songs

This has been in the works most of last year. After much pondering and various attempts to stick lyrics to it, I decided to leave it instrumental in the end.

Happy 2015!

Awakening – 2015

Kind of a trippy/house track this time. I didn’t make it today… I think it has been in the works for over a year, slowly adding and removing and sliding layers… I think it’s time to call it done.

Intermittances – 2014

This one was written last year, in winter (November/December) but I forgot to publish it.

Introspective – 2013
[audio:Introspective.mp3]

These are two other songs I have been composing most of last year… in vain searched for a text that would fit them, I gave up and decided to release them as instrumental.
In the second song you can hear Luca (my 10 yrs old son) playing the keyboard.

Spider – 2014
[audio:Spider.mp3]

With Luca N.3 – 2014
[audio:wLuca03.mp3]

This starts out as a rock ballad, kind of mellow, for the first 4 minutes or so… but then it turns into a more electronic, experimental and almost trance track.

Old Friend – 2014
[audio:OldFriend.mp3]

I have been composing this since February or so… The music has actually been almost ready for a while – in April – , but then things got busy at work (we launched System Center Advisor – Limited Public Preview, I have been responding to feedback, and Contributed some hopefully helpful troubleshooting article), I have not had an occasion to record myself singing and finish the song up.

This is also the first complete song that features both my custom-built guitars: the Plank Telecaster is the one you can hear play the rhythm/chords, while I played the Plank #2 for the melody.

I walked all this road – 2014
[audio:IWalkedAllThisRoad.mp3]

Well, the name of this is just because I started writing it on December 18th… just before the official beginning of winter, and finished it today, just a few days after spring has begun (again, officially – the weather in seattle doesn’t say the same). Anyway, it’s instrumental (so you don’t hear me ranting there) and a bit trippy.

Winter – 2014
[audio:Winter.mp3]

And here’s a trippy doodle to go with it – sketched today in my notebook.

Another song I have been composing and recording recently. This one has lyrics in LATIN – the verses of Carmen #51 from Catullus, a latin poet who was so amazingly modern in his writing… some of it could have been easily written today. That is what makes masterpieces: their timelessness.

You can find the latin text (with english translation by the side) on this site (and on other sites too, most likely – just look at links in the wikipedia page or search…).

My song probably doesn’t give justice to the poem, but I tried to respect the metre (as much as possible… and if I correctly remember what I studied over 20 years ago, which isn’t guaranteed). In greek and latin the metre isn’t just a matter of defining ‘this verse is supposed to have X number of syllables’, but it really imposes what kind of rhythm and musicality the verses will have when recited (poetry in the ancient world was often accompanied by music, incidentally).

Anyway, enough words, here is the song – I hope you like it!

CarmeN51 – 2014 [audio:CarmeN51.mp3]

PS – This is actually the second time in my life that I write a song with Catullus’ carmina as inspiration and use their lyrics. Many years ago (in high school) I had also composed music around Carme #8, and we even interpreted with the band Ikebana I was playing in at the time. But that is maybe for another time…

Another song I have been composing and recording over new year’s eve (as the name suggests…).
It is some sort of Blues (unusual for me) and vaguely inspired by The Doors, who – I just learned this morning as it is all over the news – released their debut album on January 4th, 1967.

New Year’s Blues – 2013 [audio:NewYearsBlues.mp3]

Another song I have been composing and recording over the last few week(end)s and during the Christmas Holidays. I actually have a few more that will follow (still working on them) but this one is good to go, I think. This features vocals of my friend Kymberlee, and the line she sings is the song’s title.

In the quiet of the morning – 2013 [audio:InTheQuietOfTheMorning.mp3]