Like Bach and jazz? Try Richard Bellak's 'Fugal Dreams'

By: Mark Hinson
The Tallahassee Democrat
Arts & Entertainment

I know that on my days off, I repair small engines, practice my Tibetan prayer horn, translate Minoan recipes, bone up on my surgical technique, woo women with my godlike recitations of William Blake verse, mend wings on sick baby birds, say no to drugs, pirate cable for the impoverished, sign Christmas cards and write my weekly news letter for the Citizens United Against Elevator Surfing. And that's only Saturday afternoon.
    (In real life, if you can pry my lazy can off the couch during re-runs of "Star Search" it's cause for celebration.)
That's why I'm endlessly fascinated by people who, say, apply the compositional techniques of Bach preludes and fugues to jazz piano. And then they record the jazz fugues on a CD and release them.
    That's exactly what Tallahassee attorney Richard Bellack did. His "Fugal Dreams" is a collection of 12 fugues with names such as "Prelude ('Disco') No.4 in f" or "Prelude and Fugue on B.A.C.H. ('Space-Time Warp') No. 12 in b flat."
    "It's my own personal obsession," Bellack said wryly. Bellack, who is in his late 40s, has been working on the fughettas since the late 70s' and has 117 hand-written scores to show for his efforts.

A musical background

But don't get the idea that he just happen to get bored at the law office one day and start composing serious music the next.
He holds a masters degree in music from Princeton and doctoral degree in composition from Penn State. He was the head of the music department and taught at a small college in New Hampshire for several years before turning to law.
I'm one of those people who do two things," Bellack said.

Music is enjoyable

While Bellack's approach and concept is very heady, intellectual and damn difficult, the end product is amazingly accessible and enjoyable.
The fugues are short (the shortest is 1:57 and the longest is 4:25) "and don't test people's attention span," as Bellack so correctly put it. The musical themes are introduced, expanded upon and then he's outta the contrapuntal tunnel.