Slow Going

I've been working on a new piece for the past week or two and it's really coming along very slowly.  I actually came up with the opening melody rather quickly, but everything that follows has been a challenge.  The main concern is that it has an Adagio tempo, so keeping things moving and interesting is a primary concern.  Also, giving the music momentum, a proper structure, and a forward-moving direction has been a real challenge.  This one is in sort of an Irish style - a stylistic homage to Percy Grainger, whose music I've admired since my days in High School band.

As I told someone recently, though, a major part of my creative process is to sit back and listen to what I've done and let my imagination dictate what comes next.  I just seem to be spending a lot more time than usual sitting back.  There are a bunch of false starts, dead-ends, and good material that I can't seem to fit into the context of the whole piece.

The whole process has been a little disheartening, but I buckled down this past weekend and made some firm decisions.  Now I'm about ready to tie things up in a coda, put on some finishing touches, and call it done, so I can move on to the next new piece.