, and I’m getting the piano tuned later this week in anticipation of actually recording it. So stick around — I hope to have...2012-02-0900 min

In the HandsTodd Harper: QuestionsPerhaps it would have been better if I’d just admitted to myself (and the world) that I’d be taking the summer off from In the Hands. But where’s the fun without the suspense? Here’s what I currently have in the pipeline (not necessarily in this order): Some newly composed pieces of my own. A new recording of at least some part of The Broken Mirror of Memory, my bass clarinet / piano work. A fine new recording from Don Betts. The remaining remasterings of my older recordings. …And that’s my autumn of mu...2012-02-0900 min

In the HandsNomade à ClefI don’t usually write jazz tunes, but my friend Todd asked me to write one for him. It sounded like fun, and he had written several great pieces for me, so I took up the challenge. Nomade à Clef is the result. Todd premiered it at this year’s Keys Please, with David Edminster on tenor sax, and I think they did just a marvelous job with it. They really made it fly. I only wrote a lead sheet (just melody and chords) with a bare-bones piano part underneath to suggest voicings in the piano — the rest of the w...2011-12-2200 min

In the HandsChopin Preludes 4 and 9 (remastered)Visiting the house of my composer friend Matthew Smith (who has an outstanding CD out now, by the way), I noticed the score to Chopin’s E minor prelude out on the piano. It turns out that his wife, children’s book illustrator and author Lauren Stringer, is taking piano lessons, and she has been working on it. I was delighted — the piece is a favorite of mine. I dug out my recording of it for her to hear, and decided it was high time that I release a remastered version. The piece has been a popular one on...2011-12-2100 min

In the HandsThree PlacesI had a lovely productive day in the recording studio (i.e. in my living room with the mics on) today, and you, o lucky readers of this weblog, will see the results of that work over the next couple of weeks as I get the recordings edited and mastered. Here’s the first from today’s session, an old favorite of my compositions. Little-black-dot-minded people can follow along with the score. Paul CantrellThree PlacesPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(5:09 / 6.4 M)I have to say, I’m thrilled with the...2011-12-2000 min

In the HandsDisembodied Dance (very rough)I have been busy applying for a fellowship, and also writing writing writing more music. Here is a new one in the set of dances I’ve been working on — as with the others I’ve recorded, a rough performance (there’s a section in the middle that is horrendously hobbled together), but enough to give you the idea. (The score.)Paul CantrellDisembodied Dance (rough version)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(5:04 / 6.2 M)This is probably the weirdest, most abstract thing I’ve ever written. I love it. But be warned: those of you...2010-09-2000 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 15.3One of the most fundamental, most important principles in music is return: when things happen, they come back. Throughout a piece of music, there are recurring elements that unite the whole. The beginning and the end connect. If we depart from where we started, we return there — or at least look back.The familiar verse / chorus / bridge form that underlies so many pop songs follows this principle: we might get a new melody, the bridge ("Why she had to leave, I don’t know"), but we still come back to the original repeating verse / chorus music ("Yesterday…"). Many...2008-07-1200 min

In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 117.1To get the recording train rolling, here’s a recording of a lullaby of Brahms, one of my favorites. I made this recording to play with equalization settings, but liked the performance enough to keep it.Johannes BrahmsIntermezzo Op 117 No 1Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(5:58 / 7.3 M)Thanks go to my good friend Geneviève, who introduced me to this piece about five years ago. She played it marvelously, and I’ve wanted to learn it ever since, though it took me until this spring to get around to it. So, finally...2008-05-2000 min

In the HandsBrahms Ballade 10.4 (remastered)This is perhaps my favorite of the recordings I’ve made for In the Hands — and the remastering really helps. The piece is very low throughout, and the low notes before had a murky, cottony quality. Now they’re rich and clear, and all the subtle little motions in the depths shine through. I only wish you all could hear this without all the MP3 artifacts!My commentary on the piece itself is in the original posting.Johannes BrahmsBallade Op 10 No 4Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(11:48 / 14.0 M)2007-04-0100 min

In the HandsManic Dance (rough)Things may have been quiet on the blog, but I’ve been doing tons of music work lately. The recent round of Zo went well: I took a bit of a risk playing mostly pieces that were fresh out of the practice oven (or, in a couple of cases, still baking), but people seemed to enjoy it, and I was certainly satisfied.(If you want to know about future concerts, you should get on the mailing list.)Concerts done, I’m now composing day and night, quite productively. I now have a complete first draft of m...2007-01-2000 min

In the HandsManic Dance (rough)Things may have been quiet on the blog, but I’ve been doing tons of music work lately. The recent round of Zo went well: I took a bit of a risk playing mostly pieces that were fresh out of the practice oven (or, in a couple of cases, still baking), but people seemed to enjoy it, and I was certainly satisfied. (If you want to know about future concerts, you should get on the mailing list.) Concerts done, I’m now composing day and night, quite productively. I now have a complete first draft of m...2007-01-2000 min

