Daniel R. Mitchell Music Catalog

This page has links to the music I have written (most of it anyway). I am a "classically trained composer" with a B.M in Theory and Composition from Oklahoma Baptist University and a M.M in Music Composition from the University of North Texas. At OBU I studied with Dr. Jeff King and Dr. Nancy Hill Cobb. At North Texas I studied with Merrill Ellis, Larry Austin, and Dr. Martin Mailman.

I have three albums available on various streaming services. Search for "Daniel R. Mitchell"

The compositions with links on them can be downloaded and played with any MP3 compatible player. Right click on the links and select Save Target As... (or whatever the appropriate function is in your browser) or just click on the link to download/play.

In 2007/8 I created my own software sythesis system and published a book describing the process. My compositions have been created with BasicSynth since that time. For traditional score notation, I sometimes use MuseScore, and sometimes LilyPond. The "Score" links download the PDF files.

Albums: ZIP file containing multiple pieces.

For multimedia works see Multi-media Works

The music is Copyright by Daniel R. Mitchell. You are given a license to download/play the music for personal use without charge. This music is registered with SoundExchange for commercial broadcasters or other streaming providers who want to play the music.

Title: (click on a Play button)

Composition Date Length Notes Play

EmDi

2022-2024  

Poems of Emily Dickinson, set to music by Daniel R. Mitchell. This is an ongoing project. I have written 14 songs so far and plan to do as more as I can. The link takes you to another page that has links to each song.

 

Tappit

Bah Roke
Sparkling Sweeper
Son of a Clave
Pulsator
Bounce Again
Carousel
Run Away
2022 32 Min.

Electronic Tap Dance.

Music created using electronic "tapping" sounds, i.e. with short attack and no sustain. Each tap uses the same timbres, in different registers, mostly limited to six voices, creating an ensemble of tap-like instruments.








Scores:
Bah Roke
Sweeper
Son of a Clave
Pulsator
Bounce Again
Carousel
Run Away
Birthday 2019
Birthday 2019 (synth.)
(400KB)
2019,2022 0:25

Song for a Birthday.

(I wrote this in 2019 but forgot to finish it. Finished in Jan 2022.



Score
From: The Notebook of Lazarus Long
(3.62MB)
1982 03:57

For Baritone and piano. The text is from Robert Heinlein's novel Time Enough For Love. It hasn't been performed, but I used the synthesizer to play it with voice sounds.


Score
Kyrie
(3.73MB)
1981 03:53

For SATB choir, this was composed in Spring 1981. I was working on it my last semester of study with Merrill Ellis. It hasn't been performed, but I used the synthesizer to play it with voice sounds.


Score
Psalm 84-Behold, O God
(2.29MB)
2020 02:11

For SATB choir, this was composed in 2020. The portion here is verses 9-12. The text is the KJV translation.


Score
Psalm 84-How Amiable
(1.96MB)
2020 01:50

For SATB choir, this was composed in 2020. The portion here is verses 1-4. The text is the KJV translation.


Score
Psalm 84-Blessed is the Man
(914KB)
1990 01:11

For SATB choir, this was composed in 1990. The portion here is verses 5-8. The text is the KJV translation.


Score
A Tune For Father's Day 2020
(527KB)
2020 00:36

A tune for Father's Day 2020.


Score
Waiting on a Mile Long Train
(13.9MB)
2020 10:06

Traveling across the long stretches of open land from east to west, north to south, the freight trains haul their cargo of food, grains, ore, petroleum, manufactured things, and anything else that is needs to ship long distances, to their destinations. In the United States, there is no legal limit for train length, and trains of more than a mile in length are common.


Score
Watching Fireflies
(6.78MB)
2019 4:56

Fireflies (also called Lighting Bugs) are bioluminescent flying insects that gather at sunset and signal their potential mates by flickering on and off. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, “some frogs eat such large numbers of fireflies that they themselves glow.”


Score
Walking a Labyrinth
(10.3MB)
2019 7:30

The labyrinth is a symbol of the journey through life. It is distinct from a maze, a puzzle to be solved, with dead ends and turns that lead nowhere. To walk a labyrinth, all you need is to stay on the path, even when it suddenly changes direction, and you will be guided to the center.

