A fortune cookie and a good friend compelled me to make this album of instrumental music. Intrumental music is much less popular than its counterpart Vocal Music. Below is a list of the Instrumental Songs that have made #1 since I was born. Notice the most recent instrumental #1 is Miami Vice from 1985 and the first instrumental to make #1 after I was born was Edgar Winter Frankenstein! 8/24/1985 | #1 (1 wk.) - Jan Hammer: "Miami Vice Theme" 11/28/1981 | #1 (1 wk.) - Vangelis: "Chariots of Fire (Main Title)" 6/28/1979 | #1 (2 wks.) - Herb Alpert: "Rise" 7/23/1977 | #1 (2 wks.) - Meco: "Star Wars Theme / Cantina Band" 4/9/1977 | #1 (1 wk.) - Bill Conti & His Orchestra: "Gonna Fly Now (Theme from 'Rocky')" 5/15/1976 | #1 (1 wk.) - Walter Murphy & The Big Apple Band: "A Fifth of Beethoven" 11/1/1975 | #1 (1 wk.) - Rhythm Heritage: "Theme from 'S.W.A.T.'" 4/5/1975 | #1 (1 wk.) - Van McCoy & The Soul City Symphony: "The Hustle" 9/7/1974 | #1 (B-side) - Bachman-Turner Overdrive: "Free Wheelin'" 11/23/1974 | #1 (1 wk.) - The Average White Band: "Pick Up the Pieces" 11/17/1973 | #1 (1 wk.) - The Love Unlimited Orchestra: "Love's Theme" 2/24/1973 | #1 (1 wk.) - The Edgar Winter Group: "Frankenstein" I Made this album by listening back my catalogue of instrumentals spanning over 25 years and defining specific things I was attracted to in my own music. I called that list my Alt-Classical Criteria. I used this criteria to compose close to 50 pieces from which I made this album MY ALT-CLASSICAL CRITERIA * Style * Planes - long tones Melody over riff or pulse Rock or Dance styles Simple chord changes (4 or less) Random homophonic fluctuations * Rhythm * 3+3+2 (or any variation) 3+2 (or any variation) * Intervals * Minor3 Tritone P5 P8 * Gestures * Glissando Tremolo Cluster * Harmony * Static or minimal Repetitive chord sequences Random 12-Tone * Accompaniment Patterns * Pulse Riff (1 measure or less) Oom-pah Oom-pah-pah Chord Change (4 or less) Ground bass (4 measures or less) * Misc * Lack of transitions Yes to Tonality Yes to Percussion Yes to Special FX Concern for audience (not in a condescending way) * Form * ABA ABCA AABA Ternary * General * Put traditional classical instruments in new contexts Smear things and make it messy Don't ever forget noise Does it sound as good as Brittany Spears? Can you live with yourself if it doesn't? I never held myself strictly to these criteria. Whenever I came to a point in a piece where I wasn't sure what to do next I would refer to this list. Whether it was something small like "I need a different last note to this melody the second time it happens." Then I would maybe look at the INTERVALS list and choose a note that was a minor 3rd or a tritone away from the previous note and that would be my new last note. Or if I had a melody and was unsure how to accompany it I could look and see under ACCOMPANIMENT PATTERNS -- Riff! One of my favorites. Or a 4 chord cycle.