Hello! If you're reading this, then you are on my mailing list. I use this list to update family, friends, and students on my latest creative work. I send an email like this about once a month. If you'd prefer not to receive these messages, feel free to reply and let me know (or mark the message as "spam", and I will be none the wiser!). First, I have a quick announcement for Austin locals: I've organized a benefit concert on December 6, and I hope you'll come. The concert is called "Keys To Giving". It will bring together over twenty local musicians to raise money for charity and celebrate the holiday season. Here's a link to where you can buy tickets and read more information about that event: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/keys-to-giving-tickets-463797750557 Onto the update! For a video version of this message, go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JCaBGt_IJw Three Of A Mind In October, I collaborated with pianists Graham Yates and Carl Logue on a concert called "Three of a Mind". Because there were three of us but only two pianos, we called it a "trio for two pianos", and paired off for different pieces. We performed music by Gershwin, Bach, Schumann, Ravel, and others. Most of the arrangements were original to us. For example, I contributed an original arrangement of "An American in Paris", by George Gershwin. You can watch the concert here: https://bentibbetts.net/3mind.html Sheet music of my "American In Paris" arrangement is available for subscribers to my website: https://bentibbetts.net/american_in_paris.html ---------------------- You Are My Sunshine Speaking of collaboration, I also worked with my dad on a project this past month. My father, Dwight Tibbetts, is a very good arranger for brass quintet. Dwight founded two brass quintets: one in Maine, called the "Downeast Brass"; and one in Florida, called the "Coastal Brass". We worked together to arrange "You Are My Sunshine", which was my grandfather's favorite song. It was recently published on Brass Music Online. Go here for more information: https://bentibbetts.net/sunshine.html ---------------------- All Things Bright And Beautiful Earlier this year, my friend Brittney Benavidez Smith produced a solo piano arrangement of the Christian hymn "All Things Bright And Beautiful". I performed it at my church, the Trinity Church of Austin, and this past month I recorded it for her as well. I want to thank Brittney for letting me learn, perform, and record her music. It's been a lot of fun! You can listen to this recording here: https://bentibbetts.net/all_things.html ---------------------- The Audio Store Also in October, I released a couple new tracks on my audio store. New work included a waltz for violin and harp, a collection of music for synthesizers and orchestral instruments, and a collection of free jazz piano compositions. That last set of tracks was produced on commission. The style was based on the work of jazz pianist Cecil Taylor. Honestly, I find this genre a little abrasive, but it's also exciting! Everyone has different tastes. Visit the Audio Store to hear these new tracks (and older ones): https://bentibbetts.net/audio.html ---------------------- Publicly Released Sketches I also released some musical sketches in October. These are abandoned tracks from commissions and projects. I'm not sure if releasing these is always useful. In general, though, I like the idea of sharing work in progress, provided it's clearly marked as such. These sketches are a glimpse into my writing process. The ideas didn't fully pan out, but maybe you'll enjoy them anyway. You can listen to these tracks on a page I've created, called the "Cutting Room Floor": https://bentibbetts.net/cutting.html ---------------------- Interview with Composer Kevin Olson A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing composer Kevin Olson. Kevin is a very talented composer who's written an enormous amount of work, especially piano music. The interview was produced by Central Texas Composers, a small music publishing group that I'm associated with here. We spoke about music, creativity, education, piano pedagogy, avoiding writer's block, and other related topics. You can watch or listen to this interview online: https://bentibbetts.net/olson.html ---------------------- The Great Bus Fire of 2009 I've been working with the Boston Public organization. Specifically, I've been volunteering as a cameraman for a televised talent show / open mic called "The ATX Underground". In September, I took the stage on that program to perform an original short story. It's called "The Great Bus Fire of 2009", and it's based on true events. The performance was released on my YouTube channel last month. Caution: this video has some adult language. It's not for children. You can watch that television appearance on my website: https://bentibbetts.net/busfire.html ---------------------- That's about it for this monthly update. I hope some of this was interesting or useful! And if you're just reading to stay in touch, great. Feel free to reach out. I hope to hear from you. Thanks for watching, listening, and reading. Until next time. -- Ben www.bentibbetts.net 207-242-2203