As a composer, it is imperative for me to try and explain the processes behind the pieces that I write. Descriptions like “I wrote this music because it sounded good” often prove both remedial and ineffective. I recently discussed the creative potential and limitations for writing music in the Mario Paint “Composer.” Prelude No. 1 serves as one of several piano pieces that I have been working on this year that began as draft tracks in Mario Paint. The piece differs from other preludes for solo piano that I composed in 2021, where I applied a twelve-tone serialist composition technique.[1] What audiences hear in the finished product featured above differs greatly from what I had originally composed in Mario Paint. Given what I mentioned in my previous post concerning the missing features and restrictions in the “Composer” program, I needed to consider several factors when rewriting the work by hand and with the MuseScore 4 music notation software:
[1] I am currently in the process of renaming and revising the short serialist preludes from 2021 as Dodecaphonic Preludes.
- I had to reconfigure the time signature from 3/4 to 6/8.
- Rewriting the piece required translating the piece from the original virtual “instruments” to something that would work on a piano for two staves rather than one.
- I composed additional harmonic layers in both the treble and bass registers.
- Composing in MuseScore 4 enabled me to work with different parameters by altering note durations, applying accidentals whenever necessary, using an increased note range in the higher and lower registers, and adding more measures to expand the score.
- I needed to create an entirely new “B” section for the piece, where I applied a slower tempo and varied the harmonic progression through tonal center transitions.
- I also needed to write a coda to give the piece closure.
[1] I am currently in the process of renaming and revising the short serialist preludes from 2021 as Dodecaphonic Preludes.
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