The music is structured as seven “circuits” building in layers, varying in texture and melodic patterns, each set off with chime sounds.

The music accompanies a video of a Labyrinth walk.


Score
Hummingbirds Feeding
(10.5MB)
Hummingbirds Feeding (Instrumental)
(7.5MB)
Hummingbirds Fugue
2019 7:42

Hummingbirds at the feeders.

I have been watching the hummingbirds at the feeders. At the house there are five (or more) birds and four feeders with four feeding openings at each feeder. That means there are sixteen potential feeding spots for five birds. Nevertheless, the birds constantly swoop and dive at each other in an attempt to drive the others away from what they obviously consider a limited food source. I think the birds probably waste most of the energy they get from feeding just trying to chase the others away. The biggest irony is that we refill the feeders when they get close to being empty, so there will always be plenty of nectar in the feeders.

Hummingbirds are just like some people. Some people are upset that others might be getting more of limited resources and attack the other to protect what is perceived as "mine" never realizing that if they just quit fussing and attacking others, let everyone have a space, everyone would have plenty. Nature will constantly replenish what we need. There is no need to be obsessed over what others have.

This piece started out as a fugue but eventually changed. I have also put the original fugue here.




Score
Fugue Score
What is the Point?
(8.55MB)
What is the Point? (instrumental)
(8.55MB)
2018 6:13

What is the point? Is it the end you point with or it is the end you poke with? In the end, the poke is the point. Or, do we mean a point of view? That’s an opinion focused on a particular premise that guides thought. Perhaps it is a query of the purpose of something. We should always “stay on point” when speaking or writing.

A 9th cord arpeggio accompanies two melodies. Then, running patterns with sustained sounds accompanied by a rhythmic pattern follow. Finally a merger of the previously heard sections.



Score
A Slow Flowering
(8.03MB)
A Slow Flowering (instrumental)
(8.04MB)
2018 5:51

A flower opens.

This begins as a pattern that repeats, then accelerates, then bursts open into a major chord.


Score
Evolving Streams of Conciousness
(7.29MB)
2018 5:18

A constant development of a few simple motifs.

I was sitting on the porch, enjoying the day, and heard the birds chirping. I imitated some of the bird songs using the synthesizer and this was the result.


Score
When... 2018 0:53

Happy Birthday, Jeri! (May 2018)


Score
Verse 2
(6.67MB)
SynthVerse 2
(6.52MB)
2017 4:44

In celebration of our second anniversary.


Score
Tune for Father's Day 2017
(.98MB)
2017 0:41

Tune for Father's day, 2017.


Score
An arc in the road
(10.6MB)
2017 7:32

Light shines through an arc in the road.

The journey we are on in life is not a straight line, and we speak of bends and curves in the road ahead. But we travel on a multi-dimensional space and changes sometimes follow the arrow’s arc, not time’s arrow alone.

This composition opens with a canon in two parts with a repeated, cyclic accompaniment. A contrasting developmental section provides a respite. The ending returns to the opening themes, reversed in order and heard in octaves.


Score
It Takes A Lot
(1.78MB)
2017 1:56

For Earth Day 2017 we helped plant the first rows of vines at Sandy Road vineyard in the Texas Hill Country.


Score
Scattered Changes Matter
(12.9MB)
2017 9:11

Scattered changes in timbre and texture.

A composition using “minimalist” technique to create a hypnotic listening experience. The “matter” involves slowly changing the density of part, the rhythmic speed of another part, the timbre of yet another part. The slow changes in density, speed and timbre are scattered throughout the aural space.


Score
A Chance Of Flurries
(5.17MB)
A Chance Of (Electronic) Flurries
(5.17MB)
2016 5:30

Music for Christmas 2016.

The first version uses sampled orchestra instruments; the "Electronic" version uses the BasicSynth synthesizer.


Score
Rainbow
(4.34MB)

Rainbow (instrumental)
(6.53MB)
2016 4:37

Sunlight strikes a raindrop.