In the HandsBach Sinfonia 5 and Schumann Bunte Blätter 6 (remastered)As regular readers of In the Hands know, I’ve been working through my older recordings and applying my up-to-date mastering process — making them sound better, in other words. As I went through the list, I found that these two recordings make a nice pair. Arranging nice little transitions like this is one of my favorite parts of doing a concert. It’s the same little pleasure as assembling a mix CD or playing DJ: even the simple act of ordering songs is a kind of composition, and carries the joy of being creative.The keys of the tw...2006-10-0700 min

In the HandsNorthwoods Police ReportAfter a cold (which left my voice in bad shape for podcasting) and MinneBar (which was a great pleasure), it’s back to In the Hands! I’m continuing from last time the series of recordings I made recently with soprano Kim Sueoka of songs by Todd Harper.For several years, Todd has been writing songs full of the sort of jazz changes that are his roots, but as much in the tradition of lieder as anything. He always makes them short, sweet, and very focused — haiku-like — and when he’s setting a text longer than a few lines...2006-05-1100 min

In the HandsNorthwoods Police ReportAfter a cold (which left my voice in bad shape for podcasting) and MinneBar (which was a great pleasure), it’s back to In the Hands! I’m continuing from last time the series of recordings I made recently with soprano Kim Sueoka of songs by Todd Harper. For several years, Todd has been writing songs full of the sort of jazz changes that are his roots, but as much in the tradition of lieder as anything. He always makes them short, sweet, and very focused — haiku-like — and when he’s setting a text longer than a few lines...2006-05-1100 min

In the HandsFirst Autumn NightHere, for the first time in a long time, is something I wrote — but it’s not the music!A couple of weeks ago, I recorded some of my friend Todd Harper’s songs with Kim Sueoka, a marvelous local soprano who sings with (among others) the Rose Ensemble and a first-rate voice/guitar duo called Voce y Cuerdas. She’s great, Todd’s great, and by golly, we had a wonderful time making the recordings!Todd mostly writes voice / piano duets — and that’s mostly what we recorded — but he also did a lovely a cappella setti...2006-04-1700 min

In the HandsFirst Autumn NightHere, for the first time in a long time, is something I wrote — but it’s not the music! A couple of weeks ago, I recorded some of my friend Todd Harper’s songs with Kim Sueoka, a marvelous local soprano who sings with (among others) the Rose Ensemble and a first-rate voice/guitar duo called Voce y Cuerdas. She’s great, Todd’s great, and by golly, we had a wonderful time making the recordings! Todd mostly writes voice / piano duets — and that’s mostly what we recorded — but he also did a lovely a cappella setti...2006-04-1700 min

In the HandsDance for Remembering and Forgetting (rough)Here’s another piece from the suite of dances I’m working on, the same set which also includes the Entropic Waltz and Cradle Waltz.The composition, which was tricky, has actually been done for a while … but learning to play it has proved quite a bit of work! Though it may not sound like it, the piece is quite difficult — it has different layers moving in different registers of the keyboard, and so playing it essentially involves using two hands to create the illusion of three or four.Actually, I’m still just barely able to pl...2006-03-0700 min

In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 117.2 (remastered)Ahoy there. It’s been a while! I’ve been busy. It’s a sad fact of life that I have bills to pay, and in spite of the tremendous generosity of some of this podcast’s listeners, a whole year’s worth of donations to In the Hands don’t even cover a month’s rent. So, I’ve been working — which is not entirely a bad thing: it’s a good job, I like the other people, and I’m working on interesting stuff … but it’s just amazing how much time a job takes! Forty hours a week is a lot.Any...2006-03-0200 min

In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 117.2When I first saw the sheet music for today’s piece, I was a bit boggled. I’m not sure I’ve ever encountered a piece that sounded less like it looked! You might figure it for some sort of virtuosic toccata thing, all flash and texture, but no, it is slow, minimal melody with a lush, dark accompaniment.The notation makes a little more sense if you think of Bach’s preludes. Do I grow predictable claiming everything is full of Bach? Very well, I grow predictable. This one is full of Bach: the layering; the figurati...2006-03-0100 min

In the HandsChopin Waltz 34.2Today’s recording brings In the Hands over the one hour mark: since I started this blog at the end of August, it’s brought over 65 minutes of free piano music to the web. Yay!This recording also marks a more dubious milestone: for the first time I’m late with the post (it just turned Wednesday in Minnesota as I type this). I’m not sure anyone cares, or even notices, but I do try to keep myself honest with this Tuesday/Saturday plan.Chopin can get very complex, virtuosic, or just generally full of big p...2005-12-2300 min

In the HandsSong for Lost Things (rough)I’m doing something today that I haven’t done in far too long: sharing a recording of a new composition in progress.I’ve been working for some time on a set of piano pieces, all of them dances in one way or another — and all of them, in one way or another, full of the feeling of entropy, full of things falling apart and things slipping away.This particular one has much sweetness in it, but its main ingredient is ambiguity. Its different layers are centered in different keys, different places. They mesh so that...2005-11-2800 min

