November 2011 ONU Update

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

I just wanted to offer a quick update on the progress of the project.

I am about 230 pages into the initial draft of the O Nox Ultima novel. All in all, the writing is going extremely well. When I first began, I assumed it would go pretty quickly because I knew the basic plot of the story going in: the novel is really an adaptation of my earlier stage play/screenplay scripts. There is a LOT more detail to the novel, though. For example, illustrating the backstory regarding Helena added nearly a hundred pages, and the main character of the stage and screenplay scripts, Antonius, doesn’t even speak his first words of dialog until the ninth chapter!

It’s a great turn of events to have Helena be the lead character of the novel while Antonius is the leading figure of the screenplay. The story is the same, but this way I can tell it from two completely different perspectives. If the project is ever made into a film, people might complain, as they often do, that the “movie was nothing like the book”, although, in this particular case, that difference would be intentional by the original author and not some commercially motivated compromise by the movie studio making the film!

When writing a novel, though, one is illuminating a world for the reader without the benefit of the direct visual communication that a stage or screen conveys. Instead, one uses a volume of descriptive details to paint the picture. To do that well the details have to be vivid, significant, and, in the case of historical fiction like ONU, accurate. While an author possesses a certain poetic license and latitude to create their unique story, he/she must diligently investigate the setting in order to get the minutiae of details correct in order to sustain the suspension of disbelief.

That background research makes the writing process fascinating and delightful for me, but it does slow the project a bit. I find that I am constantly switching back and forth between writing and sleuthing out details via the internet (I can’t imagine what this process would have been like without the web!). I’ll close my eyes and envision a scene, write it, and questions regarding the environment (topographical, cultural, political, logistical) immediately surface, demanding to be answered in authentic ways. Off to the web, starting with Wikipedia, then, in order to confirm the data found there, I’ll test the Wiki-assertions with data from more reputable sites, usually academic papers or the like from respectable classics or history departments of major universities. For all the slagging that Wikipedia gets, it really is a great initial reading tool, and I am generally pleased at how much of the detail I’ve read there bears up under the confirmation process.

I have been extremely fortunate. The setting I initially chose, north central Turkey circa the turn of the millennium from BC/AD, is absolutely perfect. The history of the region completely backs the story. I can’t remember why I chose this area to begin with, because I did not know anything about the region before starting the tandem writing/researching processes. The wonderfully dynamic and dramatic history of that land, a messy crossroads of Hellenic, Roman, and Persian cultures, grants me a very wide berth for believable plot twists. Seeing that my main character is a woman, it is fascinating how she can navigate the environment, as agency for women in the Greek world was extremely stifled and limited (the exception being Sparta), incrementally better in the Roman world, and radically better in the Persian world of that era. A quick perusal of Persian history during the Greek and Roman eras reveals a stunning contrast with regard to the roles of women in society. Noteworthy Persian women were soldiers, generals, admirals, treasury secretaries, and empresses, and the myth of the Amazons came from this part of the world.

No one person sums up the glorious mix of these three incredible world powers better than Mithradates VI the Great, the great king of Asia Minor who tormented Rome for decades. Aside from Hannibal, Mithradates was the very worst enemy Rome ever faced, and so much revenue and human resources were spent trying to defeat him that Mithradates, with the accompanying political unrest that strain on resources caused, might have been the single greatest factor in the demise of the Republic and the rise of the Empire. I didn’t know all this when I decided that my main character, Helena, was his great granddaughter.

Recently I found a classicist/historian who specializes in the study of this very region at precisely this point in time: Adrienne Mayor at Stanford University. I have been reading two of her books to fortify my basic knowledge of my setting:

This bio of Mithradates is wonderfully detailed and will really help me get things right.

This book was amazing. WMDs and the controversies regarding their use, as it turns out, have been researched and discussed for about 3,000 years. While the Greeks and Romans did not understand the chemical or biological processes behind volatile compounds or infectious disease, they were astute observers and learned over time how to employ chemical, pyrotechnical, and biological warfare tactics. In fact, Mayor suggests that the Hippocratic Oath might have been codified, at least in part, as a reaction to doctors and/or pharmacologists who used their knowledge of poisonous substances to aid armies in their efforts to win victories.

