this one seems a calm with pace ..it has that sound
helpin to view a regular part of life of ordinary
people coming and going ect ect ..very nice arrangment
as usual ..perfect writting to all these insteruments
just fabulous ..thnx for sharin !!!!

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This music will be the soundtrack for a section of "Trafficking" that does deal with a "regular" part of life--regular people who become the topics of documentaries, sign release forms, and in some cases, later regret it.

Hope this piece works! Thanks again.

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sound, tom. you have really found your own voice with the symphonic arrangments you have created over the past few years. most noted are the treatment of the woodwinds. i see it as a very midwestern feel. sort of like grant wood. i am reminded of his landscapes when i hear your songs. great to hear, being from there myself
tim

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I appreciate your comments, TIm, and I am glad you hear a voice. Like you, I have lived in the Midwest most of my life, and cannot escape being influenced by it, especially the broad landscape that many people view as boring and plain. Thanks for listening.

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First off, good to see you posting stuff.

Reminds me a little of your "American Plain" piece. It's almost sparse. Has the right amount of reverb too.

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Subtle bed grows with the melody. Great ambient piece! It has many lives or cycles and develops nicely. It keeps me listening. The ending hangs as if there is more to come. What comes next on the album?

I really enjoy this!

Doug

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Thanks Doug. I haven't really thought of these pieces in terms of an album. They will mainly be used as transitions within a documentary. That could be why this piece, and some of the others, have an unfinished feel, or an ending that is left hanging. Maybe I should finish them up and release a soundtrack CD?

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It's very pretty. Calming, as Feter pointed out, and it's got all of the wonderful qualities I associate with your music -- simple textures which convey mood very powerfully, a harmonic language that is fresh and immediately accessible, and it sounds characteristically "American" to me. This last is a difficult quality to explain or describe, I think it has something to do with the fact that I associate the simple textures and original-but-accessible harmonic language with Copland's music as well.

I REALLY hope you'll post a link to the documentary when it's done!

Very fine job here, Tom.

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Thanks Clark. What you hear, I imagine, is years and years (and years and years) of exposure to 20th Century American classical music. Copland, along with Ives, Harris, Schuman, Adams, Reich, Glass, even Brian Eno. I would never try to imitate any of them, but my guess is, their music has rubbed off on me. Given those influences, I'm proud to be an American - not that there's anything wrong with Canadian music!

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This is wonderful. Definitely has a Copland feel to it, but more-so has a sound I am beginning to associate as your own. I really love the use of the mallets in here, that kalimba/marimba is gorgeous paired with the muted horns. Wonderful choice of sounds and the moments of the minimal, repetitive piano line is a perfect transition part. Overall an extremely professional sounding piece of music, tightly composed and very well put together. Thank you for sharing all of these pieces with us as you continue to build the soundtrack to this documentary. I've really enjoyed all of them and hearing the bits of story that go along with each. Please let us know when the film is released, I'd love to see it!

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Thanks Kassia for the kind words. The documentary will be screened August 20. I'm sure I will stream portions of it - and will be sure to post a link here. Thanks again!

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This is so full of peace & melody...just the right speed & nonspeed : ) : ) LOVELY ... My privilage to hear a great piece like this Thank You
..do U have a famous daughter who is a musician ? There was such a great Ms Atwood on tv this year , she had great music..remeber thinking of You but Atwood may be a common name :)
P L R Helena

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....heavy topic...trafficing...what is the documentary ? Is it out ?

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Thanks Helena - here is brief description of the documentary (copied below):

Trafficking in Reality: Exploitation, Consent, and the Camera's Gaze
Producer: Tom Atwood

Trafficking in Reality will explore the issues of consent, exploitation, and the
representation of reality in documentary filmmaking. The central question raised in the
documentary: is it possible to represent any person’s reality in a documentary project
without exploiting that person to some degree?

In addition to reviewing previous well-known films like Frederick Wiseman’s Titicut
Follies (1967), Robert Flaherty’s Nanook of the North (1922), and the more recent
documentaries of Michael Moore and Ross McElwee, Trafficking in Reality will also take
a self-reflexive look at my own documentary work since 2001.

In his book, Introduction to Documentary, Bill Nichols asks this question (in capital
letters): “What Do We Do With People When We Make A Documentary?” The question
I plan to ask of some of the subjects of my previous documentaries is a variation of
Nichols’ question. In other words, “What did I do with them?” Did they feel like their
reality was accurately represented? Do they now regret agreeing to be in the
documentary? Were some exploited, even though they consented to participate?

Then, there is a deeper question, one that may be more difficult to answer, the question
that Pilate asked Jesus in the Bible: What is truth? Can truth, or reality, ever be accurately
represented in a documentary?

The Amish believe that being photographed is a sin, a violation of the biblical prohibition
against “making a graven image” (Exodus 20:4). Can these “plain people,” who shun
modern technology, offer answers to the questions raised in this documentary, questions
about exploitation, truth and reality? And how can they do that in a documentary without
consenting to be on camera? Trafficking in Reality hopes to tackle this postmodern
dilemma with as much transparency as possible.

Production of Trafficking in Reality begins in May, 2008. The documentary is being
produced as a thesis project for the Department of Mass Communications at Southern
Illinois University Edwardsville.

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.. great to see you back at MJ!

This piece has such a beautiful "feel" to it. I fully agree with Clark about the clearly "American" overall sound. You are a real master of this style, and I'm really pleased you've decided to share it with us.

OK, I'm ready to face the day after this calming listen.

Cheers from Oz,
Neil

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Thanks for stopping by. Good to see you again. Glad this piece could calm you down. I appreciate your comments.

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Is this documentary going to be available for viewing online, perhaps? Maybe I am getting ahead of myself... It's not even done yet, right? Anyway, love the music. Good to see you posting music again!!!

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Good to hear from you - and thanks for your comments. The documentary (full explanation above) is an educational piece for use in documentary film classes. At this point, I don;t think it will be available online, although I do plan to stream segments on my website. I will post a link when that happens. Thanks again! Hope the family is well - and you are not musically abusing and exploiting your children too much! (They have been good props in past Stun Nutz productions.)

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Actually... my kids are starting to get into the music-making creative process more and more. I am teaching my son, Jake, how to use GarageBand and he is getting hooked.

They are up on MacJams now as "The Whizzies".
Check them out here...
http://www.macjams.com/artist/TheWhizzies

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...patient and loving...could listen to this forever...please let us know when the documentary comes out...

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Being away for a couple of years, I had not heard any of your music, until now. I listened to "Between Green Sleeves" a few minutes ago. What a lovely piece. Thanks for stopping by, and for your comments.

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those strings and clarinets sound real! i'm sure you'll take this as a compliment... very thomas newman. (a la road to perdition soundtrack... one of my favorites, btw.) extremely well done!

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Newman has done some fine soundtracks - so I appreciate the comparison. Thanks for your comments.

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