Hello all,
As some of you may know from earlier posts, I have recently spent a lot of time and INDEED effort on creating a vivid new composition entitled "trials of the JUTE mill". I have made a recording of this piece which you can find at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcMEk9J-WMw

I hope that you enjoy. Please let me know what you thought.

BEAR IN MIND that the recording quality is not high and that a live performance is more inspirational.
I would also like to say that the "works machinery" sections had to be cut short for this performance as battery was low on my camera. In a live performance, each of these sections would be 4 minutes long to signify the long monotomous hours that these poor workers endured.

Thanks for posting it
Liked your use of captions in youtube, haven't seen that used before.

From the video it almost looks like you are holding the camera and playing it!

you're welcome. May I ask what you thought of the piece itself?

I am also curious to know...would this be a suitable performance piece for my nephews 7th birthday party? Before you decide, here is some extra info (information).

He is having number of friends round (estimates range from an uninspirational 12 to an overly optimistic 103 children) and his mother (my sister- who, by the way, goes by the name of Felicity) suggested that I could perform a little number. She has never seen me play piano before and I have told her on numerous occasions about my talents and the way it has been RECEIVED (obviously I did not include events where I was not so well received as I do not like to dwell on past negatives). She suggested happy birthday and even said " maybe you could, you know, jazz it up a little or something! I'm sure you'll think of something to make it interesting!". I thought instead of happy birthday I could play this (full performance version) and also perhaps give a short speech (duration 5 minutes) about the jute mills.

Please let me know if this is suitable! PERHAPS if you have children (aged rouhgly 7) you could let them watch and ask them what they thought.

Children of that age might not have sufficient attention span to listen quietly to the full performance version. What about getting them to play musical chairs to it instead




Difficult to give an opinion without knowing the content and style of the speech. Could you post your proposed speech here so that we can get an idea of whether it would suit young children? Maybe writing it in rap style would work?

Are you going to have images projected on to a wall/screen to accompany this, as it seems the type of thing that this would be suited to? I've been to the RFH where they've done similar things, a story with music signifying actions and experiences...?

My 12 year old enjoyed it - but didn't have any idea what jute is..

We both liked the bits with machinery running best. Philip Glass had better look to his laurels I think!

Just hope that if you do play it at the Birthday party, that no grandparents of the children are present who might happen to remember the alternative meaning of jute mill

Aw, come on, you have to shed some light on this for the younger crowd here

Try wikipedia

HAHAHAHA! Excellent!

I'm trying to figure out the logic though.. I think I have it sussed but seems a bit odd!

On a completely unrelated note, I think the machinery working part could be adapted into an excellent trance/dance tune if you have some music software

Top note involved in some broken chords (dropping the D down)...

Bb->C->C#->A->C->Bb
maybe to F->F#->Eb ->F->F#->C
etc

But I digress... Sorry, thinking out loud (hmm might have a go at that)

Thankyou very much for your response. Yesterday, following this feedback, I performed for the crowd of somewhat wild children. I have never before felt such manic and raw exhilaration whilst performing. The children, clearly moved by the performance (quite literally) began running around chasing each other just a few minutes in. I could tell that the music had really struck a chord with them! I may just be a normal man but for those 20 minutes I was transformed, enchanted, a god. Behind me I could hear the shrieks of children's laughter as they ran inspired by the music.

Once the final "doom" section was complete I turned to the audience. I saw the joy in the children's faces. It was momentous.

Later I asked my sister if she enjoyed it. She said " Bernie, you know I love you but please never play that piece again"...she's always been a joker!!! she should really do stand up!

Anyway thanks for your comments.
I hope that one day this piece will be played at the proms.
Bern.

Glad the children enjoyed it!

I hope your sister has forgiven you (and me? )

I very much regret that now my children are 12 and 15 we no longer experience the type of joyful birthday party you describe

Titter

Forks, cutlery set, few, short of.

Bernie,

I saw this some time back but could not connect to UTube for some reason. Now I have just seen it and I must say it is nothing short of exceptional!

Listening to it, it was as if I was there in the very jute mill, myself! Indeed, I would go so far as to say that - even had you not provided the very helpful programme notes - I would have understood EXACTLY what it was all about (although I might perhaps have thought it was a sisal or hemp mill rather than a jute one).

Fortuitously for me, the performance was further enhanced when I unfortunately jammed my fingers in the mechanism of my reclining chair - I swear that it was as if I could FEEL the pain of the jute mill workers at that moment. Brilliant.

And those young mites who were fortunate enough to witness the inaugural performance, and were inspired to such an obvious extent will be able to tell their grandchildren: "I was there". Lucky them, I say!

Well done, old chap!