In the HandsSong for Lost Things (rough)I’m doing something today that I haven’t done in far too long: sharing a recording of a new composition in progress. I’ve been working for some time on a set of piano pieces, all of them dances in one way or another — and all of them, in one way or another, full of the feeling of entropy, full of things falling apart and things slipping away. This particular one has much sweetness in it, but its main ingredient is ambiguity. Its different layers are centered in different keys, different places. They mesh so that...2005-11-1600 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 15.2 (remastered)I had a request for “MORE CHOPIN!” which made me realize that I’ve been neglecting the poor fellow — and he’s such a favorite of mine! I’ve been working on two new Chopin nocturnes, and I’ll hopefully be ready to record them soon. In the meantime, however, here’s one I’ve played for a long time, in a freshly remastered recording.I like what I wrote about this piece when I posted this recording in its earlier, less acoustically pristine form, so I’ll say it again: It’s organic, and sounds almost improvised — except th...2005-11-1200 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 15.2 (remastered)I had a request for “MORE CHOPIN!” which made me realize that I’ve been neglecting the poor fellow — and he’s such a favorite of mine! I’ve been working on two new Chopin nocturnes, and I’ll hopefully be ready to record them soon. In the meantime, however, here’s one I’ve played for a long time, in a freshly remastered recording. I like what I wrote about this piece when I posted this recording in its earlier, less acoustically pristine form, so I’ll say it again: It’s organic, and sounds almost improvised — except th...2005-11-1200 min

In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 116.4 (remastered)This was the first Brahms I ever learned to play. It looked to me like a relatively easy piece, simply because it doesn’t have all that many notes — but I was wrong: never having played Brahms, I didn’t recognize the difficulty that was there. Brahms doesn’t always divide his music into clear layers of melody and accompaniment; he’ll have bits of melodic thread appearing in different voices, different layers. None of these threads is complete in itself, but they form a complete whole that doesn’t emerge from any single place. Much like Renaissance polyphony, the “foregro...2005-11-0200 min

In the HandsIn a Perfectly Wounded Sky (remastered)Here’s an older piece of mine, newly remastered. I’ve gone back and forth in the past on whether I like this one, but I like it very much today, so I’m publishing it!The title is based on my mishearing of a Tori Amos lyric (from Cruel). I generally go for titles that are evocative and somehow seem to fit, without actually having any clear meaning that listeners will try to impose on the piece — I want the title to be an opening into the music, not a box to stuff it in.Anothe...2005-10-2200 min

In the HandsIn a Perfectly Wounded Sky (remastered)Here’s an older piece of mine, newly remastered. I’ve gone back and forth in the past on whether I like this one, but I like it very much today, so I’m publishing it! The title is based on my mishearing of a Tori Amos lyric (from Cruel). I generally go for titles that are evocative and somehow seem to fit, without actually having any clear meaning that listeners will try to impose on the piece — I want the title to be an opening into the music, not a box to stuff it in. Anothe...2005-10-2100 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 55.1 (remastered)Continuing with the work of remastering all my existing home recordings, here’s a Chopin nocturne I posted almost exactly one year ago. It is a subtle, spare thing, and its spareness makes it much more difficult than it sounds. Listening to this recording again, I think I could play it better now; perhaps I’ll record it again in the future. A really fine piece of music is a lifelong exploration, so I’m certainly not opposed to posting new versions of pieces I’ve already recorded! Still, this recording is decent — the idea of the music certainly comes acro...2005-09-2400 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 55.1You probably were all wondering when I’d get to some Chopin, no? Well, wonder no longer! Voici!Frédéric ChopinNocturne Op 55 No 1 (in F minor)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(6:05 / 7.4 M)I especially hope Nick enjoys this one!2005-09-2200 min

In the HandsBach WTC Book 1 Prelude 1, à la HendrixSo here’s the deal with the mystery recording (Ahree got it right):It is, of course, a familiar Bach prelude. I learned to play the piece backwards — that is, playing the notes in reverse order — recorded it that way, then reversed the recording. Got it? So even though you hear the strange sound of backwards piano, growing instead of decaying, the notes come in the right order. Here’s what I actually played — and here’s the final backward-is-foward result again:Mystery recordingPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:12 / 3.0 M)Jimi Hendrix u...2005-09-0800 min

In the HandsBrahms Ballade 10.4I’ve been meaning to record this one for a long time.Johannes BrahmsBallade Op 10 No 4Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(11:48 / 14.0 M)This is one of those mysterious and introspective pieces like Chopin’s nocturne 15.3 that has a strange logic all its own. It’s low and, even in the crescendos, somehow hushed throughout. There’s not a trace of virtuosic flashiness in it; it’s definitely not a piece that’s about the pianist. The way it unfolds is … well, a nice fellow from Paris named Frank who emailed me about piano r...2005-08-1400 min

