new women's trio arrangement

I suppose I've never been a huge fan of women's trio literature. I was in a children's choir, so I've sung quite a few SSA pieces, but I love the fuller sound and increased chord options available with only one additional part. But some type of bug must have bitten me the other night, and thus I arranged Father in Heaven for SSA women's voices. I'm really happy with the result. Get the sheet music at http://gratemusic.com/songs/Father_in_Heaven.html

be prepared

Two things I learned within ten minutes of each other:

1. The Red Cross office in my town is being permanently closed. Donations dropped off right after Katrina.

2. The Red Cross has a very successful new ad campaign in California. I like their new in-your-face approach. http://blog.wired.com/design/2007/03/masterpieces_of.html

Start stocking up on necessities, folks. I'm not an alarmist - it's just a good idea.

Addendum: You may sign up for free Red Cross news updates and make a donation at http://www.redcross.org.

noisebox

This one was a bit of a rushed job, but it turned out better than some pieces I have done with plenty of time to spare. I wrote this arrangement for one of our local missionaries to use at a conference this weekend with Elder Henry B. Eyring. I hope it goes well.

Noisebox 07 March 2007
Volume 2, Issue 3
Crusader's Hymn

Basses and altos, rejoice! In response to popular demand for solos written for lower voices, Grate Music presents Nathan Howe's new solo arrangement of the Crusader's Hymn, also known as Beautiful Savior or Fairest Lord Jesus. A higher version for baritone and mezzo types will be released soon. Get it through our solos page.

noisebox

New Noisebox today. This song had an interesting little process - David and I recorded our parts several hundred miles away from each other, and then I mixed them together here.



Volume 2, Issue 3
26 February 2007
Miracle of Faith

You have already heard the piano music to Nathan Howe's new solo Miracle of Faith on the YFE 2006 video from BYU Idaho. Now you can download the MP3 and hear the full song with vocals by David Macfarlane and piano by Nathan Howe through LDSmusic.us. Miracle of Faith celebrates the contribution of the early pioneers and the importance of building our own faith for the benefit of future generations.


Thanks for Listening.

not dead

It has been quite the hectic few weeks, and I'm taking a slight pause on both this blog and the music websites in order to take care of some small administrative tasks. Like what, you ask?

• Submitting music to a particular publisher for wider distribution.
• Beginning my last semester of undergraduate classes before student teaching.
• Tangling in red tape while trying to apply to student teach.
• Fiddling around with the mandolin.
• Replacing my hard drive and trying to find all the information it contained in other, non-crashed places.
• Rubbing my wife's back while she prepares to write her honors thesis. Very important.
• Getting another job, this time at the library, where I will sit behind the circulation desk during hours when nobody comes to the library.
• Directing the Institute Choir in Stake Conference. By the way, I love them. They sang very well after a grand total of one hour of rehearsal on the song we performed.
• Preparing extra work for the time off I take in February for the Church Music Festival.
• Trying to organize time off in April to sing in Columbia.
• Organizing and hosting an invitational speech and debate tournament this weekend with 21 high schools currently registered.
• Reading and writing submissions for the writing contest held at my university.
• A secret project I cannot currently divulge, but which is very important.

So if you don't read much from me in the next few weeks, it is not for lack of noteworthy activity - it is for lack of time and energy to report.

noisebox

The site redesign is finally complete! I can't believe it! Check it out. http://gratemusic.com

Here is the new Noisebox:

Noisebox 15 December 2006 - Volume 1 Issue 18

New design, new carol

Sorry for the long delay in releasing new music. We have been quite busy on the technical end of things. Gratemusic.com has been completely redesigned for easier navigation and future growth. Have a look around and contact us with your feedback.

We proudly announce the release of a new Christmas carol, Peaceful the Night, available through our Christmas page. With lyrics by David Macfarlane and music for SATB voices by Nathan Howe, this carol addresses not only the nativity of Christ, but his role as our creator and redeemer as well as his second coming.

Grate Music, LLC
http://gratemusic.com
http://LDSmusic.us

noisebox

New Noisebox:

Saturday, November 25, 2006
Noisebox 25 November, 2006 - Vol. 1 Issue 17

Merry Christmas, Part 2

Exciting news! The Women's Glee Club at the University of Northern Colorado will perform Nathan Howe's setting of Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains at their holiday concert on December 3rd, 2006 at the Union Colony Civic Center in Greeley, COlorado at 7:00. They have commissioned an SSAA version with piano accompaniment. We have now posted both SSAA and SATB editions, unaccompanied and with piano. See the music and hear the MIDI files here, and come to the concert on December 3rd if you are in the area.

http://gratemusic.com
http://LDSmusic.us

fame and fortune

(By fame and fortune, I mean fortune in the sense of good things happening, not in the sense of money in pocket.) It was a good day Friday. I showed the new arrangement of Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains to my choral conducting professor, who is also the director of the Women's Glee Club at the University. He wanted to use it for his women's choir for a concert on December 3rd. Great!

