Tekstura is a series of instrumental piano compositions coloured with textures.

With the aim of combining melody and sonic texture deriving solely from the piano, the project started life as an investigation into sustaining tones using electronic bows on the piano strings.

From these early experiments it expanded organically to incorporate a wider musical palette.

Three singles The Noise He Kept So Quiet, Ostranenie and Prelude in E minor were digitally released in 2020.

The album, Tekstura, will be released in 2021 through London based label Blurred Recordings.

Reflective and intimate in nature Piano Tekstura takes inspiration from the piano itself, the urban environment and early cinema.

Alice Allen: cello
 Fiona Brice: vioilin & viola
 Scott Twynholm: piano, organ, accordion, guitars, percussion & electronics

Blurred Recordings 2021

Cold Open

Extant ii

Fairytale

Written, performed, produced, & mixed by Star Madman
Released via Headphone Music Label
Artwork by Star Madman

Fire

It’s interesting that, when experiencing music either as a composer or listener, one of the main and almost instant takeaways is the beat; I also believe the same can be said of life. From before birth this mysterious beat exists within us all; when the beat ceases so do we.

Writing this piece almost at the year’s end, the beat is still there but becoming more and more distant and less distinct; the days can seem both long and, at one and the same time, also over in a matter of seconds as the light arrives slowly and stays less and less as we head towards the solstice when the sun stands still as its path pauses before reversing direction. The music reminds me of a clock, a grandfather clock, slowly counting the seconds until its beat too is silenced.

The title of this piece came to me as I was, once again, preparing to pack up my studio to move to another location, slightly more rural and certainly more remote. It occurred to me that, in the days between packing and unpacking, I could possibly use some interval music - music already composed, recorded and ready to post; I was reminded of the “Potter’s Wheel” one of the interval films that was used by the BBC in my early childhood to cover for the many intervals in programming, to allow for changes between studios, or for the frequent studio breakdowns.

The films used were mildly engaging, but not so much that the viewer would miss anything if they looked away; although this music performs the same function, I do hope that you find my music more than mildly engaging ❤️ॐ

Winterlude

Aletheia OS

here and there 12.16.25

Pavillon Des Roses

Cold River

When We Look Inside, Do We Ever Really See?

Forests

Imperfect Things

Falling somewhere between classical minimalism and compositional ambient, A Spot on the Hill is the latest musical project of Dan Cook, who played previously in the indie rock bands The Verna Cannon (Cargo Records) and Lay Quiet Awhile (Daemon Records).

Recordings prior to 2016 are not part of the A Spot on the Hill project and are samples generated by music notation software, not performed by live musicians.