FUGUE TILL WE DIE | Eric Schultheiss

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This piece marks my return to fugue writing after a 20-year break. During that time, I stepped away from composing to raise my kids. Life filled up with other responsibilities, and music took a back seat. Coming back to it wasn’t planned—it just happened. I had a melodic idea, a chord progression. I followed it, and it led me into counterpoint.

The piece began as a string quartet. That’s the form I usually think in when writing fugues. But as I kept working, I started hearing different textures—cleaner, more percussive. That led me to rewrite the entire piece for pitched percussion. The shift gave it new clarity and energy, and helped emphasize the rhythmic interplay between voices.

The structure is rooted in baroque tradition, but I didn’t try to mimic it exactly. I allowed myself modern harmonic movement, moments of tension and freedom. It’s a fugue, but it’s one that speaks in a contemporary voice.

What makes this piece stand out is its ending. It doesn’t resolve. It stops on the dominant chord, leaving the ear hanging. If you want closure, you have to play it again. That choice wasn’t about being clever—it just felt true. Life doesn’t tie itself up neatly. Sometimes, things don’t resolve. They return. That loop, to me, was more honest than a final cadence.

That’s the meaning behind the title: Fugue Till We Die. It’s not just a stylistic commitment—it’s a reflection of how we live. We move in circles. We repeat. We revisit.

This piece is for those who love counterpoint, who enjoy structure with some resistance, and who don’t mind a little discomfort in how a story ends—or doesn’t.

🛠️ Instrumentation: Pitched percussion (adapted from string quartet)
🎧 Mood: Structured, looping, unresolved
🎯 Audience: Percussionists, contemporary classical fans, fugue lovers
🎼 Genre: Contemporary chamber music



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My desktop composing DAW of choice is Reaper ()

I compose on the go using Audio Evolution () on my Android Phone.

Masters created by Mastering Box
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Social media content created with Adobe Express ()

Visualizations are created using Avee Music Player Pro ()


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