Yes, great. But he wanted an SSAA arrangement with piano accompaniment. No problem. Finished it this morning. Well, actually, I worked from midnight to 5:30, then gave up and finished it at 10:00 after a class. Those easy little projects never are, are they? But I am thrilled that the Women's Glee Club is going to sing this piece, and the annual Christmas concert is a fairly big one. They also rebroadcast it closer to Christmas on KUNC, our local public radio station, where I do my internship. Yes, I'm living high on the hog in the lavish lifestyle of a choral composer. I think we may even move into a place with a bathtub and a dishwasher next year!

Don't take the last part of that last paragraph as whining. I love my life. I love doing what I do. Money means nothing. I just visited some friends whose new baby is having a bit of a rough start. I am reminded once again of the fragile nature of life and the blessing it is simply to breathe. If you are reading this and you are a religious type, a prayer for little Austin couldn't hurt.

optimism

Everything is about to go very well.

(Important note: This is not an election night commentary. This is not a political commentary. Although I appreciate the democratic process and I am grateful to have been born in a country where I can vote, my current cheerful mood has little to do with the early returns that are just coming in.)

From time to time, I just have to believe that good will come of what is happening in my own life and in the world around me. I have just recommitted to be a better optimist. I have added it to my 43 things. I have started keeping better track of the motions of my mind.

It strikes me once in a while, this unshakeable idea that I have every reason to be thrilled with life. When I have this feeling, good things generally happen. Do they happen because I feel this way and expect them, or can I somehow sense good times in advance? This is an interesting philosophical question which I will continue to ponder.

As for right now, I am completely thrilled about gratemusic.com and LDSmusic.us and what we are doing there. I am optimistic about my family and my personal financial situation. I am thrilled about our marriage. I am excited about my education. I don't believe that I will live without inconvenience or difficulty, but I feel that the good will completely override the effect of whatever problems arise.

Perhaps the election does have something to do with my focus on this subject of optimism. All the analysts and the different parties and candidates are talking about the future. On the radio in the morning, there will be many prognositcations about how our next two years will be in America. There are many doomsday voices. There are many who say that our new leaders will fix everything. Neither side is accurate. Some laws and policies have noticeable effect in the lives of the governed, but generally our happiness and our life situations are governed primarily by our thoughts and desires and how we go about realizing them in the framework of God's plan. This new political season ought to be a new season of optimism and new commitment to make life good for ourselves and those around us.

noisebox

New Noisebox today. I am really impressed with David's work on this. It's definitely worth a listen.

Noisebox 03 November, 2006
Vol. 1 Issue 15
New MP3 and new arrangement for Like Sunlight Gleams Thy Grace, O Lord

David Macfarlane has just released a rich new recording of his hymn Like Sunlight Gleams Thy Grace, O Lord. In conjunction with the release of the MP3, a new TTBB edition of the hymn has just been published. This hymn addresses the topic of grace in our relationship with Christ and its connection with faith and works. Access the new files through our hymns page.

Grate Music, LLC
http://gratemusic.com
http://LDSmusic.us

nanowrimo

I started my novel today. By today, I mean this morning. I literally looked over at the clock and realized, "Oh. It's National Novel Writing Month. I guess I'd better write something." The working title is "Archie Frey and the Other People in my Inbox." It's stupid. I just need to make myself write it, because who knows when I'll ever write another novel? I'm up to 1,052 words. Goal is 50,000 by the end of November.

syndication for the noisebox

I just created Atom and RSS feeds specifically for the Noisebox. I don't know about you, but I'm going to read the Noisebox in that little thingy above my Gmail that always shows Spam recipes I didn't request. I know this is not a big deal, but it's a good small deal for me. If you're interested, subscribe. RSS Atom

internship

On Monday, I started my internship with the music department at KUNC, our local public radio affiliate. I suppose at this point I have to admit my addiction to public radio. Yes, the news coverage is often more liberal than my personal views, but so much of what they do is well produced and expertly presented.

