I find the television show Law and Order: Criminal Intent to be strangely addictive. The characters are familiar, featuring a tough captain trying to control brilliant but cavalier detectives. Each episode unfolds in similar fashion, making it a tad predictable. Even so, I cannot help but watch.
I Lost my Life in Long Term Parking began as a story I wrote that mimicked the Criminal Intent approach to crime drama. My “episode” begins with the discovery of a body in the front seat of a car that has been hidden in plain sight: long term parking. Our heroic detectives investigate the victim and identify three suspects with a motive for murder. After a friendly “invitation” to the station house, a tense interrogation follows until the murderer breaks under the pressure.
This story is told by an unconventional ensemble of musicians, a choice made to accentuate the darker characteristics of this form of entertainment. The video joins this ensemble, not to dominate, but to articulate the images I had in my mind while writing the music.
But, as not to be too serious, the flute and the tuba join this piece in the form of commercials, causing interruptions similar to those found in television programming.