In the HandsBrahms Ballade 10.4 (remastered)This is perhaps my favorite of the recordings I’ve made for In the Hands — and the remastering really helps. The piece is very low throughout, and the low notes before had a murky, cottony quality. Now they’re rich and clear, and all the subtle little motions in the depths shine through. I only wish you all could hear this without all the MP3 artifacts! My commentary on the piece itself is in the original posting. Johannes Brahms Ballade Op 10 No 4 Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (11:48 / 14.0 M) 2005-08-1400 min

In the HandsThree Places (remastered)This piece is my old, trusted standby. I wrote it back in college, in the winter and spring of 1998, and since then it’s been the one piece of my own that I’ve continually kept in my hands and head, always at the ready when somebody says, “Play something you wrote, Paul!” It still remains satisfying to me: the shape is simple, but interesting little puzzles keep emerging from within. In all that time, however, only live audiences have had a chance to really experience the music — but just now, listening to the remastered version, I finally ha...2005-08-1000 min

In the HandsNiobrara (Interstellar Medium Remix)My recent mastering experiments have been all about reproducing … well, not the literal sound, but the musical spirit of real-life piano — but of course there’s another side to this software I’m using, and it seemed a shame not to play with it! So I went and had some fun with Niobrara. (Some fragments of another improv are also tucked away in there; a free CD to the first person to correctly identify which one.) I hope you enjoy this little musical excursion!Niobrara (Interstellar Medium Remix)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(3:02 / 4.0 M)All t...2005-04-1900 min

In the HandsNiobrara (Interstellar Medium Remix)My recent mastering experiments have been all about reproducing … well, not the literal sound, but the musical spirit of real-life piano — but of course there’s another side to this software I’m using, and it seemed a shame not to play with it! So I went and had some fun with Niobrara. (Some fragments of another improv are also tucked away in there; a free CD to the first person to correctly identify which one.) I hope you enjoy this little musical excursion! Niobrara (Interstellar Medium Remix) Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (3:02 / 4.0 M) All...2005-04-1900 min

In the HandsMastering Experiments, Part 2: EQ & ImagingThis is the second half of the thrilling chronicles of my attempts at mastering the piano recordings. (Here’s part one.)Mastering Experiments, Part 2: EQ & ImagingPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(12:42 / 15.4 M)I’m constantly changing things — I’ve tweaked the process since my last post, and even while making the explanation, I suddenly noticed a new EQ adjustement. It never ends. These experiments are now coming up against the limits of my ears, the point where I spiral endlessly varying some parameter or other, eventually unable to tell whether the result sounds bet...2005-04-1200 min

In the HandsMastering Experiments, Part 2: EQ & ImagingThis is the second half of the thrilling chronicles of my attempts at mastering the piano recordings. (Here’s part one.) Mastering Experiments, Part 2: EQ & Imaging Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (12:42 / 15.4 M) I’m constantly changing things — I’ve tweaked the process since my last post, and even while making the explanation, I suddenly noticed a new EQ adjustement. It never ends. These experiments are now coming up against the limits of my ears, the point where I spiral endlessly varying some parameter or other, eventually unable to tell whether the result sounds bet...2005-04-1200 min

In the HandsMastering Experiments, Part 1: ReverbLoyal readers of In the Hands might reasonably ask: “Paul! Where the heck are you? What have you been up to?” Well, there are many answers to that — preparing my McKnight fellowship application and visiting my parents in Colorado among them — but the piano recordings have not been neglected. I just purchased a round of new software to really try to get my mastering process right. ("Mastering,” for those of you not in on the audio tech speak, is the process of finessing the sound quality of a recording after it’s made.)Today’s recording is first in a two...2005-04-0700 min

In the HandsMastering Experiments, Part 1: ReverbLoyal readers of In the Hands might reasonably ask: “Paul! Where the heck are you? What have you been up to?” Well, there are many answers to that — preparing my McKnight fellowship application and visiting my parents in Colorado among them — but the piano recordings have not been neglected. I just purchased a round of new software to really try to get my mastering process right. ("Mastering,” for those of you not in on the audio tech speak, is the process of finessing the sound quality of a recording after it’s made.) Today’s recording is first in a two...2005-04-0700 min

In the HandsDisembodied Dance (very rough)I have been busy applying for a fellowship, and also writing writing writing more music. Here is a new one in the set of dances I’ve been working on — as with the others I’ve recorded, a rough performance (there’s a section in the middle that is horrendously hobbled together), but enough to give you the idea. (The score.) Paul Cantrell Disembodied Dance (rough version) Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (5:04 / 6.2 M) This is probably the weirdest, most abstract thing I’ve ever written. I love it. But be warned: those of you...2005-03-2000 min

In the HandsImprovisation: SmootWhat do you do when your piano’s a touch out of tune? You record an improv like this. Or at least I do.SmootPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(0:58 / 1.6 M)Oh, you say you wanted a piano improv with actual notes? Well then, check out Chris Morris’s very clever tip of the hat to the In the Hands improvs. Yes, it’s this site’s very first piece of fan art ever — and nicely done at that! So awesome. Thanks, Chris!He has a bunch of other music on his site...2005-03-1000 min

