SUMMER SNOWFLAKES: variations on a theme. Intended to be released at the first snow fall, but it never came... So I kept recording.

INSTRUMENTS used: Electric Guitar, two steel 6-stringed guitars, 12s guitar, classical guitar, two hardware keyboards (rendering the pianos, organs, bass guitar, chimes, bells, flutes, strings), pedal effects.

The music grew like a fractal in all directions and became quite vast in scope: should I have split it into shorter tracks? Many would say yes, but I didn't fancy that and instead went for the ”LP option"; an instrumental, meditative journey, inspired by the genre invented by Mike Oldfield in the 70s.

When I first heard his work, many years ago, I didn't first get it, but I was intrigued. "What is the purpose?" was my early reaction. But I couldn't shake it off and became hooked to the complexity of his instrumental music, and how it seemed to constantly mutate into new sections. I kept listening, and gradually discovered the many hidden secrets. And it led me to become very interested in classical music.

SUMMER SNOWFLAKES is made in this tradition. Not explicitly trying to mimic Mr. Oldfield, but admittedly clearly influenced by his method. And why not? Was it wrong that Brahms wrote symphonies just because Beethoven already had done nine legendary ones? Would the world have been a better place if Shostakovich had stayed away from writing Preludes and Fugues for the piano? Should no pop songs have been allowed after Beatles? I say, let us be shamelessly inspired by the gigants and make some efforts to create something! Throw an egg if you must, but I think any sincere attempt to compose is welcome.

When I decided to go for a full length track, my vision was (somewhat childishly) the thought of the younger myself; the days when I was a die-hard Oldfield fan and had stumbled upon a new release: always a rare event, an instant buy, running home, headphones on, expectations high, launching it: the first sacred discoveries ... My track may not live up to this, but is a tribute to those days and that feel.

The recording was quite an undertaking and I didn't want to let myself down. I worked on it since December 2018, and was occasionally quite frustrated about it. I avoided midi, and tried to hand-play it all (for the fun of it) - often leaving me in big trouble. I admit there are some sun spots due to this, but I consider them as my finger prints and evidence that a human did this, not a machine. .

Art cover: by DS 2021, reflecting the heavy reliance and overlaying of pianos and organs, and the combinational nature of the music.

Special Thanks to Mark Hermse, Mike Hilton and Wojciech Langner for support and inspiring discussions!

SUMMER SNOWFLAKES

Thanks for the Love and support on my main page ADElù

Composer of multi-instrumental music, with a preference for longer, progressive and complexly arranged pieces.   

Have played guitar for many years, but I am probably a slightly odd type of guitarist. Not particularily interested in the guitar genre, not too keen on listening to long solos, etc. I don't enjoy playing for people - a party-killer, in short. However, leave me alone with this wonderful tool (or the keyboard, which I play too), and I will start experimenting with it, searching for something to develop. 

Strongly interested in classical music and anything remotely related to that. I want to construct music with a similar structure and complexity, although with other instruments, and in my own way...  
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During 2010-2013, I worked on a suite of related pieces, GUITARS PLAYED BY DS, with every sound played on the electric guitar. A major undertaking, and (all-in-all) 45+ minutes long, all complexly related and released in five segments.

During 2014-2015, the main focus was on the full-format 'LONG INSTRUMENTAL', a progressive work with lots of different instruments and sounds, restless and complex. Some sections stand on their own feet: MYSTERY, and FANFARE. 

The 2014-2015 recordings also resulted in two shorter pieces: CAMBRIAN EXPLOSION and CLUSTER OF WARNINGS.

During 2015 I initiated a suite played on classical guitars - GUITAR STRUCTURES. It is a series of slowly changing ideas, a weave of melodies and harmony, the first section out in April 2015 (the 2nd came 2 years later).  

I played guitars on Tolubai's wonderful ambient piece 'MEMORIES' (August 2015).

EARTHSHINE came out in January 2016; a darker and slightly dissonant progressive piece, and one of my personal favorites. So is SILENCE, out 1st July 2016. September 2016: IGNITION  with TOLUBAI and LET THERE BE LIGHT 22th Sept 2016 with PuppyWolf. 

20/11-2016: The OORT CLOUD PROJECT I-IX. An 18+ minutes long progressive synth-based instrumental, with lots of short guitar phrases integrated. Also, the spin-off PASSAGE was released. 

GROTESQUE released too in the end of 2016. The 19th January 2017, I released the sketch OMMA CONTRAPUNCTUS PROJECT. The 4th February 2017, the track '3 WORLDS COLLIDE' was released.

'Guitar Structure No. 2' out in March 2017, took 2 years to complete.

BEST OF 2 WORLDS was released in November 2017, another personal favorite composition.

APPROACHING: an unfinished sketch released 1st April 2018. TAURUS IV released 8th April 2018.

New Years evening 2019, quickly improvising a track: DECADE. Uploaded 23:58 local time. It was a very fun way of ending the year and I used a symbolic art cover with red sweeping in, but I wouldn't have dreamed of what was to come soon.

One main project this year is the SNOWFLAKES VARIATIONS suite; the Prelude was released in January 2020.

8th April 2020: CREATURES RISING was released. CREATURES OF THE RAINFOREST also a spinoff track (released 2021).

In the Lockdown March-April 2020, I recorded 'Era', out of frustration...

5th June 2020: REPORT FROM PLANET THREE, which was initiated 31st May 2019. 

31st July 2020: FORECAST was released. April 2021: SUMMER SNOWFLAKES, a 25 minute long track and perhaps my most ambitious ever. 