So that’s the update. I am about 1/3 of the way through the first draft, as I foresee the novel coming in at about 600 pages or so. While the delays in the O Nox Ultima project have been hard to take, I am thankful that circumstances have pushed me to write this book first. Many of the details and plot points from my earlier scripts were just plain wrong, and when I finish the book I’ll conform the screenplay to the more accurate historical details. For all the work that we will be pouring into the music side of the project, it will be nice to have a strong and well-tested underlying narrative structure.

Take care my friends,
Bart

September 2011 ONU Update

Hello all,

This September has been a sobering month for me. While I certainly have been reminded of the cataclysmic events of 9/11/2001, there is actually another ten year anniversary this September that has caused me to reflect deeply upon my life:

The original release of our first full-fledged album project Sorrow & Promise.

I listened to it again a week ago with conflicting emotions. As far as the lyrics and arrangement are concerned, I would not change a single thing on that project. It was a perfectly realized musical statement of what we were going for with regard to composition, vision, and intent.

Having said that, there are parts of it that are hard for me to hear today. The execution of the undertaking was fraught with flaws and compromises, which is an unfortunate reality for an entirely independent, self-financed recording project. Sadly, the flaws center largely around my own musical contributions as a singer and guitar player. Jonathan and Frank submitted spot-on perfect performances, and the drum sound Brad DePasse got at Ark Studios (back when he was operating out of his mother’s basement) was nothing short of phenomenal. Issues with my guitar tone and vocals will always haunt me, for when I hear them I know we just missed achieving something timeless. If my musical contributions had matched my artistic aspirations it really might have been a masterpiece.

But after it was finished it was easy for me to accept the project for what it was: a great first album. Not perfect, but certainly a valiant effort. Even courageous, in that it certainly was crafted with little concern for the pragmatics of pop music marketing. Secular prog listeners would tend to be irritated by the overtly Christian message of the lyrics, and the Christian market would not tolerate such melancholy imagery. No part of S&P would ever find its way on the K-Love play list.

What my reflections this month have stirred in me is a regret that it has taken so long to put forth a follow up project. Ten years. Such a long time. My first draft of the stage play manuscript for O Nox Ultima was written in 2003. It has undergone endless revisions and refinements ever since, and has been transformed from a stage play to a screenplay, and is being transformed once again. Strange twists and turns in the path of my life have caused delays and diversions I would have never anticipated in my wildest dreams. Perhaps they are all part of some unfathomable master plan that I might understand in hindsight once it is finally over with. Or maybe this whole effort will prove to be a colossal waste of time, energy and talent. I wish I could say with certainty which. I cannot. I simply don’t know anymore. All I know for sure is that I will continue pushing forward until it is done.

I even have to laugh a bit at this blog. Again, I am stunned that I am still posting to it after three years. I thought it would have been finished in 2010 at the latest.

This also has caused me to carefully weigh some comments I read on the Christian Progressive Rock email group I’ve been a part of for several years. A poster commented about the ethics and legality of taking pre-orders for unfinished CD projects. Now mind you, I was extremely explicit in the disclaimers agreed to by people who pre-ordered O Nox Ultima CD packages–that there would be no specified delivery date. Given the years of continual delays we have already experienced, I could easily anticipate yet more logistical problems pushing back release dates beyond our control.

Nevertheless, at this point the delay has been completely unreasonable, so I am compelled to make the following offer: if, for any reason whatsoever, customers who pre-ordered O Nox Ultima CDs would like a refund + interest on the $25 they paid us, just contact me via email. I have all of your names/addresses/emails/shipping addresses to verify your identity with. I will gladly refund you with my apologies and no questions asked.

For those of you still willing to “let it ride”, I will do my best to make sure the album was worth the wait.

__________

Now to more specifics regarding the progress of the project:

I have run into a technological problem with my recording studio. My main computer is proving to be unable to accomplish the work I am requiring of it as a host for my DAW (Apple Logic). I am in need of an upgrade and our family budget does not allow for me to simply buy another Mac to replace this one.

