Barry's Projects Archives - BARRY HARTGLASS

Jun192021 by Barry Hartglass1 Comment

Akkording To Maya

A few years ago, I started exploring the endless possibilities of Reaktor and I evaluated all of the many included ensembles in the Reaktor Factory Library: Effects, Grooveboxes, Samplers, Sequenced Synthesizers, Sound Generators and Synthesizers. When I first played around with Akkord, one of the Reaktor Sequenced Synthesizers, I imagined composing a piece for my talented daughter Maya to play one day called, “Akkording To Maya,” for Akkord and Viola. For Maya’s 16th birthday (6/13/21), I finally got around to doing it. Since Akkord has a unique sequencer that plays chords, I sent Maya a list of almost every possible chord in every key and asked her to choose 16 of them, no matter which ones. I assembled a musical form using the chords that Maya chose in the order that she…

Aug72020 by Barry Hartglass2 Comments

“Meditation on Roads Not Taken” by Audible Abstraction

Barry's Projects, Blog

During the Fall 2017 semester at Hostos Community College, I was grading Exercise 2 (E2), a recording and editing assignment in Introduction to Recording Techniques (DM106). For this assignment, students were asked to choose a page or two from the syllabus, a technical manual, or a poem and record themselves or someone else reading the text, and then edit any reading errors. It’s always interesting to see and hear what students choose to record for this assignment. The first student I graded chose the Robert Frost poem, “The Road Not Taken,” and he did a great job recording himself reading it. As I began listening to it, unaware of what it was at first, I noticed that it sounded strangely familiar. Coincidentally, a few months prior, one of my piano…

Aug182019 by Barry Hartglass2 Comments

“Rather Be With You” featuring Samantha Kenny

Barry's Projects, Blog

It must have been late December or early January this year when I received a text message from Samantha Kenny, one of my former students at Guitar Center Studios (Danbury, CT), where I taught piano, guitar and bass (and got amazing discounts!) from 2012-2018. Samantha stopped taking piano lessons with me after graduating high school and becoming a student at The New School in New York City. It was great to see her again when she came to hear me perform some unusual, experimental music in Brooklyn with Audible Abstraction in September 2017.Anyway, as I was preparing my syllabi and course content for the Spring 2019 semester at Hostos Community College (Bronx, NY), Samantha reached out to say hello and let me know she was around if I needed help…

Sep22017 by Barry Hartglass2 Comments

“Two Minute Catharsis” by Barry Hartglass

Barry's Projects, Blog

"Two Minute Catharsis" is an exploration of how "outside" notes can fit naturally "into" a jazz composition. The listener, even without a formal understanding of jazz, should feel which phrases don’t fit in, and experience a renewed sense of balance when the harmonies return to stability. The saxophone “sings” a melody in haiku form. Keep reading for the original blog. Full story: Two Minute Catharsis is a composition for Soprano Saxophone and Omnisphere drone. The drone consists of two sounds from Spectrasonics Omnisphere 2: Dawning and Distant Dreams. I simply held a C for around two minutes. These sounds have more than one note though; an ethereal, suspended chord sounds from them. The melodies are mostly in the C aeolian mode and since the soprano sax is a Bb instrument I…

Aug172017 by Barry Hartglass7 Comments

“Resurgence (for Orchestra)” by Barry Hartglass

Barry's Projects, Blog

“Resurgence” is a ten-minute master’s thesis compiled from a long list of unfinished ideas. Over the years, themes stacked up inspired by everyday events like a cat visiting, and running away. This post-tonal piece is currently a MIDI realization, and includes a score to follow along, if the listener chooses. Score: Resurgence (for Orchestra) Keep reading for the original blog. Full story: Twenty five years after I graduated from the University of Miami with a Bachelor of Music in Music Engineering Technology, I decided it was time for another degree! In 2013, I started Graduate Studies in Composition at CUNY Hunter College and received a Master of Arts in Music (composition) in 2015. This was something I always wanted to do since graduating from University of Miami, but first I…

Nov182011 by Barry HartglassNo Comments

"Vudu" by Batik

Barry's Projects, Blog

Batik is an eclectic jazz/world/fusion group featuring Dave Anthony, Tom Nazziola, Tim Ouimette, John Roggie and Barry Hartglass. “Vudu” features udu fills throughout the recording. This piece is an example of modal jazz, with six modes that repeat throughout, a 7/8 time signature and a very mysterious mood. "Vudu" was composed by Barry Hartglass. Keep reading for the original blog. Full story: The sixth track on my SoundCloud Playlist is "Vudu" by Batik. It can also be heard on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dSSRIhDQ9rI As mentioned in my last blog about John Roggie's "Lizarb," Batik is an eclectic jazz/world/fusion group featuring Dave Anthony, Tom Nazziola, Tim Ouimette, John Roggie and myself. "Vudu" was composed by me, and is the title track on Batik's debut CD, "Vudu" released in 2009. "Vudu" is spelled the…