SUNDAY BLOG POST - July 10, 2022
Welcome back to my blog everyone! Let’s get right into things with a large announcement: I’ll be at marching band practice for all of this week and and the next week. This is followed by a week of break, then I’m back to school. All of this unfortunately means I won’t have a whole lot of time to compose, so I likely won’t be able to release a new piece every week like I have this summer. I’ve never promised a piece every week though, and you can always check this blog for updates on whether or not I’ll have something new out for that week. I fully intend to keep composing, though, and I am by no means done with music for “Airborn” either. I will also continue to post a blog entry every Sunday.
As far as my most recent release is concerned, “Szpirglas’ Anger” is a bit of an anomaly. The title refers to the main antagonist of “Airborn,” the ruthless pirate captain Vikram Szpirglas. He is not the type of villain who kills for fun, or tries to be flashy. Rather, he is cunning, a careful planner, and soft spoken unless provoked. But if provoked, he does not hesitate to punish those who have not given him his due respect. As such, the two ideas I’ve composed for the character can be both sinister and subtle or dramatically bombastic. The first is a slowly undulating figure in cimbalom, a reference to Szpirglas’ likely Slavic heritage. The second is a dark line in low woodwinds and strings, but can also be growled out by vicious low brass. Both forms of this idea can be heard in “Szpirglas’ Anger.” As usual, a link is attached below.
As noted above, I don’t have anything currently planned for next week’s upload, so until further notice don’t expect anything on the 14th. But I can leave you with the usual recommendations. On the louder side, Nell Benjamin & Laurence O’Keefe’s rowdy “Captain Crow” from The Sea Beast should give you a strong dose of sea shanty spirit. Balancing this is John Mackey’s yearning “Sheltering Sky,” written for wind band. Links are attached below.
Well, that’s about it for this week. Stay tuned for next week’s post, coming June 17 if all goes to plan!
- Thomas
Szpirglas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEBlsPUxxrs
Sea Beast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waZ7nkSJmPk
