Colin's Teaching Resources

    This page was reformatted on 16/01/06

Film and TV Music

The Ghost at Fazakerley Mansion

STAGE TWO Back to Stage One

The Finale file is here if you came from the Finale Forum

See stage TWO set using Finale 2004     MIDI file of the 2nd stage [see note below]

MIDI FILE NOTE: For some reason, Finale 2004 doesn't want to let us hear the very first note in the MIDI file and it will not play it in the programme either.  I'll try to get this sorted out some time.

The aim of these pages is to log my own attempts to compose a piece of Film / TV music as an example of the way an AS student might work for an Edexcel examination.  See FIRST stage

February 20th 2004.  Start 10.15pm

So, just back from a trip to Chester, refreshed (if whacked - Thanks British Rail) and ready to tackle a bit more of this piece.

I have decided (since the last session) that I have moved to F minor too soon and it is not time to bring in a new idea yet.  However I don't just want to repeat the main tune.  I am still worried about my "two introductions".  The jaunty opening gets us off to a good start but it leads to more 'treading water'.

As you can see I've decided to add a piccolo decoration to the 2nd section of the opening. (on the MIDI file it is a recorder because my sound card is so terrible).  I've then added piccolo decoration to the 2nd statement of the tune in the same style.  Hey! Unity and coherence - that'll please Mr. White!

I am now satisfied that I can use my modulation to F minor.  After a break for a meal I improvised on the piano and found a spooky chord progression (F minor to C# minor) which is definitely going to stay in.  I repeat the 4 bar phrase but change the harmony  and head towards E minor (Blimey - talk about a remote key).  It's always good to show the examiner that you understand musical conventions, so I've used a few sequences, falling ones in fact, whereas I tend to write rising sequences in much of my music.

I'm trying to keep the harmony 'seventhy' and 'minor-ninethy' to produce a consistent style.  I find I get to the dominant minor 9th of C minor,  and I feel a return to the F minor section coming on.  These next few bars took quite a long time to sort out.  How to stay on one chord for a long time (secondary dominant of F minor in effect) resolve on to C7 or C9 and hence back to F minor?  Well I think it works.

I finished this at 10:23 Saturday morning.  It lasts (so far) 1 minute 56 seconds, so I have quite a bit left to do AND I need to add dynamics and decide on the final scoring.

Here's the music.  MIDI file of the 2nd stage [see note above]

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