12 Moon Solo Saxophone Project Day Twenty
Date: 01/20/2013
Instrument: Tenor saxophone
Location: Utility closet in an apartment complex. Seattle, WA
Notes:
On the eve of Martin Luther King Day, I feel this year above others in the past I have been actively engaged in the rememberance of Dr. King and his message. I hope to celebrate this great American’s life on a daily basis, and I continue to be inspired by his perseverance and intelligence. My piece today was certainly inspired by his contribution to moving the world forward.
I recorded this afternoon inside a utility closet inside an urban apartment complex near Seattle’s university district. Having recently listened to a scholarly examination of Dr. King’s oratory development, I felt compelled to record a joyous improvisation. However, I carried a melancholic presence with me throughout the day, and looked for a way to incorporate this into my piece as well. This improvisation uses two major chords and complimentary secondary chords that accompany them within the same rage. Both of these chord progressions have a Tonic-Dominant relationship to my ears–perhaps the strongest harmonic relationship two chords can have. To juxtapose this stability, I play a cyclical fingering that quickly alternates between a concert G and an Ab. I use space between the harmonic action to punctuate the pairing of these consent and dissonant sonorities.
-Neil