OCTOBER 22, 2021: OUTPOST. Was hell of a lot work behind this, which started out as the "Conquerer" project already in 2017. 

APRIL 28, 2022: The Disclosure (Part I).
SEPTEMBER 23, 2022: PEACE GUITARS. A track very dear to me, much of it written outdoors at the shores with my lovely dog with me. 

OCTOBER 6, 2023: SHAMBOLIC GUITARS.  Intensive recordings!

DECEMBER 7, 2024: TABOOOO released. (Oldfield Tribute)

SEPTEMBER 6, 2025: WATERFALL (part 1). Another part will follow in 2026!
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Many thanks for visiting here, and for the comments, 'Likes' & reposts.

D. Svensson Sept. 2022

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All rights to the audio/tracks, and album photography are reserved, and respectfully belong to the owner. 

© DavidSvensson.

Hi, ja jetzt muss ich was über mich schreiben.....
ich bin ein ganz normales Mädchen das natürlich Musik liebt. Ich höre alles quer durch und habe kein lieblings Genre.

(Don't follow me here, best on my main page ;)

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Psych sounds, dub vibes and a whole bunch of FX in operation
SoundCloud collabs most welcome. Remixes, guitar bashing, conceptualising (a big word for a guitar player, I know) or whatever you have 😎

Member of the transatlantic music machine that is The Eclectic Collective

Member of Mid-Wales’ premier cheezepunk band The Recursives - watch us get down and boogie!!

https://youtu.be/f0CnN7FsIzM?si=4yCzlCMsylbIjKLx

https://youtu.be/E_tYwc83XPs?si=MjmQbwNeRpNXRhQS


Logo and cover art by Marianne

You may wish to check out my older dub based stuff here 
https://soundcloud.app.goo.gl/TwJYv9QgWsDdKNvu9

I find it hard to communicate,sometimes only through the piano can I express what I truly feel. I love to write music for people who love to dream.
Thank you for taking the time to listen.
Kind regards.

If you like what you hear, please also listen via my Spotify page. Always grateful for the support. Thank you.
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0dMBWuIwRXXEduU7VwJunr

I love the sounds of the 60s and 70s especially. I try to write songs that I would enjoy listening to myself. It’s the only gauge I have. My songs are just the sum total of all my positive listening experiences. I'll let you try to guess who they are!

I have played and recorded in international settings, a multitude of percussion instruments, guitar, bass, harmonica, some flutes, keyboard, and if you push me - a very fine jaw harp.

In fact, if I break it down.... I just love to offer-up music, in a living room, a bar, a concert hall or an intercontinental, interactive satellite coordinated concert. 
  
I became fascinated with percussive sounds from around the world… especially African and Latin American rhythms. I fanatically traveled the world collecting anything that you could bang, scrape or hit.
What I learned? Border customs people really don’t appreciate the true value of handmade African caxixi shakers or a Brazilian berimbau. They just want the serial number.
More importantly, a single clicking or ringing sound in a song can make or break that song.
  
I toured Canada, USA and Europe and recorded many “world music” albums (before it was called that), with my late, musical soul mate, Dario Domingues. We played in grand churches, the water reservoirs under Munich, on an island where 100,000 doves were released at the climax of our performance, the first-ever “simulcast”, live satellite, intercontinental concert and then, the humbling experience of being involved in Berlin, in front of 500,000 people, for a series of anti-apartheid concerts featuring ‘Sting’.  For our 'world music' efforts, we were awarded the Deutscher Schallplattenpreisan (1983) accolade by the Deutsche Phono-Akademie, an association of recording companies of Germany that recognizes outstanding achievement in the music industry.  
What I learned? Music is truly a universal language. Around the world people are drawn to music. Of course, different strokes for different folks! 
Whether you play in front of a half-million people in a field, or 10 people in a bar, your role as a musician never changes.  
 
“Dream of the Drum” – I was commissioned to compose and conduct a score for 40+ percussionists from all corners of the world... Jamaican fire dancers, Trinidadian steel drummers, Japanese kodo drummers, African djembe players, military drummers,... the list goes on.
What I learned? The language of music respects no geographic borders. 
Also, never start your outdoor concert, with a lone Native Elder's rain drum song. The drum's magic works!
 
I helped build three innovative recording studios plus, my current production studio. I academically taught musical acoustics and production for several years.
What I learned? All the mathematics and physics in the world can’t replace a good ear.
 
As a producer, I've had the wonderful opportunity to work in great studios in NYC and Nashville with amazing session musicians such as: Eric "Roscoe" Ambel - best known as lead guitarist of Steve Earle’s band the Dukes; Dan Baird of the chart-topping 'Georgia Satellites'; guitarist extraordinaire, Warner E. Hodges, founding member of 'Jason and the Scorchers'.
What I learned? Great musicians tend to be humble but they sure have opinions! In Nashville, I was bluntly told -"No, I won't raise the tom level - in country music, we use toms for holding our bourbon glass." I never did get the toms louder.
 
I spent many years as President of the Ottawa International Jazz Festival and met some of the greatest musical geniuses in the world.
What I learned? "Man, if you have to ask what jazz is, you'll never know."
 
Music for jingles on radio and TV. Documentaries.
My personal favourite was coming up with suitable music for the mating rituals of pigs or, how to create 60 minutes of Arctic wind sounds for the movie 'Never Cry Wolf'.  
What I learned?  You can tell an entire story in a 29.5 second radio jingle and music is the glue that holds a great video together.