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His Good Providence and the Cure for Our Anxiety
A breakdown of the new album His Good Providence

Merrill Crissey
Sep 244 min read


A Look at the New Album – Depth of Field
I'm excited to announce the release of my new album, Depth of Field on May 9, 2025. This is my first album in several years, and I’m excited to share it with you. Remember to stream the album and let me know your thoughts! From the album cover, an intentionally blurred version of a photo I took while in southern England. Since my last album, I’ve continued to write music, but this collection of pieces feels different—more deliberate, more connected. Depth of Field is built a

Merrill Crissey
Mar 8, 20253 min read


I Ran a Spotify Paid Campaign to Promote My Latest Single. Was It Worth It?
Recently, I decided to run a paid campaign on Spotify to promote my latest single. Was it worth it?

Merrill Crissey
Oct 17, 20243 min read


I Was Present at the Writing of my Latest Song
You never know when you sit down to write music what will happen.

Merrill Crissey
Sep 30, 20243 min read


A Familiar Storyline
It's been said that there are really only a few plots. Almost every story fits into one of about seven categories like "rags to riches", "the quest", "overcoming the monster" etc. Even though we are familiar with these types of storylines, we find ourselves ever drawn to movies and books that continue to use them. My latest single is the first from a new album I'm working on related to film and stories. A Familiar Storyline is a piano piece that has some very familiar element

Merrill Crissey
Jun 5, 20231 min read


Playing to Your Strengths and Finding Your Voice
As a young composer, I struggled to the point of nearly abandoning music writing altogether because of the fear that I had nothing to add. After some early inspirations and excitement writing orchestral music, I was suddenly overcome by the idea that everything had already been done in music. Why even bother? Don't Be Different for Its Own Sake Many of my peers seemed unconcerned or unaware of this existential question. I suspect though, that subconsciously they knew they nee

Merrill Crissey
Feb 4, 20234 min read


What Does Artificial Intelligence Mean for Artists?
Last week someone sent me a site showcasing music developed by A.I. It was truly awful and the singing sounded like a drunk guy doing karaoke at 3am in a seedy bar in west Texas. My guess is we're still at least six months away from computers being able to write music that's actually not terrible. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's another year or two away. But eventually, there will come a day when A.I. is able to write music deemed beautiful by humans. It's probably already out th

Merrill Crissey
Jan 23, 20233 min read


"Öland" not "Orlando"
My latest single does not contain a typo. While I do live in Orlando, my upcoming short piano piece is not about the tourist destination in Central Florida, rather it refers to the tiny island off the eastern shores of Sweden called Öland. I have fond memories of that obscure little place. In the late 90's, I spent a few days on this island with some friends from Sweden. I was told that the island is a popular vacation spot for Swedes during the summer. One of my friend's fam

Merrill Crissey
Nov 24, 20222 min read
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