Final MuseScorer of the month: Isaac Glover
Welcome to December’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This has been your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each month of 2017. In these twelve months, we’ve featured twelve great MuseScorers, including a wide variety of composers who create different types of music, as well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to ThatEuphoniumGuy. This month, we’re closing out 2017 and this series with Isaac Glover!
How did you discover MuseScore?
In a music class in year 10, I improvised a melody on the piano that stuck with me and that I continued adding onto. A friend of mine was listening to it and told me that I should write it down before I completely forget how it went. Because my notation skills aren’t all that good by hand, I looked online for something to write the music for me, and I came across MuseScore, which was free and easy-to-use with very descriptive tutorials!
What motivates you to compose?
Music has always been a big passion of mine, something that I’ve always grown up listening too, and something that I have always turned to at any given moment. My biggest inspirations definitely came from either classical composers such as Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Rossini, and film composers such as Yann Tiersen and Bruno Coulais. Their music has had such a big effect on me and the way I write my music, and I’ve always loved the idea that maybe one day my music could have that effect on someone else in the future.
What is your typical composing workflow like?
I have approached my pieces differently, to test out what brings out the best results. Sometimes I’ll start my songs by using a chord progression (“Spanish Seduction” was written using this process) and working my way around that. Another way I have approached a song is to have a melody in mind and then write the accompaniment later (the harmonies, the chords and how the other instruments will compliment the melodic line). Sometimes I just flat out improvise—I’ll pick a key and an instrument and write down a random melody and see where that takes me. Sometimes my inspiration will come from playing around on my keyboard or on my xylophone. I don’t have a set formula when it comes to writing music.
What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of?
There are three pieces:
The Conductor’s Invasion—a piece that started off simple and completely improvised, and then the next thing I knew I was making a story (poorly told due to lack of experience at the time).
Space-Port Invasion Theme—I was approached by a guy named Noah who asked me to write for a video game, and the theme song has definitely captured a bit of attention! It was my very first theme song and I am very happy with the reactions it has caused!
Woodwind Quintet in C Minor (Dance of the Angry Baby Chicks)—my very first piece for woodwind quintet, which I later expanded and changed around and turned it into the way it is now.
Space-Port Invasion - Theme by Isaac Glover
It’s been a pleasure putting together these blog posts and communicating with so many of you. I know there are many more of you fantastic MuseScorers who deserve to be featured—but, as it was originally planned to be, this has been a 12-part limited series through 2017. 2018 is a whole new year—who knows what it may bring?
Happy scoring, everyone!
Warmly,
