At the Leading Edge of Memory

What we engage with today, is the leading edge of memory.

Improvising for me is as natural as speaking. My improvisations are like short stories: the harmonic language and forms are classical; the very singable melodies are more like folk music. The title describes the creative moment of improvisation, where future memories are laid out in real time.

These improvisations were recorded over a one-year period in my living room, with a single microphone and a Korg 1600 digital recorder. They are not written compositions — each was performed extemporaneously, when the mood struck. The album was released on CD in 2007. I hope you enjoy listening.

Notes & thanks

I would like to acknowledge the people who brought me along the path to extemporizing on the piano in my own unique style. My piano teachers taught me the technique, but these people gave me the freedom and confidence to undertake a project like this:

Tom Priester, who first inspired me to improvise
Randy Coleman, who nurtured my first efforts at composition, when they were very fragile
Eloise Ristad, who showed me that when I forget that “I can’t”, sometimes I can
Tim Hickey, whose enthusiastic encouragement took me outside of myself and gave me confidence in my piano playing
Paul Buzzo and Dave Doehlert, who showed me that the spirit is more important than the technique
Christine Thetford, whose production assistance and consistent encouragement brought this project to fruition

All material is original except “All Through the Night”, a traditional Welsh lullaby played here with my own harmonization and an extended bridge in the same style.