I explained this problem to my best friend Dan Kunde, who suggested that I use the story to help finance the studio upgrades I require. “Turn the story into a novel or novella that you can sell” he posed. The idea appealed to me, so I began writing in late May of this year. I have a team of friends I am forwarding the project to chapter by chapter, several of whom are educators with background in English Literature. To date I am about 175 pages into the project, which is probably 30-40% finished. With some of the time I’ll have off over the holidays, it is entirely possible that I could have the first complete draft finished by the end of the year. Seeing that I already have some experience with graphic design and print-on-demand publishing, once I have a final draft completed I can publish the novel more or less instantly.

I am not expecting it to be a blockbuster NY Times best seller, but if I can generate just a little bit of income from the novelization I can get my studio back in working order and we as a band can finish the musical. At that point, we will have the project as a completed work in three forms–an album, a screenplay, and a novel. As a bonus to the faithful CD pre-order customers who stick with us, I’ll be inclined to include paperbacks of both the screenplay and the novel.

So that is the state of affairs for Divine In Sight’s O Nox Ultima project. Bless you all for your patience, prayers and continuing encouragement.

Bart

January 2011 ONU Update: Back to the Grind

Friends of DIS,

I never thought this blog’s lifespan would be measured in years, and yet here I am, still posting updates on a project that I can’t seem to get sufficient momentum to complete. I feel compelled to offer at least some explanation for the delays over these last two years.

*** At my wife Megan’s request I have redacted a good portion of this blog entry. ***

..all of this church-related intrigue regarding my wife’s work as a Director of Music at the place of her previous employ has taken a lot out of me, and it distracted me away from ONU for nearly two years. I make progress, but in the tiniest increments. Over the last year most of the progress has been purely technical: buying, configuring and upgrading new software, doing brief sound engineering tests, etc. Important stuff, but peripheral compared to writing, arranging, and actually recording the musical. I find that I need hours of uninterrupted time in order to get in a mental place to actually write new material, and right now finding those hours is difficult. I used to be able to stretch my schedule by cutting down on sleep to four to five hours a night, but I am too old to burn the midnight oil for months at a time like I used to. Also, I did not have school age children then!

Another contributing issue to the delays is my distractive adult ADD, which I was diagnosed with a few years ago. I am currently pursuing treatment options. I have done as much as I can via “coaching”, so I am now willing to explore pharmaceutical assistance to help me function better. With increased focus and improved ime management I should be able to finally complete my work on ONU.

I pray that some breakthroughs arrive in 2011. Any of you still monitoring this blog are welcome to do the same.

Bart

Sweltering Summer ONU Update

Hello DIS Family and other well-wishers and onlookers,

The ambient air temperature sensor on my production computer is registering 97º at 8:45pm. That’s how warm the Cave is this evening. This has been a particularly hot Summer for me, as our home’s central air compressor died a few weeks ago and we can’t afford a new system ($2500-3500). In the kitchen at the facility I work at the temperature and humidity are about the same as our house, so I get no relief going to work or coming home. We’ve put a cheap window AC unit in our bedroom window, so I can sleep, but I am sweating for most of the time I’m awake. That’s hard for me because I am a Wisconsin boy and am far more comfortable in a deep freeze than the dog days of Summer.

I have been having a very difficult time working through the song “Forgive”. Writing and arranging what is really an orchestral score is a lot more complex than a rock song, let me tell you, especially since in an opera recitative you don’t really have verses or choruses–just a long series of non-repeating musical phrases that you hope will work with the dialogue being sung. I am about halfway through the hardest part, and after that the song will break down into a more conventionally arranged rock song.

This song is critically important, as it not only propels the plot along, but does so in a way that really adds depth to the female lead’s character. A great plot point–Jesus does NOT heal her, and they both know why he won’t, or more precisely, why she won’t accept his healing (I’ll give you a hint: it has something to do with the song title).