In the HandsChopin Ballade No. 3I wrote recently about the the danger that virtuosity can make us neglect the virtues of simplicity, and even neglect the music itself. That is true not only of a simple masterpiece like the prelude I was talking about, but also of technically difficult pieces — such as the Chopin ballades.In everything Chopin writes, no matter how complex and virtuosic, that powerful simplicity is there at the core. Although he wrote some very difficult and impressive stuff, the ultimate effect of his music, I feel, should never really be to impress. But that’s exactly what the pian...2005-03-0500 min

In the HandsChopin Prelude 20As long as I’m on this Chopin prelude kick….Frédéric ChopinPrelude Op 28 No 20 (in C minor)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:19 / 3.2 M)This piece is easy to sink one’s teeth into, I think, very dramatic and engaging on the first listen. But subsequent digging reveals a lot of subtlety in the way the different voices move, the modulation and chromaticism, the emotional shape. It has a fascinatingly unusual structure: many piece start softly and work to a crescendo, but this one starts loud and fades to a whisper...2005-02-2200 min

In the HandsChopin Prelude 4To conclude this trip down prelude memory lane (at least for the time being), here is the veeery first piece I worked on with Don Betts. I’ve actually hardly played this one since that first year of lessons, but I found it came back quickly. Is playing a piece like riding a bicycle? Maybe a little.Frédéric ChopinPrelude Op 28 No 4 (in E minor)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:41 / 3.7 M)Don always gives this one to his beginner students. At the time, although I’d had piano lessons for many...2005-02-2200 min

In the HandsChopin Prelude 20As long as I’m on this Chopin prelude kick…. Frédéric Chopin Prelude Op 28 No 20 (in C minor) Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (2:19 / 3.2 M) This piece is easy to sink one’s teeth into, I think, very dramatic and engaging on the first listen. But subsequent digging reveals a lot of subtlety in the way the different voices move, the modulation and chromaticism, the emotional shape. It has a fascinatingly unusual structure: many piece start softly and work to a crescendo, but this one starts loud and fades to a whisper...2005-02-1900 min

In the HandsChopin Prelude 6We live in a time of superhuman performers. The stars of the classical piano world do things that hardly seem humanly possible — certainly that are far beyond me — and people love it, demand it. It’s a mixed blessing: on the one hand, it’s amazing to hear the most difficult works performed with such ability; on the other hand, the emphasis on the performer, the great cult of the virtuoso, can make us forget about the music itself. Should hearing a piece of music be like watching somebody juggle 9 bowling balls on a tightrope, or like embracing an old frie...2005-02-1600 min

In the HandsChopin Prelude 9An old favorite, brought from the past to the present for your listening enjoyment.Frédéric ChopinPrelude Op 28 No 9 (in E major)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:36 / 2.4 M)I love the steady outpouring of energy, the unbrokenness of the flow as it goes through such a dramatic series of changes, the perfect balance of the different sections, the tremendous sense of scope of this mere 95 seconds, a single printed page of music. Chopin is totally my hero.Esoteric Musicological AsideThere’s an intere...2005-02-1200 min

In the HandsDance for Remembering and Forgetting (rough)Here’s another piece from the suite of dances I’m working on, the same set which also includes the Entropic Waltz and Cradle Waltz. The composition, which was tricky, has actually been done for a while … but learning to play it has proved quite a bit of work! Though it may not sound like it, the piece is quite difficult — it has different layers moving in different registers of the keyboard, and so playing it essentially involves using two hands to create the illusion of three or four. Actually, I’m still just barely able to pl...2005-02-0100 min

In the HandsBach WTC Book 1 Prelude 1, à la HewittAs long as we’re conducting experiments on the familiar C major prelude…Some years ago, Don and I heard Angela Hewitt play a marvelous concert of Bach and Messiaen. (There’s a combination!) She gave the most unusual performance of the C major prelude I’ve ever heard: very fast, very light, either a bit of pedal or just a superhuman legato (don’t remember which), and certain notes voiced to give the rapid running pattern some shape. It was almost impressionistic.Now if there’s a right way to play this prelude, this is definitel...2005-01-3000 min

In the HandsA ridiculous surpriseHere’s an amusing little idea Joel and I came up with while talking on the phone. Why did I do this, you ask? Because it’s the internet. Because I can.Mystery recordingPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:12 / 3.0 M)The first one to figure out what’s going on here gets … um, actually I don’t have a prize. Sorry. Still, try to figure it out!If you want the full surprise effect, play the song without looking at the title.2005-01-2500 min

In the HandsImprovisation: JelmCrystalizing, particle by particle.JelmPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:24 / 3.2 M)That’s the last of the January improvaganza. I’ve been composing day and night (and it’s a perfect night for it tonight: new snow and a near-full moon!), and that will yield some new recordings just as soon as I manage to get some of these new pieces learned. But next time, I have a quirky little treat in the works for you. No, no, it’s a secret. Only Joel knows.2005-01-2200 min