Several arrpeggios accompany a tune.


Score
Dance On A Sparkling Moonbeam
(3.76MB)
Dance On An Electronic Moonbeam
(3.77MB)
2016 4:06

A "cyclic" piece with repititous tunes. Several tunes are combined in layers.

Two versions of this one: the "Sparkling" version uses sampled orchestra instruments; the "Electronic" version uses the BasicSynth synthesizer.


Score
Jitter Creep
(3.71MB)
Instrumental
(5.72MB)
2016 4:03

jitter

  1. n. feelings of extreme nervousness, anxiety, restlessness or agitation.
  2. n. slight irregular movement, variation, or unsteadiness, especially in an electrical signal or electronic device.

creep

  1. v. move slowly and carefully, especially in order to avoid being heard or noticed.
  2. v. occur or develop gradually and almost imperceptibly.
  3. n. slow movement, especially at a steady but almost imperceptible pace.
  4. n. (informal) a detestable person.


Score
Sub(dis)traction
(8.62MB)
Instrumental
(10.5MB)
2016 7:28 Subconscious distractions of events that otherwise we think are important.

I created a new subtractive synthesis instrument for the BasicSynth synthesizer and then wrote this piece with sounds produced by various patches for that instrument.



Score
Father's Tune
(1.48MB)
2016 2:32 A tune I wrote for my father for father's day 2016.
Score
Happy Birthday
(375KB)
2016 0:32 Happpy Birthday Jeri, May 2016.
Happy, Happy, 
Happy Birthday to you.
   (Feel free to sing
    And dance in 
    Your Birthday suit
    As you eat cake and ice cream.)
May your wishes
And dreams come true,
Happy, Happy, 
Happy Birthday to you.

Score
Plead For Persuasion
(7.55MB)
(Instrumental)
(10.4MB)
2016 7:21 When we need understanding from others, we plead for persuasion. We need them to persuade us as to why they think that way.

This piece is plaintive, with a main theme layered, and varied, into a bigger texture. The pounding, emphatic, accompanying figures contrast the plaintive melody.



Score
Sticks N Stuck
(4.88MB)
2016 6:53 ...because it sticks in my mind.

Sticks N Stuck is a "happy tune" that got stuck in my mind. It is bouncy, lively, repetitious, and joyful. The sounds remind me of someone playing at tapping rhythms with sticks.

The piece has an A-B-A structure, with the "sticks" taken over by a "serious" middle section, but returning at the end.

See Sawing
(5.72MB)
2016 5:28 See Sawing is from the idea of something going back-and-forth, like a see saw. The effect is created by panning the different sounds at different rates. It can also be considered a pun about "seeing" and what we "saw."

Musically the piece has a meditative, calming style, repetitious in structure, slowly evolving texturally.

Music For A Wedding
(8.5MB)
2015 7:58 Written for my wedding to Jeri ("Nanny") on October 17, 2015.
Charism
(2.5MB)
2011 3:24 Grace... Synthetic flute and bells.

Charism is "an extraordinary power (as of healing) given a Christian by the Holy Spirit for the good of the church." (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). In general, charism means grace. More specifically, the term is applied to the spiritual orientation of a religious order of the Catholic church, for example, a teaching order.

The piece was composed using a melody that repeats in different contexts. A synthetic flute is used for the melody, accompanied by marimba-like, organ-like, and bell-like synthesized sounds.


Score
Bounce
(3.8MB)
2009 4:11 Multiple echo units used to create a dynamic texture.

Bounce was conceived as I worked on the echo effect for the BasicSynth synthesizer. When the echo time is set long enough, and the panning is synchronized with the echo, the sound of each note seems to bounce.

In terms of musical form, Bounce is a compressed "rondo" with short phrases alternating and repeating throughout the piece. Several layers of sound are built up, often like a canon with delayed echo of the phrases. The exposition of all the themes is followed by an elongation and a thinning of the texture. A recapitulation of the opening closes the piece.


Score
Whirled-Wind
(5MB)
2007 5:19 Ambient. Windy.