After this I have half of the “I Will Live” solo by Helena to write (the other half is a reprise of a song I’ve already finished) and a rearrangement of this “Forgive” song I’m working on now. Then I will be finished with all of the solo parts that Becca will, Lord willing, be singing as Helena.

As usual, I am vacillating between depression and elation when it comes to this project. I get frustrated and depressed with the pace of this project and the very restrictive limits of my own talents and gifts. We are nearing the ten year anniversary of Sorrow & Promise, our group’s first major opus (released September 2001). I would have never, ever predicted that our sophomore effort would take a decade to accomplish. I am more than a little embarrassed by that, actually, and I am thankful for everyone involved who still supports this effort.

On the other hand, what material I have finished, albeit in conceptual demo form, is extremely good (or at least I think it is). I think it builds nicely on where we were headed from the S&P project and fits the subject matter of the story very well. No one will mistake it for the work of any other band, and even though our influences will be obvious, we won’t be parroting anyone.

Technologically, I have more computing power and tracking abilities using my MacBook Pro than we did in a formal studio ten years ago. My guitar tone is much, much better, Jonathan’s bass tone will be even more definitive, and the way we’ll be tracking drums will yield a very unique drum tone. I am purchasing the Toontrack Superior Drummer engine with their Custom & Vintage SDX expansion pack, which is a fantastic drum sampler system. Frank will play his parts on an electronic kit in Florida to a series of demo tracks, recording only his MIDI performances. He’ll email them to me and I’ll drop them into the SD program. There, my engineering partners Thomas and Jonathan can help select precisely which snare, kick, toms, and cymbals will work with our mix. This program is radically powerful and the net result is that all the nuances of Frank’s playing are preserved, but we can replace any element of his kit to fit our band sound.

The biggest lift will come when I track Becca and Dan Kunde in the two lead vocal parts. I fired myself as lead singer of this band, and I am very excited as to what Dan will do with this material. His voice is excellent, and, more importantly to the pop/rock world, interesting.

So there I go. I began this post a bit deflated, but writing that last paragraph lifted my spirits a bit. Man, what I could do with about three months off. I’d have this thing completely done. But we cannot afford that, so I’ll be doing my best to write whenever I can. It would be nice to finish this thing by the end of the year.

As always, any prayers are appreciated,
Bart

P.S.: As a perspective check, it took Rush only six years to write, arrange, and record the six strongest albums in their catalog: 2112, A Farewell To Kings, Hemispheres, Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures, and Signals. Sigh.

January-February 2010 ONU Update

Working on the lead sheets for Helena's parts, i.e., composing lead vocals for a mute character. Sublime? Or just sheer lunacy? Time will tell.

Hello one and all,

With the business of the holidays past us, I have been making some incremental progress on ONU. I suppose when people read this they are confused as to how the timelines and priorities shift and change, but that’s the reality of this project. Sometimes I have to scrap old plans and do what is expedient.

On my last post, I had intended to simply go through the musical in more or less runtime order and write it straight through. After tracking with Becca before Christmas, however, I realized that it might be better to capture great performances while I have a window of opportunity to do so rather than just plow through as I had originally intended.

So here’s the new plan: For the rest of January I will be writing, arranging, transcribing lead sheets, and making VERY rough demos of just the songs that feature Helena. In early Feburary I intend to track Becca singing these parts, essentially recording all of her contributions to the project at one time. Obviously, this is not how albums are usually tracked. Lead vocals are usually the last thing recorded before mixdown, primarily so that the singer can really “get” the vibe of the song in its final form. Why do it this way?

Two reasons. First of all, Becca impressed me with her ability to thoroughly prepare her interpretation of her character’s vocal part: so much so, in fact, that I have no doubt that she can nail a very emotional performance with just the changes, lead melody and basic accompaniment. If anything, the rest of the instrumental performance might be influenced by her lines instead of vise-versa, and in musicals the force of the vocal should have a prominent position anyway. All I have to do is finalize tempo, time signatures, and key–any other arrangement considerations can be altered later.

