Shiny Things

Music

My first piano lesson was the day before my fifth birthday. I often combine computers and music, like in my live performance software KeyMaster. That program stems from an older program I wrote with the same name that I originally wrote on the Commodore 64 and used on stage for years. I later ported it to the Atari ST, rewrote it for the now-defunct BeOS, and wrote a Ruby version called PatchMaster.

Currently, I play keyboards in Ellis Island. We made a demo video in 2022. Check it out!

I performed in bands from 1980 to 1993, went on a hiatus, and started playing out again in 2013. Over the years, I’ve played everything from progressive rock to dance pop to electric jazz and R&B; covers and originals. Here’s a video of Miles at Connelly’s in Times Square, New York City in 2013. I’m the guy with the beard and glasses off at the side of the stage.

I write different kinds of stuff. Most of it is funk/dance/pop, but I also dabble in orchestral, Sondheim-esque pieces, game show themes, thirty-second newsroom background music, and whatever else tickles my fancy.

Aside from the typeset pieces below and the sequencer and MIDI files of the music I’ve done on my own, I have thrown a few things up on Soundcloud for the fun of it. Out of all of the original songs we did in the late ‘80’s, I only have one crappy cassette of a bunch of works-in-progress . It’s dated but really good stuff. The sound quality is horrendous. Also, the tape broke so I’ll need to repair it one day.

My MIDI reference has moved here. It’s not a tutorial. Rather, it is intended as a quick overview and a reference guide.

Compositions

Here are three pieces I composed that I’ve typeset using LilyPond.

Here are a few of the other songs on my SoundCloud page:

Equipment Collection

Here’s what my home “studio” looked like in late 2020. When I play live I take the Kronos and the Hydrasynth. The Midiboard has since moved on to another home.

My Music Battlestation, 2020

Here’s the schematic for my home studio and my live rig.

Schematic: My Home Studio and Live Rig, 2022

Equipment List

Live Setup

Here’s what I use when I play live with Ellis Island. Everything here is from the above equipment list. You can see it in action here.

Software List

Old Gear

Just for fun, here’s a list of my old gear. I started playing in bands in the late ‘70’s, but here’s what I remember:

Band List

Here are the bands and orchestras I’ve played in over the years, in reverse chronological order. Believe me, you’ve never heard of any of them.