Dance with an Octopus
Clarinet, Concertina, and Guitar Trio in A minor
Creekside
I just bought a 40-button “Anglo” concertina a week ago. Wind instruments operated with bellows and their “old world” sound had intrigued me for quite a while. I was also fascinated by the difference of this instrument from the harmonica and clarinet where I have to rely on breathing and embouchure. Producing the joyful or wistful sound of a concertina would however, require the dexterity and theoretical understanding of pressing buttons on each side while pulling and pushing the bellows in rhythmic time. The painting “Creekside”, seemed appropriate to the music in its depiction of a meandering stream flowing through its carved channel of forested and stone armored embankment.
Shells
Recovery and Relief (Sea Mountains)
A brief passion
“A Brief Passion”
A passion can pass,
In a twinkle of an eye,
A leeward glance,
A breath and a sigh,
Inhaled fragrance,
With luster of jade,
Horizons of memories,
That never fade.
Sanford R. Bender April 19, 2021
The Sand Dollar
The Sand Dollar
Walking around the curve of beach
The light house still far to the west
Out over seemingly endless dunes
An infinite distance reminding me
Of the poet who observed that
Beyond mountains
Were more mountains,
Soon after my companion turned back
I accepted the futility of continuing
But in my turning around
Circumventing the ocean’s horizon
Looked down upon a treasure trove of shells
Glittering beneath my feet,
There in the curls of seaweed
I found a sand dollar
Smooth and round
Ten pine like needles radiating
The image of the moon
Which would soon appear
Over the darkening sea
The Soul of an Elephant
This gestural sketch of an elephant was one of a series that I drew during a trip to an elephant resort in Thailand. After learning about Asian elephants and their symbiotic relationship with humans, our small group was led to an athletic field where the elephants would play soccer. Not only could I ride atop an elephant beforehand and feel its lumbering but graceful rhythms; I could even experience its earnest attempt to perform successfully for human entertainment, and then even perceive its ultimate humiliation. Otherwise, the elephants were treated well, and when left to roam in the jungle at night, could retain their integrity and be wild.
This improvised instrumental for two guitars with its changing rhythms, recurring melodies, pause, and cascading cadence to a major seventh chordal resolution reached perfection in its understatement and brevity. It seemed appropriate to accompany the sketch delineating an elephant’s triumph over any perceived fallibility in a game devised by humans.
Along the Corn Furrows
I was in Tyler Park near my home in Bucks County, Pennsylvania on a cold, wintry day. The sun was low in the sky and the bare trees and knobby remnants of corn stalks evoked the music I had recorded a few days earlier…
Polar Ardor
I am excited to share news about the short film Polar Ardor, my musical collaboration with animator Camille Wainer.
POLAR ARDOR
A short animation about polar life and love.
Inspired by the paper cut style of early animator Lotte Reiniger, Polar Ardor incorporates the additive techniques of woodblock stamping and Chine-collé printmaking to recreate a delicate landscape threatened by division and deterioration. The whimsical music of composer/architect Sanford Bender accompanies each stage of the polar bear’s journey through a varied composition using only two symbolic forms (the heart and the puzzle piece). Simply and subtly, Polar Ardor offers an optimistic message about the importance of collaboration and compassion in the face of an uncertain future.
Release: 2021
Length: 1.33 minutes
ANIMATION BY : Camille Wainer
MUSIC BY: Sanford Bender
PRODUCED BY: Documinute Productions LLC
You can watch the trailer below and check out Camille’s other films on her website.