The second reason is that the way this project has dragged at glacier speed, I can’t be sure Becca will even be around if I were to just go through writing chronologically, as I had intended to. She is actively seeking God’s direction for her giftings, and only God Himself knows where that might lead her. As she seems pretty in tune with this process, and very willing to obey direction once she perceives it, it only makes sense to capture her contribution while the opportunity exists.

This is not to say that she might not want a second chance at some of this once she hears her performances in their final musical contexts. If she is still around the area and motivated to retrack things, that would be fantastic, but if not, at least her initial tracking work would still be preserved. Does all that make sense?

In this brave new world of digital recording, workflow processes can be altered pretty easily. With a project like this, we have to maintain flexibility in our approaches in order to craft the best possible work with limited time and resources. Some of you might remember that we tracked Frank’s drums on Sorrow & Promise last instead of first, so doing things out of conventional order is more or less a defining characteristic of our work.

Prayers for my preparation for Becca’s February tracking would be much appreciated.

Holiday Season O Nox Ultima Update

A hot cup of Joe keeps me warm in the Cave

Happy Thanksgiving from the production studio (i.e., the “Cave”)!

I am glad to be able to report some important progress on the musical. Having conceptualized the basic grooves, changes, and melodies for the most significant motifs of the project, I thought I’d start from the very beginning and put together final arrangement demos of the songs. I have been working on the first one, which, for lack of a more compelling title, I am calling “Sacking Of Eupatoria.” It begins with a haunting a cappella solo of a verse from the Dies Irae (“Day Of Wrath”), sung by the character Helena. She is a princess of a walled city under Roman attack, and the verse is depicting her desperate but ultimately futile prayer for deliverance. For effect, I thought it should be sung in Classical Latin instead of English, and the reverb ambience is that of an empty room with hard marble walls–an empty palace where Helena is hiding as royal guards outside try in vain to protect her and fend off the invasion. As soon as her line is finished, the music switches to full-on heavy battle mode, and the melodies of later songs “Blood Of Eupatoria” and “Glories Of Rome” are “pre-prised” here.

For demo purposes I originally sang the latin line myself, but last Sunday I had my first tracking experience with Becca Kreutz, the woman who will (Lord willing) be singing the role of Helena on this project. I set up a remote recording studio in the basement library of our church and recorded her singing the opening lines. She was absolutely fantastic, well prepared, totally professional, and creatively invested in her contribution. I had very high expectations for this part, and I’ll have to raise them even higher, because Becca is bringing her A-game. She could totally steal the show. Amazing.

Fro my part, I love how the opening song is coming. Very powerful and melodramatic. Dripping with emotion. My guitar playing, while clumsy, is passionate, like a wet, messy, sloppy kiss. and I love the tone of it. I’ll leave the tight instrumental precision that people expect from progressive rock to the superior talents of Frank & Jonathan.

One thing is for certain: no one will ever confuse us with Rush again, I promise you.

I have never been more hopeful about the outcome of this project than I am right now. To use a sports metaphor, I feel like the head coach of an all-star team, with each player striving to deliver the winning performance, to be the “game changer”. When I write and arrange things, I craft the parts to take full advantage of their best talents. I know that Jonathan, Dan, and Frank can really make incredible contributions, and I hope that they all, in the best possible sense, step up deliver the performance that will “steal the show”.

If only I can get the playbook finished!

ONU August/September Update

Bart with a solid mahogany Guild jumbo (looks a little too C&W, but sounds good on recordings)

Hello my gracious, patient friends,

Megan has completed all of her coursework and comps for her MMA in Choral Conducting from NIU. Tomorrow her parents are throwing a BBQ party in her honor. It was a long process made even longer because she faced quite a bit of adversity over the last year at her full-time job whlie she was trying to finish out her degree–and still be a good wife and mother. Our family is breathing a collective sigh of relief.

I have been kept busy at work, watching the children, and serving on our church’s praise team nearly every Sunday. I am more a writer than a performer and prefer the creative solitary existence of a home studio to public performance, but lately I have grown as a musician through continual participation in live playing.