In the HandsImprovisation: NatronaA sudden outpouring with no resolution!NatronaPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:08 / 2.9 M)I sat down and played this once, then for some reason started it again a couple of times — perhaps trying to find a resolution that wasn’t there to be found. But I ended up using that first take after all.It somehow reminds me of GMH:Each mortal thing does one thing and the same: Deals out that being indoors each one dwells; Selves—goes its self; myself it speaks and spells,2005-01-1700 min

In the HandsImprovisation: WyarnoI can’t decide: is this one emotionally charged, walking in an unfamiliar place, breath held? Or is it something moving without human intention, like water flowing beneath the ice, seen through human eyes?WyarnoPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:59 / 3.9 M)Hmm. I think this one went on too long, but I do like the ending.2005-01-1500 min

In the HandsImprovisation: AlcovaShelter. A safe place.AlcovaPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:37 / 3.5 M)I’m returning from Colorado tomorrow, but it will likely be a while before my piano is back in tune and I’m recording again. Will the blog go silent, you ask? Fear not! I recorded a little round of improvs a few weeks ago, so that’s likely what you’ll be hearing here for the next couple of weeks.When I post a bunch of improvs in a row like this, part of me cringes at them starting t...2005-01-1100 min

In the HandsImprovisation: SubletteBells? The memory of bells? A fanciful description of the memory of bells?SublettePaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:03 / 2.8 M)Maybe not bells at all.2005-01-0700 min

In the HandsBrahms Waltz Op 39 No 15At the New Year’s Eve party my family has been attending for the last … oh, at least 20 years, we have a tradition of doing waltzes. By “doing,” I don’t much mean dancing — sadly, only a few brave souls do that — but playing them, since it’s a musical crowd and it’s easy to form a pickup group. (It’s another instance of the sort of informal playing together, not playing for, that I wrote about in Comparing Notes.) Waltzes for the new year are a tradition our hosts imported from Austria, and one I’m now importing from their p...2005-01-0300 min

In the HandsChopin Etude 25.1The word “étude” means study — a practice piece, designed to exercise a particular technique. Études for musicians are generally dry, repetitious pieces, not music to perform, but just exercises for practice. So Chopin’s choice of that title may seem a little understated, or even ironic: his études certainly do exercise one’s technique, but they are expressive, poetic, passionate, and anything but dry.I think the title fits beautifully: shouldn’t learning always be this way?Frédéric ChopinÉtude Op 25 No 1 (in A flat major)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(3:13...2005-01-0300 min

In the HandsImprovisation: EtheteThis one’s for all you Gregorians out there, celebrating the new year:EthetePaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:09 / 2.9 M)A mysterious song, still unformed and incorporeal, full of potential!2005-01-0100 min

In the HandsImprovisation: UintaUintaPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(5:44 / 7.1 M)Cold, thin air. Winter light. A solitary high place.2004-12-2100 min

In the HandsBach Invention 6I love the word “invention” — it may capture what’s going on in the pieces of music it names better than any title I know of. What’s this? It’s just an idea, a creative spark. Bach has fun, and he’s sharing.Just an idea: one scale coming up, one going down, alternating steps. And from that idea, a little world unfolds.Johann Sebastian BachInvention No 6Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(3:30 / 4.5 M)2004-12-1800 min

In the HandsNoah's SongI wrote this piece for a former piano student of mine. He was (and presumably still is) exceptionally thoughtful, patient, and sensitive for an eight-year-old; in fact, he had the better of most adults I’ve known in those respects. I wanted a piece that would give him a chance to be really musical — he had the right stuff for it — but was within his technical reach and within the physical limitations of the birth defect in his right hand. So this is what I came up with.Paul CantrellNoah’s SongPaul Cantrell...2004-12-0700 min

In the HandsChopin F minor Fantasy (introduction)Here’s a preview of a piece I’m working on — this is the march that opens Chopin’s Fantasty. The whole piece is quite an epic (about 14 minutes), and rather difficult, so I’m not going to be posting the whole thing in the near future.This opening, however, is neither so long nor so difficult, and so I’m posting a rough version of it as a little appetizer. It almost stands as a little piece on its own, but right where I stop in this recording, instead of winding to a close, the music takes off fu...2004-12-0700 min

In the HandsNoah's SongI wrote this piece for a former piano student of mine. He was (and presumably still is) exceptionally thoughtful, patient, and sensitive for an eight-year-old; in fact, he had the better of most adults I’ve known in those respects. I wanted a piece that would give him a chance to be really musical — he had the right stuff for it — but was within his technical reach and within the physical limitations of the birth defect in his right hand. So this is what I came up with. Paul Cantrell Noah’s Song Paul Cantrell...2004-12-0700 min

In the HandsThe Walking ConcertHere’s a little composition from my tender youth. I remember that I was a little befuddled at the time about how to write down the rhythms! This piece thus lived only in my head for a long time, yet I still remember it quite clearly. It will be obvious why when you hear it — it’s kind of catchy.Paul CantrellThe Walking ConcertPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(0:59 / 1.6 M)Hearing this again makes me smile. Perhaps it’s just pleasant memories of sixth grade (which was a happy year for me), b...2004-11-2300 min

