Wednesday, December 08, 2004

Parodies I didn't write, but wish I did

A Very Dubya Xmas is an outstanding set of parodies on classic Christmas tunes.

Helpful writing hint

Do not try to shoe-horn your material into a Desperate Housewives parody when it really ought to be a Lost parody instead.

That is all.

Friday, December 03, 2004

Why I should not be allowed to compose

My idea of a brilliant composition: divide an orchestra into two groups: think of the "ripieno" and "tutti" of a Baroque-era orchestra. Then, have the ripieno be in 7/8 and the main orchestra in 4/4 (or, for extra fun, 5/4). Have the ripieno be an ostinato section (like a ground bass, but including melodic content as well), but such that whenever it returns, it picks up exactly where it would be as if it never stopped playing in the first place.

I have no idea how I would write such a piece--but the fact that I can even dream up such a ridiculous scheme means I probably have no business writing serious music in the first place.