Priorities are now shifting, and my work on O Nox Ultima will now be on the figurative “front burner”. I hope to scale everything else back so that I can finish this huge project. I wrestle with the enormity of it all, and often wonder if my artistic ambition outstrips my ability. Maybe it does. I will just have to work much harder to make up the difference.

Thank you all for your enduring patience and prayers. I hope to have something more substantial to post here than my usual litany of excuses for my lack of progress.

In gratitude,
Bart

ONU May/June 2009 Update

 

Bart in the "Cave"

Bart here.

Today I thought I’d give you a glimpse into the super-secret bunker from which I will be writing, arranging, and recording.  It’s a place that is definitely not for the claustrophobic!

I converted the 4-foot crawl space under the addition to our house into a recording studio.  We call it “the Cave”.  I don’t know if this is in reference to Batman, Plato’s Republic, a man’s need for solitary space as mentioned in Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, or just the fact that the place is cramped and dark.  Thankfully it is not damp, with all the gear I have down here.

I just did a recording test yesterday to make sure the ambient sound of the Cave was acceptable.  It seems that the Owens-Corning pink fiberglass insulation is pulling double-duty as sound dampening material, and the tiny walls and assorted stored junk break up any standing waves that a four-walled room would normally have.  Dead quiet.  I was even surprised that the whirr of my laptop cooling fan and the grinding of my hard drives were completely imperceptible when tracking.  I was using two very sensitive mics–a CAD e100 I got about ten years ago in Kenosha, and a CAD M9 tube mic I bought last year–and when tracking acoustic guitar the only thing I could hear other than the instrument itself was my own breathing.  Guess I’ll have to wear a ski mask when tracking guitars.

Even though you would think the Cave is a place only a man desperate for solitude would ever want to inhabit, it turns out that this is not the case.  For one, my loyal Black Lab, Lawrence, loves the Cave because he can have me all to himself there.  We have a new “Bogle” puppy, Choral, who is not allowed in the Cave yet, which suits Lawrence quite fine.  Lawrence is quiet enough to not be heard during tracking, according to my initial testing.  His fur might even dampen more low end for me–I’ll have to move him around the room to see where that might be most useful!

Also, my daughters LOVE the Cave.  Amidst the monitors, interfaces, and guitars you’ll find Webkins and an Etch-A-Sketch.  The other day the entire family, wife included, were with me in the Cave.  So much for complete seclusion!

The Cave also serves as my “prayer closet”.  Getting on my knees is easier in a room where one cannot stand upright anyway!

Last night I caught a vision for the opening song of the musical.  I don’t know if the ideas will pan out, but I have some hunches as to how I can convey the horror of the sacking of Eupatoria by weaving some motif fragments from the songs “Blood Of Eupatoria”, “O Nox Ultima”, and “Tonight Our Final Night” into a powerful, eerie, and atmospheric opening that, Lord willing, will set the hook in the listener/viewer deeply enough to bring him/her into the world of this story.

Onward,
Bart

ONU Update for April 2009

Hello all,

The last few months have been difficult with regard to songwriting.  Currently I am helping put my wife Megan through graduate school, which generally means watching our girls almost every waking second that I am not at work.  There is light at the end of the tunnel, though–it looks like she’ll graduate in August, Lord willing.  Weekends for me to write and record should open up.

Nevertheless, work continues, even with the difficult schedule.  I have been focusing on the melody, changes, and vocal harmonies of the finale “Glory to the Lamb” on and off for a few weeks now.  I also received an incredible deal on a software upgrade for recording (I have the latest version of Apple Logic Studio now), which means I have everything in place technologically for us to record, mix, and master the entire 2-CD project without spending another dime.

I take my small little victories where I can.

I have been listening to the following music for purposes of creative inspiration during the songwriting and arrangement process:

Passion by Peter Gabriel.  This was his outstanding effort originally for Scorsese’s Last Temptation of Christ, a deplorable movie with a great soundtrack.  The composer of the score for Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ, John Debney, borrowed heavily from it–so heavily, in fact, that many call it an unconscionable rip-off.  So, I though I’d learn from the original.