In the HandsThe Walking ConcertHere’s a little composition from my tender youth. I remember that I was a little befuddled at the time about how to write down the rhythms! This piece thus lived only in my head for a long time, yet I still remember it quite clearly. It will be obvious why when you hear it — it’s kind of catchy. Paul Cantrell The Walking Concert Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (0:59 / 1.6 M) Hearing this again makes me smile. Perhaps it’s just pleasant memories of sixth grade (which was a happy year for me), b...2004-11-2300 min

In the HandsThe Monster's ThemeIn college, I won an award from the Math/CS department for being the most outstanding procrastinator of my senior class. I don’t think it’s exactly fair to say that I procrastinate, though; I’m just perpetually late. My life is like a finely tuned Swiss watch that’s set to the wrong time.So I finally got around to putting The Monster from Keys Please! up on the site. To celebrate the occasion, here’s the opening number in its original, bare, single-piano form:Paul CantrellThe Monster’s ThemePaul Cant...2004-11-1800 min

In the HandsThe Monster's ThemeIn college, I won an award from the Math/CS department for being the most outstanding procrastinator of my senior class. I don’t think it’s exactly fair to say that I procrastinate, though; I’m just perpetually late. My life is like a finely tuned Swiss watch that’s set to the wrong time. So I finally got around to putting The Monster from Keys Please! up on the site. To celebrate the occasion, here’s the opening number in its original, bare, single-piano form: Paul Cantrell The Monster’s Theme Paul Can...2004-11-1800 min

In the HandsThoughts at 4 AMHere’s a little gem of a piece that my dear friend Todd Harper (of Keys Please fame) gave me as a present for my 25th birthday. Naturally this charmed my socks off. So tonight, with my socks back on (no shoes, though, as usual at the piano), I recorded it to share with you. He has it marked “really quiet,” with “really” underlined twice, so in addition to playing it that way, I kept this recording mastered a bit low.Todd HarperThoughts at 4 AMPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:31 / 2.2 M)What? Oh...2004-11-1400 min

In the HandsImprovisation: Niobrara“Niobrara” is “ararboin” spelled backwards. Does this mean that, if you play this music backwards, Ararboin is the piece you’ll get? I’m not sure. Try it and find out.NiobraraPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:13 / 3.0 M)2004-10-3100 min

In the HandsImprovisation: GoshenJust some good clean fun with with notes.GoshenPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(0:48 / 1.4 M)I just liked the word, but it turns out that “Goshen” is actually a place mentioned in Genesis. I am sure half of you already knew this, but for me, it is an exciting new fact. Seems I ought to search this here “inter-net” more often!2004-10-2600 min

In the HandsImprovisation: MeeteetseMe teetse, ye teetse, we all teetse for…MeeteetsePaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:42 / 2.4 M)In case you’re wondering (not that it’s likely you were), I come up with the piece first, then choose a title that fits. It’s usually the same way with the compositions.2004-10-2400 min

In the HandsImprovisation: HobackHoback, Wyoming has a population of about 1500. It has nothing to do with this piece — thus the name.HobackPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(0:56 / 1.5 M)2004-10-1700 min

In the HandsChopin Nocturne 15.2It’s organic, and sounds almost improvised — except that it is impossibly perfect in every detail. Its soundscape is vast, deep, and richly pianistic, but look at the construction and you’ll see the spare elegance of Bach. It has a loving tenderness, and a longing, that’s unlike anything else, yet seems instantly familiar. And it’s gorgeous.What is it? Chopin, of course!Frédéric ChopinNocturne Op 15 No 2 (in F sharp major)Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(4:32 / 5.8 M)In addition to being a masterpiece of music, this is...2004-10-0500 min

In the HandsEntropic WaltzToday, another one from the set of dances I’m working on that also includes the Cradle Waltz. This one is a bit different in character!Paul CantrellEntropic WaltzPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:57 / 2.7 M)This performance is rough — I’m still learning it, and it’s not easy! — but I thought I’d share it with you anyway. (You can look at the score and see what I’m supposed to be playing.) I think the basic spirit of the piece comes off: somewhere in the grey area between humorous and dis 2004-10-0300 min

In the HandsEntropic WaltzToday, another one from the set of dances I’m working on that also includes the Cradle Waltz. This one is a bit different in character! Paul Cantrell Entropic Waltz Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (1:57 / 2.7 M) This performance is rough — I’m still learning it, and it’s not easy! — but I thought I’d share it with you anyway. (You can look at the score and see what I’m supposed to be playing.) I think the basic spirit of the piece comes off: somewhere in the grey area between humorous and dis 2004-10-0300 min