Whirledwind was inspired by a satellite image of hurricane Katrina as it made landfall on the coast of Louisiana, USA. The storm was massive, and was one of the most destructive storms of recent years.

The musical style is "minimalist" or "pattern music" due to the repetitious and slowly changing musical phrases. The drum sounds are recorded individual sounds, while everything else is synthesized.

Pulse
(9.41MB)

(BasicSynth Version)

2006 10:16 This piece began as music for the video Pulse. I later extended and revised the music into a stand-alone work. The piece is constructed as a contrasting A-B-A' structure. The opening section is a melodic, tonal composition with arpeggiated accompaniment, punctuated by the "pulse", that fades into a point of repose. The middle section, which also functions as a development of the theme, switches to a dissonant, pulsating double "canon" that is blended with fragments of the main theme and arppegiated figures. The recapitualtion varies from the exposition by continuing to build in texture to the end. Produced with CSound and Notelist.

The second version uses BasicSynth.


Pretty Flowers
(3.1MB)
(BasicSynth version)
2005 3:23 Music for the video "Pretty Flowers". The music is very basic 12-bar blues, a light, somewhat tounge-in-cheek composition to match the images of wildflowers. Produced with CSound and Notelist. The second version was created using BasicSynth.
A Resting Place
(5.5MB)
(BasicSynth version)
2005 6:00 Music for the video "A Resting Place". The music mirrors the concept of the visuals - a stuggle to find a place of rest within the busy-ness of life. The melodic material is taken from the hymn My Faith Has Found a Resting Place. Produced with CSound and Notelist.
Sunflower Serenade
(2.11MB)
(BasicSynth version)
(Instrumental version)
2005 2:18 Music for the video "Sunflower Serenade". It's not really a serenade in form, but a short sonta in 5/8 time. Produced with CSound and Notelist. A second version was created using BasicSynth. The "instrumental" arrangement uses sampled instruments.


Score
Ecstacy In Yellow
(2.14MB)
(BasicSynth Version) (Orchestra Version)
2005 2:20 Music for the video Ecstacy in Yellow. Produced with CSound and Notelist. The Orchestra Version uses sampled strings.
Score
Where Audelia Runs Out
(21.6MB)
(Revised 2006) (BasicSynth version)
1989 23:36 Yamaha DX7, Kawai, and Yamaha FB01 synthesizers controlled by a PC over MIDI.

The 2006 Revision is the same piece, note for note, but using CSound as the synthesizer. I was never happy with the sound quality of the original. Much of the development section in the original is muddy and the counterpoint does not come through clearly. The revised version is much closer to the way the piece was envisioned.

The third version uses BasicSyn th Composer. Note this is cleaner than other versions, which is why I wrote BasicSynth in the first place.

Minimally NOT in C
(11.7MB)
1984 12:50 Yamaha DX7 controlled by a PC over MIDI. Minimilist style. The whole score fits on one page.
Score

...on the threshold of identity
(9.8MB)

Sythesizer Only

1984 10:42 For Synclavier II digital synthesizer and percussion. Another computer composition. The percussion instruments for this piece consisted of "found objects" such as wooden sticks, pots and pans, and a cardboard box bass drum. The percussion parts were performed by my fellow composition students.
Calypso
(2.76MB)
1984 6:02 For Synclavier II digital synthesizer. Another computer composition. I generated the "theme" with a computer program and then cut and pasted it into a piece using inversion, retrograde, etc.
White Dawn Streams
(9.85MB)

(Synthesizer Parts)

1983 10:45 For symphony orchestra, with Synclavier II digital synthesizer.

This is my Master's thesis. It was selected as the winning composition for the annual student composition contest and performed by the school orcestra.

The "Synthesizer Parts" link will download a ZIP archive of the Synclavier II parts. recorded in WAV format, 44.1k sampling rate, 16-bit PCM. 2 channel.

Git
Git-bell
1983? 1:00 I found this in a box of stuff. I think it was written for guitar, probably me playing around one afternoon. For GIT-BELL, I used bell sounds instead of guitar.
PASSBAND: Tocatta
(3.77MB)
1983 8:14 For Synclavier II digital synthesizer. Another computer composition. Sounds like an organist on speed.
drips:drops:drones:drains
(6.61MB)
1982 14:27 For Synclavier II digital synthesizer.