 

Titus: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack by Elliot Goldenthal.  Similar story, only even more blatant.  The composer of the soundtrack for the movie 300, Tyler Bates, ripped off major portions of Goldenthal’s epic masterpiece (an out of court arrangement with Warner Brothers kept the controversy low-key).

West Side Story by Leonard Berstein.  Stunning musical achievement–even “progressive” in the ways prog rockers groove to (odd time signatures, key changes, etc.).  Pure genius.

Rites Of Spring and Firebird Suite by Igor Stravinsky, Scythian Suite by Sergei Prokofiev (all conducted by Leonard Berstein).  Stravinsky’s primal rhythms are inspirational as I try to write very ethnic yet powerful Middle Eastern grooves (not as laid back as “world music” can be these days–remember, the debut of this work actually resulted in a riot!).  Also on the same album, some elements of the Scythian Suite by Prokofiev have even more directly ancient militaristic sounds (to me, anyway).

Sheer Heart Attack and A Night At The Opera by Queen.  These are the two best Queen albums.  Early enough to have their best creativity, while having the fully realized “Queen” sound courtesy of Roy Thomas Baker (as opposed to Queen and Queen II, which are a bit too “raw” for my tastes).

Signals by Rush.  Not the best Rush album, but the bass tone is absolutely the best Rickenbacker 4001 biamped sound ever recorded.  Stirs my heart every time I hear it.

Spilt Milk by Jellyfish.  This album continues to delight me with every listen.  Amazing production values.

 

Boston (debut) by Boston.  I had this on vinyl when it was first released.  Loved it then, love it all the more now.  This album is most inspirational because of how it was made.  It was nothing less than the most successful basement recording of all time. 

 

So, at least I am filling my brain with some decent raw musical material.  One thing is certain: O Nox Ultima will NOT sound like another Rush album!

 

That’s all for now.

Bart

O Nox Ultima January 2009 Progress Update

 

Bart of DIS

This is Bart.  

I thought I’d sum up where I am with the O Nox Ultima project right now.  Seeing that I am blogging the updates now rather than composing them in newsletters, I should be able to keep things a bit more current and go into greater detail.

When I say “I”, certainly I do not mean to exclude Dan, Jonathan, or Frank.  At this stage of the musical’s development, however, it is more or less a one-man show.  I am hoping that my initial lyrics, vocal melodies, and chord changes will be a decent starting point for the rest of the band to build upon later.  I have no doubt that their musical abilities to arrange, modify, reinterpret, and edit my current efforts will result in a final product that is far beyond anything I could have conceived myself.

At this stage of development, I tend to “overwrite” things.  The lyrics are too long and ponderous, the chord changes too obtuse.  There is a disproportional weight on over-the-top creativity, inspiration, freedom, and exploration to the detriment of accessibility, balance, or taste.  When the basic frameworks for each of these songs are finished, then the editing scalpel comes out and a lot of fat will get trimmed.  For a project like this to have any real chance of broad ministry application and appeal, it cannot for a second try the patience of the listener, so stylistic compromises and streamlining will come into play.

With that as a preface, here is where I am at with the songs themselves:

“Overture”–I have not begun this song yet.  Even though it is chronologically first, it will likely be the last song written and arranged, which makes sense considering that it is essentially to be a medley of motifs from the other songs from the rest of the project.

“O Nox Ultima”–This song is more or less completely done and ready for final arrangement tweaks from Jonathan and Frank and then recording.  I think the melody is pretty strong, which is pretty important for the first song of a musical.

“Land of the Prophets”–The basic grooves, melodies, backing harmonies are done, but a bit more work needs to be done with regard to instrument arrangements and transitions between the three different rhythmic grooves in the song: the verses, choruses, and a strange militant Roman Army bridge section.

“Glories of Rome”–Similar to the “Land of the Prophets”, in that some arrangement and transition issues remain to be addressed.  A bombastically fun song that hopefully helps convey the swagger of Roman self-identity as rulers of the known world. 

