This is a track about loss - specifically about the loss of one's father - a father that was truly and deeply loved. It is relatively short for a music2work2 track but it stands out for its simplicity and sweetness.
The mechanic here is to play with the movement from major to minor - the track starts out with a simple left hand arpeggio and a sweet right hand melody and yet within a few seconds the whole thing transitions into a minor key and the whole feel becomes more melancholic.
It was written shortly after my father died and the whole experience was incredibly bitter-sweet. The memories were joyful:
"Jungle expeditions in Singapore, driving to the South of France, visiting Surgeons, the bottles from grateful patients, “Father Son Barbecues,” playing golf, playing snooker in The Mess with a half pint at 14, These Things Shall Be, the man in the mirror, worker or wanker, conversations, discussions and laughter, so much wonderful laughter."
And yet - the loss was still visceral and real - hence the majority of time being spent in that minor, melancholic space.
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About the Curator - Andrew McCluskey
The first visual memory I have is that of the white upright piano in Singapore, Hell and the dark forces lived at the bottom, Heaven and the Angels at the top. They would play battles through my fingers and I was hooked.
Although I've always played, I haven't always been a musician. Most of my twenties were spent working with people, buying and selling and learning how the world works. It was in my thirties that I came to America and focused on music and began to develop music2work2.
Music to Grieve to is often sourced from entries at The Grief Directory. If you know of an organization or product that has helped you and you'd like to raise their visibility, then please tell us about them over at griefdirectory.org