Ian J. Danaher

About this Offering

For this Peace Offering, I wanted to compose a simple song for piano that would both aptly summarize the music theory we've been working on in class this semester and allow me to express a sentiment I always feel comes with winter: the somber feeling of looking at the first few inches of snow on the ground.

The alternative title, "Soldier", (as I could not choose between the two) is representative of the marching cadence felt at certain parts of the piece and of the determination of fearless Midwesterners who walk through blizzards just to get a coffee.

Although there are plenty of triads and stacked thirds in the song, I also wanted to incorporate some horizontal intervals that weren't as common—fourths and sixths and sevenths. From a vertical musical perspective, there are a few add9 chords and some frequent inversions meant to nicely set up the tonic Ab triad. Every note is diatonic; I didn't want to tread into jazz or more advanced composition without sufficient practice. While the tempo stays at a consistent 80 bpm throughout, there is a time signature change near the end that I am proud of.

My favorite measure of "First Snow / Soldier" is the fifteenth; this is one of the few places where the two voices use the same rhythm, and the closeness of the harmony here warmly reminds me of the barbershop I sang in high school.

Daily Peace Action

Step outside—preferably somewhere you can take off your mask and sit undisturbed—and just breathe for a few minutes. No matter what the temperature, fresh air and natural light will improve your mood, guaranteed. Seeing precipitation on the grass, other people walking down the street, and the wind blow through the trees helps one to remember how simple life really is.