Portfolio - The Driven

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Take Action (March 2020)

Lyrics:

These times aren’t easy,

We’re tired and overworked.

The system is corrupt, but we’re all too stuck,

It’s time for some change.

But when will it change ?

Why can’t we see ?

The ground that we reap,

The water we drink,

The air that we breathe,

Is not just here for us.

This ignorance won’t last,

Let’s learn from our past.

Now is the time to act.

Program Notes:

Take Action comments on the problems caused by the current way of life and tries to encourage the listener to take action, specifically against fascism and climate change. The piece is written in F# minor, but begins on a D major over F#, making it feel like it may be in a major key. The progression is quite atypical because of its use of the major seven chord and the minor five chord. This song ends on a C# major seven over G# that resolves to F# minor, communicating perhaps a sense of sadness and urgency.

The Lullaby - Written with Sal Bass

(March 2020)

Lyrics:

Verse One:

In the vastness that is time,

A speck of dust and yet to find

A way to live in harmony,

I am you and you are me.

Refrain:

You may feel your voice is small,

Let’s join together we can all

Sing for freedom, sing for peace.

We are all humanity.

Verse Two:

There’s no knowing what will be,

Polluted sky and rising sea.

Just hold onto what you know,

But be prepared to let it go.

(Refrain)

Program Notes:

The Lullaby was the first song that Sal Bass and I wrote together. I had been wanting to write a lullaby for children to remember in the future, and Sal Bass had the perfect unused chord progression. This song addresses that the problems that we face as a world are problems for all of us, that our voices are stronger together and that there is hope for the future despite terrifying circumstances that we can see unfolding. The verses of the song start in B minor over F# and rise to a G major (the major six chord), which to me sounds hopeful and encouraging. The choruses of the song however center more around the relative major, beginning with D major over F# and falling to an F# minor, then ends with the dominant F# major of B minor to flow back into the verse progression. This shift to the relative major paints the text of the chorus, communicating the possibilities of a world where we all work together and “sing for freedom, sing for peace.”

What You've Done (April 2020)

Lyrics:

Venice sinks and Florida floods,

Don’t you see what you’ve done ?

Glaciers melt and seas they rise,

You saw it coming and compromised

The health and safety of each being,

How does it feel to be seen ?

There’s no hiding anymore,

You exploit the earth and steal from the poor.

Creatures from the sea and land,

Are suffering now from your hand.

You hear our cries, you tell your lies,

And still you’re filling up our skies.

When will you act, when will you see ?

Earth is desperately in need.

Program Notes:

This song is written directly to the ones in power who have purposely ignored warnings of climate change in order to keep making money, and expresses anger towards them for the suffering and destruction they have caused to Earth and her beings. The strong F# major chord ascending to a G# sus4 and then A sus4 also demonstrates modal mixture, a pull between major and minor keys, where ultimately the major key dominates without waiver, representing the Earth and her people accomplishing justice over those who seek only to destroy and gain control.

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