Kitty Allen - Piano, Harp & Flute

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Eleven Fifty-Seven

Eleven Fifty-Seven

Kitty Allen

Preview
Full tune can be heard on Spotify, Pandora Plus & in most digital music stores.

Polyrhythmic vocal & instrumental tune composed & performed by Kitty Allen on acoustic prepared piano, midi-keyboard, pedal harp, & laptop.

This tune consists of three sections & is an experiment in atypical rhythms, altered acoustic instruments, altered voice, & key signature modulations. Section one is performed in 11/8 time and includes piano with wires lined in paper. In addition, a full can of Red Bull energy drink (unopened) was laid horizontally across the upper register. Section two contains fifty-plus measures of 6/8 time & offers pedal harp with accompaniment. Section three moves in 6/8 timing with four groupings of seven measure vamps. Altered voice plus accompaniment can be heard. The tune ends with a return to the melody & 11/8 rhythm of section one.

Inspired by a visit to the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood in St. Petersburg, Russia. The photo shown above depicts the intricate & colorful marble floor within the church. It also shows a pair of sneakered feet which, in my perception, display the time at 11:57. Thus, the title of the piece & the rationale (if one is necessary) for a rhythmic & tonal experiment.

Additional photos of the church can be seen below.

© - Kitty Allen 2017

Monday, July 17, 2017

Retrabalho para Rover e Squeezebox

Retrabalho para Rover e Squeezebox

by
Kitty Allen

Preview
Full tune can be heard on Spotify, Pandora Plus & in most digital music stores.

Can you say "squeezebox" in Portuguese?

You will be able to after listening to this tune.

Original tune composed and performed by Kitty Allen on pedal harp, melodica, flute, midi-keyboard, and laptop.

Inspiration for this tune came from a morning stroll throughout the streets of Porto, Portugal. A street musician and his canine companion performed for tourists and city pedestrians. While the seated man played his accordion, his small coated dog sat perfectly still, with cup in mouth, ready to collect offerings. Both dog and man deserved their tokens of appreciation.

A re-mix of my earlier tune, Blue Dog Delicato, composed and recorded in 2014. Originally an eight bar blues in F major. Now a bit more.

© - Kitty Allen 2017

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Brief Misdemeanor for Schultz, the Weiner

Brief Misdemeanor for Schultz, the Weiner

Kitty Allen

PREVIEW
Full tune available on Spotify, Pandora Plus & in most digital music stores.

Original spoken word and instrumental tune composed and performed by Kitty Allen on midi-keyboard and laptop.

Very quirky and quite ridiculous with sound effects in excess. Not produced to exemplify maturity or sophistication. Written and performed in a spirit of fun with rather obnoxious sound and rhyme added to the mix. Best listened to with a sense of humor, tolerance, and an active imagination.

Inspired by antics and general misdemeanor-worthy behavior recently manifested during a spring adventure to Michigan and Ohio. So nonsensical and silly that it might require scrutiny by the authorities.

© - Kitty Allen 2017

Friday, April 28, 2017

PONDemonium

PONDemonium

Kitty Allen

Preview

Full tune available on Spotify, Pandora Plus & in most digital music stores.

A medium tempo eclectic instrumental tune inspired by the spring season. Heavily integrated with various animal sounds that reflect the seasonal changes of nature, particularly as heard at the edge of a pond within a natural forest setting. Composed & performed by Kitty Allen on flute, harp (with toothbrush), midi-keyboard, & laptop. Additional audio provided by electronic effects, domestic house cats, & pond life that includes bullfrog, peepers, geese, & coyote.

A special thank you to these domestic house cats. They offered their distinctive vocal talents nearly free of charge.

Note: This tune is a re-mix of an earlier composition that was composed, performed, & recorded in December of 2015.

© - Kitty Allen 2017

Tuesday, March 21, 2017

Carrot Cakewalk for Corpulent Concubine

Carrot Cakewalk

Kitty Allen

Preview

Full tune available on Spotify, Pandora Plus & in most digital music stores.

For lovers of desserts and for all those who yield to temptation by enthusiastically consuming them with reckless abandon. A semi-traditional cakewalk-style dance tune composed & performed by Kitty Allen on harp, midi-keyboard, & laptop.

While cakewalks were originally dances created by slaves on plantations, slave owners found the music to be amusing. They picked up the dancing style for themselves in the 1890s, thus providing a curious cultural exchange of whites imitating blacks imitating whites.

Known for sounding bouncy and choppy, the heavy off-beats caused physicians to predict epileptic seizures to those who participated. Clergy projected the ruin of society & decline of the human race. They may have been correct.

As seen in the photos below, there was additional enjoyment to be experienced from the composition and performance of this tune.

Friday, January 13, 2017

Shivering Maple Sheds Frozen Tears

Shivering Maple Sheds Frozen Tears

Kitty Allen

Preview
Full tune can be heard on Spotify, Pandora Plus, & is available in most digital music stores.

Original tune composed & performed by Kitty Allen on laptop, midi-keyboard, chromatic harmonica, prepared comb, vocal effects, and vocal narration.

The maple sways throughout the storm

Its branches snap and fly.

The icicle that forms throughout

Drips down to melt and die.

Wednesday, January 4, 2017

March for 2 Left Feet (in High Heels)

March for 2 Left Feet (in High Heels)

Kitty Allen

Preview
Full tune can be heard on Spotify, Pandora Plus, & is available in most digital music stores.

Original tune composed & performed by Kitty Allen on pedal harp (with toothbrush & effects), midi-keyboard, & laptop.

It's very difficult to march wearing high heels while playing a harp.

So I didn't.

Happy New Year!