Album Notes

The album Inventions I-XVIII is a blend of serial, free jazz, and post-minimalist music that was composed during a time of question, doubt, and uncertainty. Although the music does not represent these feelings for the most part these are the feelings that were manifested in the composer at the time of composition. They are relatively short musical gems that are extremely hopefully, upbeat, fresh and pure.

All the pieces were written in a month while the composer’s wife was away in Romania visiting her family. The doubt and uncertainly comes in regarding the lack of work as a film editor (Matteo Marchisano-Adamo is a motion picture editor as well as a composer). For film and sound editors working on indie films the recession had a major economical impact. Composing these pieces is where Matteo Marchisano-Adamo turned his attention during this time.

Each Invention is a thought that was composed every morning while Marchisano-Adamo had his morning coffee. The pieces were not highly thought-out or structured; they represent honest ideas (inventions), feelings, and moods that came to the composer during this time. They came freely without forcing them into a specific form. One could say they wrote themselves. In this regard they are totally free compositions.

The music in this album is a unique synthesis of musical ideas. Each piece is relatively short ranging from 1:50 to 5:00, and usually deals with one thought, whether that thought is rhythmic, melodic, or modal. This is the genius of the Inventions: the ability to stay put yet to express highly complex musical ideas, which are multi-textured.