“My Greatest Treasure”–While the vocal melodies and changes are done, and I know it will have a waltzy 6/8 feel, I still have no idea what the final instrumental arrangements will end up like.  This is an important song, as it has to “sell” the depth of the love relationship between the lead (Antonius) and his mute slave/fiance (Helena), and it has to create the suspension of disbelief pretty carefully, seeing that Helena cannot speak.  We’ll have to establish that this duet is one where they sing from the depths of their souls, where Helena can sing beautifully, versus their reality, where she cannot utter a sound.

“The Blood of Eupatoria”–This one is very close to being ready to record.  Only a few minor arrangement details need to be worked out.  This song rocks hard, and is a punishing contrast to the previous one (and in the screenplay, they follow one another almost immediately).  Dark, haunting, and driving, it is a great vehicle to reveal Helena’s black rage.  It will take the right kind of female vocalist to nail this, as she will have to go back and forth from tender, loving mother and adoring wife to avenging, murderous harpy.

“Sicarii Slaughter”–I’m still kicking around ideas for this very short but very violently intense instrumental.  It will probably steal a few motifs from “Glories of Rome”, “O Nox Ultima”, and/or “”Blood of Eupatoria” over a pounding tribal Stravinsky/Rites of Spring-influenced groove.

“Repent”–I think this has the best chance at being a radio “single” of any song on this project.  It can be completely divorced for the context of the play and still make sense, as it is an art-rock retelling of the Sermon On The Mount.  Pretty much ready for recording, I would think.  I imagine people actually leaving their seats and dancing during this one, as it grooves very hard, especially during the “double-time gospel” section at the end.

“God of the Desert” & “God of the Desert (reprise)”–Basic melody and changes are complete.  I am hoping to farm a lot of the arrangement of these songs out to Frank, as I imagine it being a very contemplative piano-driven song, with only a smattering of rock instrumentation perhaps on the last chorus to give it a lift.  I think I even suggested to Frank that the piano accompaniment be something like German Lieder (being a conservatory-trained pianist, he knows what I mean by that).

“Forgive”–I have the melodies and changes for Jesus’ lines pretty much done, but this song is the most “opera-like” in the whole project, as Helena sings a lot of non-repeating one-line phrases as she contemplates Jesus’ message, which I haven’t tackled yet.  This song needs to be handled very carefully: it has to have maximum impact when she ultimately chooses to keep hating and refuse Jesus’ pleas for her to forgive–and thus remain mute.

“I Will Live (“Blood of Eupatoria” reprise)”–I have a very firm idea on how this song should go–a lilting waltz as Helena sings of her wonderful change of fortunes, and the horror of her entire world being upended by an accidental discovery.  I still have to write the melody and changes or the first part (the second is a straight reprise of “Bloood of Eupatoria”), but I can almost hear it in my head now, so I’m not worried.

“Eupatoria”–Another reprise of the earlier song, only this time sung by Antonius with a more subdued arrangement than the bombast Helena sings it with.  Drenched with sorrow and regret.  Maybe I can enlist Frank for help pulling this off with more subtle orchestral arrangement.

“Crucify”–Basic groove, vocal melody, harmonies, and arrangement done, but still working on the bridge.  

“Tonight Our Final Night”–Again, vocal melody, harmonies, grooves and arrangement done. Big song with very intense unison riffing between the bass and guitar, which is only possible because Jonathan can pull off on bass anything I can on guitar!

“Forgive (reprise)”–While I know where this is going, I have hardly begun putting it together.  Another important song, as it finally breaks Helena and brings her to forgive.

“Immolation”–While primarily an instrumental song, it will use a very big church choir singing the melody and original Latin text for “Dies Irae” (“Day of Wrath”), one of the oldest and most ominous melodies in Western music.  Weaving over that medieval theme will be some of the strongest motifs of the musical.

“Glory to the Lamb”–Finished the basic vocal melody and changes for the chorus, still working on the rest.  Huge, epic-scale song that has to tie the entire project together.

 

So that’s where we are as of this writing.  Please pray for increased clarity of vision and refinement of giftings so that this musical will accomplish all God would intend it to.

 

Bart