As soon as the last coat of varnish was dry, the door score was picked up by the shipper this morning. Less than 24 hours ago I was still painting the last letters. Here are some photos of the door’s journey from a bathroom of a very old house in Vancouver to its new incarnation as a musical score. I am very happy to have given this broken piece of history destined for the landfill a new lease on life.

The door in its original condition.

The door was stripped of paint using a heat gun and some heavy duty chemicals. 

When most of the paint and old varnish was scrubbed off, the beautiful old growth wood was sanded to silky smoothness. I then laid out and transferred the bits of manuscript onto the surface using oil-based paint pens.

And here’s the door just before shipping.

This door manuscript will be premiered by the Thin Edge New Music Collective in Waterloo on Sept. 20. Details to come soon.