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This is completed version of the final piece in the series “Second of July”. This one is scored for Flutes, Baritone Guitars, finger pianos, balloon and tube drums, and dry scratching samples from an instrument I built in the 1970’s for live performances. The tuning is Adams-12, which is twelve tones from 72-EDO. I use the following six note scales:

Think of it as in C major, with a bridge that goes through E minor, A minor, D minor, G major, back to C major. And throw in an occasional F major to shake things up. There is a melody of sorts, that is first played against the C major, then against bridge minors, using the tones that most closely match the C major tones.

The selection of what each instrument plays at a given moment, the next best action, is determined by the Markov Chain Drunkard’s Walk algorithm. They can pick the next choice, or the previous choice, but they can’t pick what they picked the last time. If there are six alternatives, the next one is chosen from those six using the algorithm. But I pick the six alternatives. I exercise a great deal of control, but when it’s time to play, I leave the final choice up to the randomizer.

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Or download here: Bonfires & Illuminations.

The title to this and all the Second of July series is from a letter from John Adams to his wife Abigail on the occasion of the approval in the Continental Congress of the Declaration of Independence.

The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America.
I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.
You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. — I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. — Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God We shall not.

This is a work in progress. I’ve done several things with this version, but it’s getting close to completion. I need to add some 1/4 speed melody sections to break up the pace.

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This is a work in progress. I found a way to switch to half speed in the melody without having to rewrite it. It’s complex, but a natural result of the macro language that my preprocessor uses. Macros are shortcuts for longer strings. They can be combined in interesting ways.

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Or download here: Bonfires & Illuminations.

This is a work in progress. I added a melody. I find it amazing that almost all my tunes melodies like Frank Zappa tunes when I first start trying out ideas. I’ll have to mix up the rhythms more. This is just a start.

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Or download here: Bonfires & Illuminations.

This is a work in progress. Still just a vamp, but each instrument has an increased likelihood of silence instead of playing a given section of a measure.

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This is a work in progress. Today is just the vamp. Based on the same chord changes as the previous piece, Bells.

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Or download here: Bonfires & Illuminations.

This is a completed version of my ambient piece in the Second of July collection based on John Adams remarks on July 2, 1776. It’s scored for 128 Baritone Guitars and bass finger piano. I make liberal use of the following envelope to mask the initial guitar transients.

f272 0 1025 6 0 64 .5 64 1 256 1 512 1 64 .5 64 0 ; e26 slow rise, sustain, slow drop

Which looks like this:

The notes have a wide variety of slides available to them, but they always slide to another of the six notes in the six note scales, or to one of the notes in the next scale in the series. Sort of E minor, A minor, D minor, G major, C major, F major, C major and out. This is the progression I have used in the past. It’s a typical rock intro vamp for some forlorn song about love lost and then found.

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Or download here: Bells.

This is a work in progress. I’ve boosted the number of baritone guitar strings that play simultaneously. It’s up to as many as 128 at a time now, creating a wall of sound. I varied the tempo a bit, which lengthened some sections.

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Or download here: Bells.

This is a work in progress. Today’s entry is guitar chords and bass finger piano and baritone guitar samples. It’s a common progression:

• E_min+F_maj
• A_min+B-neu
• D_min+E_min
• G_maj+A+sub
• C_maj+D_neu
• F_maj+G_neu
• C_maj+D_neu

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Or download here: Bells.

This is a completed version of Guns, another in a series based on John Adams statement of the Declaration of Independence made on July 2, 1776. The piece is scored for flutes, vibraphones, baritone guitars, marimbas, and finger pianos. The tuning is based on the following six note scales in the Adams-12 subset from 72-EDO.

The piece switches between the pink and the white scales, then after a while moves to the next pair of pink and white scales, eventually ending where it began. There is a melody that is repeated with many variations, including slides, tremolo, trills, and harmonizations. With only six notes at a time, this tends towards triadic harmony in the melody. The guitars and finger pianos on the other hand have their pitches chosen using the Markov Chain Drunkard’s Walk randomizing algorithm. They chose the next note in a chord by moving either one up or one down the following list of choices:

• .one-A1 &pre-&n1..
• .one-A4 &pre-&n4..
• .one-A2 &pre-&n2..
• .one-A5 &pre-&n5..
• .one-A3 &pre-&n3..
• .one-A6 &pre-&n6..

When I need an eight note chord, I pick eight of those, and what I get is probably related by how close the notes are to each other. For example, the randomizer might pick the 2nd element of the list, &pre-&n4.., which is the fourth note in the scale. It must pick next either the 1st or 3rd element, either &pre-&n1.. or &pre-&n2.., which are either the first or second in the scale. The next one picked is dependent on the prior choice, but it could go up or down the list of choices. There is a predominance of fourth chords using this scale layout. In my last piece, Sports, I built the list of choices based on a preponderance of thirds. Fourth chords using these odd scales have a clangy effect.

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Or download here: Guns.