Fantasia in Cmaj7

When I was the organist for First Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas, I had the great pleasure of knowing and frankly being over-awed by the absolute first-rate jazz pianist Rich Harney who played with the Jazz band there for the contemporary service.  His death in 2020 hit me very, very hard; I dedicated this piano work, that I was midway through composing at the time, to him, because I was thinking of him so very much as I composed the conclusion.  My background has been so thoroughly classical in nature that I can't say I was capable of absorbing very much Jazz into my own style, but at a minimum he inspired me to break out harmonically somewhat from the stringent baroque style that I had so much been limiting myself to before I met him.  Incidentally, the other piano work I previously uploaded here (Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost) was composed only after this one.  I recorded the below for streaming as prelude for a service there during COVID lockdown that turned out to be my very last Sunday as organist there because I was so upset by the pastor and music director afterward both declaring this music to be "inappropriate" and "rather dissonant".  Whether it is or not made no difference to me, since if the expression of these emotions were to be banned then what point was there to making music at all?  Did I overreact?  What's done is done.  And may angels accompany Rich Harney into paradise.

Hi @StripedGazelle,

I don’t know how the pastor feel, but at least I like this very much! Your voice leading is very smooth and all those dissonance and modulations are well prepared. Maybe the pastor and music director expect something in stringent baroque style. I remember when I was a student in my university, one of my classmate who is an organist love playing dissonant organ music before the singing the school anthem of a weekly assembly, and it caused almost all other students laugh. Maybe they thought the expression inappropriate in the church, which I absolutely do not agree. It’s also amazing that given how varied your harmony is as it’s influenced by jazz music, it’s well handled due to your rich knowledge in Baroque counterpoint.

P.S. I only know now why you use breve in your pieces, including the previous post “Not all those wander who are lost”. You are an organist! I always believe an organist has the most comprehensive knowledge of counterpoint and harmony! And you do! Thx for sharing!

Henry