So I started Monday, and most of my job as an intern is opening mail and sorting through stacks of CDs, weeding out albums that definitely don't fit the station's format. I can't do this with my own CD collection - I just collect music, and the only way it leaves my collection is by being borrowed and not returned or scratched beyond repair. But at KUNC, it's fun. I like hearing all the different styles of whatever people call music, from acoustic banjo albums to "I did this myself on my $50 1985 Casio in my basement" albums, this internship is helping me to remember why I started studying music in the first place. It really is nice work if you can get it.

noisebox

Here is the latest Noisebox. I am quite excited about this recording. I did it several months ago, and it's nice to have occasion to post it.

Grate Music Noisebox
Volume 1, Issue 14
23 October, 2006: New MP3 for Emulation from Psalms of the 21st Century
_________________________________________________

We recently posted sheet music for Emulation by Nathan Howe, and even for accomplished pianists, it is difficult to get a realistic sense of the piece without hearing a choir sing it. To present it to the world, Nathan Howe has recorded Emulation with a choir composed of some of his closest friends - his alter egos. Head to the Recordings page to download and listen. Then feel free to Tell Us what you think.

that said...

I know I've been down on Internet Explorer 7 the past couple of days. I'm not trying to make undue peace with it, but here are some things I like:

• DevToolBar. It's something you can download from Microsoft, and it's in a Beta version right now. It gives some nice tools most casual surfers don't need. You can get some similar addons for Firefox, but I like the way these are grouped.
• The zoom tool on the bottom right. Very handy for viewing ill-designed sites with too-small stuff.
• The Anti-phishing thang. I always look at the URL to make sure I'm at the right place before entering personal information, but this will help quite a few people who aren't terribly savvy.

So I'm keeping it. I won't be using it much, but I'm keeping it so I can be sure gratemusic.com and LDSmusic.us don't look too dumb in it. I just care that much.

noisebox

Here's the latest Noisebox. I really like this piece, although I am obviously biased.

Grate Music Noisebox
Volume 1, Issue 13
14 October, 2006: Emulation from Psalms of the 21st Century
_________________________________________________

This modern choral setting of an original text by Nathan Howe is designed for concert performance. First in a new set of songs called Psalms of the 21st Century, Emulation features rich 6-part harmonies. Emulation is intended for use by advanced choirs. Get it through our Choral page.

my 43 things

Well, I've restarted my page on 43 Things. Hopefully with the whole world holding me accountable, I'll be pressured to overcome procrastination and reach some of my less immediate goals. If you have suggestions for what some of my 43 Things should be, e-mail me.

national novel writing month

I must say, I take on too many projects. This is an established truth. However, I am completely intrigued by National Novel Writing Month, (NaNoWriMo, affectionately) which is November. The basic idea is that you write a novel of 50,000 words or more entirely in November. I am actually thinking about doing it. After seeing some things that get printed and sold as books these days, I'll bet I could spit out 50,000 words with some degree of coherence, even if most of my writing was done at 2:00 in the morning. Most of my writing on this blog is done at 2:00 in the morning, and it's completely coherent, right? Don't answer that.

Also, I think it would be good to have a similar event designed for musicians - say, a National Musical Writing Month, or a National Oratorio Writing Month, or a National Album Writing Month. Maybe I'll look into starting one of these after I finish my novel. And start it.

challenge

David and I throw challenges back and forth. For example, several weeks ago, the challenge was to write a hymn with the following attributes:

• In the meter 87887 (like Adam-ondi-Ahman)
  
• In the key of F
  
• Addressing some topic related to the Restoration

What came of it was Come to the Mountain of the Lord. Now, I've had another challenge on my plate for a few weeks, and I haven't done anything with it. David has challenged me to write a hymn

• In the meter 7676D (like If you could Hie to Kolob)
• In the key of G
• Addressing the topic of Joseph Smith

My goal is to write this hymn within the next three weeks.

noisebox

We just sent out a new Noisebox. It represents hours of labor - it took ages to get Finale to do what I wanted with this piece. It was really a good learning experience. Anyway, check out the piece. I'm going to bed.

By the way, if you want to subscribe to the Noisebox, details are here.

Grate Music Noisebox
Volume 1, Issue 12
10 October, 2006: Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
_________________________________________________

Sheet music for Nathan Howe's new choral arrangement of the beloved hymn Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing is now available on gratemusic.com and LDSmusic.us. This arrangement is designed for more advanced choirs, and features optional solo sections for bass and soprano and an advanced piano or organ accompaniment. This is an updated version of an arrangement made in 2001 by Nathan Howe. Access it through our Choral Music page.

Sorry for the delay on this week's update - we have been ironing out a few technical difficulties and planning some excellent things for the coming months on gratemusic.com and LDSmusic.us. If you know of anybody who would want to know about our new music, feel free to forward this Noisebox.