In the HandsSchumann Bunte Blätter 6I’m just back today from a wonderful, wonderful trip to NYC and New Haven, CT, which was a reminder of just how wonderful family and friendship are. And although I’m really looking forward to sleeping in my own bed (I’ve been up since 5:20 AM Minnesota time), I did manage to edit and master tonight something I’d recorded beforehand for you.Robert SchumannBunte Blätter No 6Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:06 / 2.9 M)As I mentioned last week, I’m working on a set of short pieces, and in that set...2004-09-2900 min

In the HandsCradle WaltzHere, for the first time in this weblog, is a brand new composition — one of a set of dances I’m working on right now. This is probably the most innocent piece of music I’ve ever written (thus the title). Paul Cantrell Cradle Waltz Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (1:06 / 1.7 M) Here’s the score. It’s only two lines long on paper, but those two lines sure took a lot of careful thought! The set as a whole is still very much in progress, but I’ve finished writing a few...2004-09-2500 min

In the HandsCradle WaltzHere, for the first time in this weblog, is a brand new composition — one of a set of dances I’m working on right now. This is probably the most innocent piece of music I’ve ever written (thus the title).Paul CantrellCradle WaltzPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:06 / 1.7 M)Here’s the score. It’s only two lines long on paper, but those two lines sure took a lot of careful thought!The set as a whole is still very much in progress, but I’ve finished writing a few...2004-09-2100 min

In the HandsImprovisation: LuskA mysterious improv: snaking, atmospheric, perpetually unresolved … sort of … lusky. What can I say? The word seems right.LuskPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:15 / 3.1 M)My family has always loved Wyoming names, particularly three neighboring towns we’d sometimes see driving between Colorado and Minnesota: Lusk, Lingle and Torrington. Such fine words! They’ve long been part of our family lexicon, and I’ve dedicated my first three improvs to them to help spread their phonetic goodness to a wider audience.2004-09-1700 min

In the HandsBach Sinfonia 5The first Bach of the weblog, one of his sinfonias (also known as three-part inventions). The three parts in this one are not obvious at first: the upper two voice are wonderfully intertwined, and do an intricate little tango together as third voice turns slowly through a cycle of Bach permutations underneath. I love the way it unfolds.Johann Sebastian BachSinfonia No 5Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(3:58 / 5.0 M)As I listen to myself play this one, it sounds like I’m still a bit tentative with a new piece — certainly there...2004-09-1700 min

In the HandsImprovisation: Torrington LopeToday’s improv is a quirky, silly little thing — a lopsided dance for good (if uneven) measure. I encourage you to invent some dance steps to go with it, and post any here that didn’t result in physical injury.Torrington LopePaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(1:05 / 1.7 M)2004-09-1000 min

In the HandsBrahms Intermezzo 116.4Something sweet today: a bit of magic from Brahms.Johannes BrahmsIntermezzo Op 116 No 4Paul Cantrell,piano♫Download(4:40 / 5.8 M)These late Brahms pieces — same with the first recording in this weblog — are amazing to me as a composer. They sound lush, but the writing is actually quite spare and elemental. The structures are at once formal and organic, like Bach preludes. And the incredible emotional intimacy, their sense of being so personal, is like no other music I know.But enough of that — writing about music is…well…you know...2004-09-1000 min

In the HandsIn a Perfectly Wounded SkyToday’s recording is a composition of my own, which I see I play a bit faster than I did three years ago. I like the new version — I think the faster tempo in the middle sustains the structural momentum a bit better — but of course I may have changed my mind about that three years from now. That’s the fun of interpretation: it’s never done! Music readers and visual aesthetes can follow along with the score. Paul Cantrell In a Perfectly Wounded Sky Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (5:04 / 6...2004-09-0700 min

In the HandsIn a Perfectly Wounded SkyToday’s recording is a composition of my own, which I see I play a bit faster than I did three years ago. I like the new version — I think the faster tempo in the middle sustains the structural momentum a bit better — but of course I may have changed my mind about that three years from now. That’s the fun of interpretation: it’s never done!Music readers and visual aesthetes can follow along with the score.Paul CantrellIn a Perfectly Wounded SkyPaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(5:04 / 6...2004-09-0600 min

In the HandsImprovisation: LingleRecordings of compositions are many months, sometimes years, in preparation. It takes me a long time to learn pieces, and even longer to write them! But I’m sticking with this plan of posting a recording every Saturday and Tuesday regardless, which means that many of the recordings will be entirely spontaneous improvisations — like this one.I’d originally meant to give all the improvs pleasing nonsense names, in the manner of Autechre, but for now, at least…LinglePaul Cantrell,piano♫Download(2:22 / 3.2 M)…I’ll be naming them after towns in 2004-09-0100 min

In the HandsThree PlacesI had a lovely productive day in the recording studio (i.e. in my living room with the mics on) today, and you, o lucky readers of this weblog, will see the results of that work over the next couple of weeks as I get the recordings edited and mastered. Here’s the first from today’s session, an old favorite of my compositions. Little-black-dot-minded people can follow along with the score. Paul Cantrell Three Places Paul Cantrell, piano ♫ Download (5:09 / 6.4 M) I have to say, I’m thrilled with the...2004-08-2900 min