by Kile Smith | Sep 3, 2014 | Broad Street Review, Composition
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 1 Sep 2014. Reprinted by permission.] The villain had the disabled, drifting starship Enterprise lined up in his sights, and his hand slowly descended toward a button on the console. He held it there for a moment, then...
by Kile Smith | Jun 21, 2014 | Broad Street Review, Composition
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 20 June 2014. Reprinted by permission.] The bear, dozing in the afternoon heat, shifts, and a vast paw thuds the loam. A startled mockingbird takes off, lands on a safe limb, and screeches a complaint. So begins, as I hear...
by Kile Smith | May 20, 2014 | Broad Street Review, Composition
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 20 May 2014. Reprinted by permission.] Either through subconscious blocking or natural forgetfulness, whenever I begin a new piece it dawns on me, as if for the first time, that I have no idea what I’m doing. When I recall...
by Kile Smith | May 6, 2014 | Broad Street Review, Composition, Pop Music
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 6 May 2014. Reprinted by permission.] Long ago I got over being embarrassed by growing up on pop music. There’s no moral fiber in this accomplishment; it happened at about the same time the classical world got over the fact...
by Kile Smith | Apr 1, 2014 | Broad Street Review, Composition
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 1 Apr 2014, as “The double bar.” Reprinted by permission.] Celebrating the completion of the new orchestral work, I pruned two trees in front of our house. That’s not really true. Oh, I did prune those trees,...
by Kile Smith | Dec 17, 2013 | Broad Street Review, Composition
[First published in the Broad Street Review, 14 Dec 2013, as “The power of embarrassment (and other lessons from J.S. Bach).”] It’s not the “What’re you lookin’ at?” look, no, no. See, he’s smiling. He’s the guy leaning, arms crossed, into that doorway,...
