After a lot of frantic composing and sloppy recording, it’s here: Péchés d’âge moyen, my short collection of twelve original piano miniatures.

My self-imposed deadline was today, the March 2022 Bandcamp Friday.  I made it—barely!

The total recording clocks in at just six minutes and thirty-five seconds, but I’ve jam-packed this release with bonus features:  videos, original manuscripts of each piece, and a PDF booklet detailing the origins of the project.  It’s not bad for $5 (although that comes out to approximately $1.43 per minute if you just listen to the album once).

I also had a blast putting this recording together.  The feel of putting pen to paper is just so satisfying, and each little bit of written music is like its own little work of art.  One reason I included the manuscripts with the recording is because they’re beautiful to look at—even with my poor penmanship.

Lacking time, technology, and know-how, I recorded the twelve pieces on Péchés d’âge moyen in a white heat, during snatches of free time during planning periods on Tuesday, 1 and Wednesday, 2 March 2022.  I used the voice memo app on my iPhone SE, and used an online converter to change the files from M4A to the Bandcamp-approved lossless WAV format.

These pieces were recorded at my little private school on an old spinet piano, one I love dearly, and which belonged to the mother of a former colleague.  The Music Room at the school is directly next to the gym, so the sounds of sneakers squeaking on the court and kids dribbling basketballs bleed into the recordings.  I decided against any additional mixing or mastering due to extreme time constraints, though I hope to put down better performances of these pieces in better conditions, and with better quality, in the future.

As I composed these pieces, they grew a bit less experimental and a tad more tuneful.  I’m very pleased with the melodies of some of the pieces, and in better hands they could make charming little piano miniatures.

If you pick up Péchés d’âge moyen, let me know what you think—and thank you for your support!  I’m hoping to do more composing, and to invest in some better sound equipment.

Happy Listening!

—TPP