The idea for this piece came one afternoon as I sat on the doorstep to my apartment listening to the rain, the dripping faucet and the moaning sound the plumbing tended to make.

The drone sounds were written "by hand" while the drips and drops were created using a computer program.

Ballet 1982 8:40 A collage of fragments from several ballet. Each fragment was selected by a computer program. I patched them together into a note file for the Synclavier II digital synthesizer.
Portraits
(13MB)
1981 14:12 String trio in four movements. The movements each represent a photograph taken by my friend David Alexander.
  1. Becky on the Sofa
  2. Los Guerillas Urbanos
  3. Sandra at the Grubsteak
  4. What is that dang deal?
Nocturne
(12.7MB)
1981 13:55 For trombone and tape (synthesizer). Uses a quote from a Chopin Nocturne as the main theme. (The crying baby is not part of the piece.)
Diverge
(6.84MB)
1980 7:28 Woodwind quintet and percussion. Won second place in the TMEA student composition contest.
Fun
(7.08MB)
1980 7:44 My second synthesizer composition. Moog studio synthesizer. Better than the first, but still got a long way to go...
Dance of the Plasmobes
(4.19MB)
1980 4:35 A tape piece (musiqe concrete) using some steel mixing bowls I got from the kitchen.
Phases
(8.9MB)
1980 8:50 For clarinet and percussion.
Grief, The Lean Predator 1980 6:38 For trumpet and piano.
Ec-1-80 1980 8:04 My first synthesizer composition. Moog studio synthesizer.
The Place To Be 1979 7:11

From my senior recital. For wind ensemble: Flutes, Clarinets, French Horns, Trumpets, Trombones, Tuba, Chimes.

The title was the motto for the city of Shawnee, where I grew up, attended High School and University. This was a multimedia presentation that included a slide show of images taken around Shawnee. The images begin with nice houses and buusineses, then become more disturbing with images of seedy bars and old buildings.

The original was performed by students, recorded and played along with the slides. The recording here was performed with sampled instruments using MuseScore.


Score
Piano Sonata I II III 1979 3:45 - 3:05 - 3:03 Piano Sonata in three movements, from my senior recital, 1979. Performed with Notelist synthesizer.
Theometry 1979 3:24 For soprano, from my senior recital. The text is by my father, William Mitchell.
Score
From ULYSSES 1979 1:41 For choir (TBB), from my senior recital.
Score
Moments From A Grain Of Time
(5.7MB)
1979 6:13 For flute, from my senior recital.
Score
Nanny 1978 2:58 A short piano piece from about 1978. Written for a friend whose nickname was "Nanny". Performed with Notelist synthesizer.
Score
Prelude 1977 1:12 A short piano piece from about 1977.  Performed with Notelist synthesizer.

And two more just for fun: a Prelude (Score) and Invention (Score) in baroque style, written for a class in counterpoint.

Albums (collections)

[Rethreaded] Ecstacy in Yellow, Sunflower Sonata, Pretty Flowers, A Resting Place, Pulse, Where Audelia Runs Out
[Ambian] WhirledWind, Bounce, Charism, Music for a Wedding, See Sawing, Sticks 'N' Stuff, Plead For Persuasion, Sub(dis)dtraction, Father's Tune, Eine Kleine Geburtstag Musik
[Some Tunes] Jitter Creep, Dance On an (Electronic) Moonbeam, Rainbos, A Chance of (Electronic) Flurries, Scattered Changes Matter, An Arc in the Road, SynthVerse 2
[Meditations] Watching a Mile Long Train, Watching Fireflies, Evolving Streams of Conciousness, A Slow Flowering, What is the Point?, Hummingbirds Feeding, Walking a Labyrinth
[Orchestra In A Box] Some of my pieces played on sampled instruments.

Some playlists: [Rethreaded][Ambian][Looking Back][Early Stuff]

Links: