My friend and frequent collaborator Jef Leeson asked if I would provide a theme for his Halloween production of an audio drama "The Wellsport Twins".  Jef has been busy writing and producing this creepy tale of suspense which he released just before Halloween 2021. Apart from his work on  the script, artwork, Foley, voices, and subscore, Jef is joined by a fine group of voice acting talents to round out his horror story.

My remit was to use strings only in the main title for a duration of about a minute.  Given the audio-only production, I thought back to the old time radio plays that would have had a very particular kind of sonic signature, a musical feel reminiscent of the times.

Check out the performance of The Wellsport Twins at:
https://youtu.be/OVD8zZcxQhM

You can also hear Jef's considerable performing talents as a singer/songwriter here on Soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/jefleeson

The Wellsport Twins Main Title

The Wellsport Twins - Main Title

This little piece came from the same musical challenge that produced Ammirazione - to create a work in the style of another band/composer.  What I found in putting this track together was how much skill Carl Stalling and his ilk had in crafting very clever sound cues that were both musical but also suggestive of and in support of the action to the point where they became like sound effects.  My hat is off to these geniuses and I hope they don't mind my short study on their techniques.

The Cartoon Animator

After years of collaboration with a fine group of crazy creatives, the animated feature-length movie I've been helping to score - Western Space Odyssey - is finally released to the public on YouTube! There's also an original soundtrack album available on most major streaming services, and a special "Back 40" extended edition of the OST on BandCamp.  A multi-artist remix album of one of the songs from the movie is coming soon.

This track is a short extract from the underscore of the start of Act 2.   It describes the reaction of the crew of the Toasted Western to unexpectedly encountering another starship, piloted by their nemesis, deep in uncharted space.  To fully appreciate the situation you have to see Rik Berryere's hilarious animation and hear the banter of the voice actors as the crew tries to decide how to handle their dire situation.

The movie may be viewed at: https://youtu.be/JgOja3C3eoM

Plot Synposis: When newly-promoted Captain Sheriff Plantagenet Clamdip - of the Planet Massachusetts - arrives at the most distant outpost of the Western Federation to take command of the BFS (Big Frikkin' Ship) 'Toasted Western', he barely avoids getting fragged by his own cowboy crew in the first thirty seconds.  But, as fragging a new Captain Sheriff in the first week is mostly frowned upon, the crew reluctantly comes together to head out on their first mission.


There are some earlier versions of small bits of the soundtrack I've left on my SoundCloud page for posterity.  The latest versions are, of course, now in the movie and on the OST album.

Album Cover Artwork: Rik Berryere and Jef Leeson

Western Space Odyssey (The Official Soundtrack)

Western Space Odyssey Soundtrack Teaser

Teaser For Western Space Odyssey Soundtrack

This is an update of a short seasonal piece written for my daughter Caitlin's sewing videos on her bespoke couture website. If you're interested in period costume or custom creations for weddings or events check it out. (delska.ca) 
This music is meant to capture a gentle evening snowfall during Victorian times.

Libraries used: EW Hollywood Orchestra Opus Edition, Cinesamples Tina Guo Legato Cello.

Artwork: found on Tenor.com, marlene 1091. Copyright held by owner.

Victorian Snowfall V9 MASTER

A while back I was listening to a ScoreCast podcast about the various movie studio fanfares and the one that always stood out for me was Jerry Goldsmith's fanfare for Universal Studios on their 75th anniversary.  It became an earworm in the days that followed and I wondered if I could capture it in my DAW - a kind of mockup challenge.  

With a little research into the piece I found that there are in fact 2 major versions of this fanfare - the Goldsmith original and the 100th anniversary version updated by Brian Tyler.  It turns out that I liked both versions and so captured the features of each that I liked, such as the choir from Tyler's version.  I was also interested in the string woodwind texture in the background and how that was achieved and did some score research online to round out what I could hear.

Many films have modified the Universal fanfare to suit their individual scores (such as ET) so I thought wouldn't it be cool to end the fanfare with the brass call from Western Space Odyssey, ( https://youtu.be/JgOja3C3eoM) as though the fanfare were playing just before the start of the WSO movie.  The new ending is therefore my main departure from the rest of the superb orchestration of Goldsmith and Tyler.  The rest is their genius.

Thanks to Charles Mazarakes for his thoughtful comments on the previous version of this piece.

Universal Studios Fanfare - Goldsmith And Tyler - WSO Ending MASTER V5

This is a short track I composed for my son and daughter-in-law's wedding ceremony.  The wedding was outdoors which inspired an almost pastoral feel to the music.  She is a flute player so I wanted to feature that instrument in this gentle melody and sparse orchestration that tries to bridge the emotions of moving from a single to a shared life.

Photo: Getty Images from the Wedding Ideas website.

Libraries: 8Dio Clare Flute, Bassoon and Oboe; 8Dio Adagietto; Fluffy Audio My Piano; Cinesamples Cineharp; EastWest Hollywood Percussion Glockenspiel.

The Bride's Intro Procession MASTER V5

In another world, imagine crossing wide expanses of desert, part of a swaying camel train under the intense glare of the sun.  You're searching for the lost City in the Valley of the Palms.  After many days, rounding a mesa you see the fabled city and approaching the gates, exhausted, your caravan is welcomed inside.

This is the second piece of my Fantasy Journeys project, the first one being the Forest Road to the Elven Village.  This track uses several libraries, particularly Zero-G Ethera Gold Sahara Voices, Sonuscore Ancient Duduk Phrases, East West Stormdrum 2, Alchemy Synth, 8Dio Hybrid Tools Synthetic Shadows and NEO, Impact Soundworks Dulcimer, Sonokinetic Kemence, East West Hollywood Strings, and Orchestral Tools Eternal Vocals.

Artwork - City in the Desert by Mark Tarissse, DeviantArt

Camel Ride To The Valley Of The Palms - Master V4

This track was initially created to play with the new East West Hollywood Fantasy Voices. I'm pretty happy with the purchase and did not use all of its capabilities, but it is a nice addition to my other libraries, and is easy to use with a good quality set of recorded samples.

I used other libraries from the East West Hollywood Orchestra, as well as some 8Dio Adagietto strings and Best Service Era and Forest Kingdom instruments.

The images I had while composing were walking down a valley path though an enchanted forest, lured on by the magic of what was at the end of the road: a busy Elven village.  I first released it here on SoundCloud as v4.

When I later wrote Camel Ride to the Valley of the Palms I noticed that I had written two pieces in a row that spoke to a fantastical journey and arrival at a mythical location.  The first piece, The Forest Road to the Elven Village, I always felt was a bit too short but then I was just trying out the new East West library so I didn't have a real goal for the outcome.  I decided that since these fantasy journeys were now a thing I'd lengthen the piece by bookending it with a sound design intro (as with Camel Ride) and I provided more musical description of the goings on in the elven village at the end.

I have decided to call this series (unsurprisingly) The Fantasy Journeys Project, and have at least one more scenario in mind for a future composition.

Version 6 of Forest Road replaces what was posted here earlier (v4) and uses some additional libraries over the previous version: Embertone's Joshua Bell Violin, Tina Guo Cello part 2 from Cinesamples, and more sound design pads from Tarilonte's Forest Kingdom and Zither from his Era - Medieval Legends.

Artwork: Andrew Weston, playgoundai.com.

The Fantasy Journeys Project

The Forest Road To The Elven Village V6

Nine years ago I released an earlier version of this piece (how time flies!).  I have re-worked it with better sounding traditional instruments from newer libraries I have purchased in the meantime and added some new bits here and there with a new mix.  I'm collaborating with my daughter for videos with her clothing design business (Atelier Delska) and wanted to upgrade this track before parts are used in her production.

On the East Coast of Canada, as in I'm sure many places, a kitchen party is the chance for friends and neighbours to meet and each bring their instruments to jam playing traditional tunes. In this arrangement I've imagined an Irish influenced feel, with not just Celtic instruments and some brass but also mixing bowls, glassware, a tambourine, and sleigh bells all joining into a merry rendition of this song.  Everyone at the party gets to play an instrument of some sort!

There are two breaks in the tune and for variety I've quoted from other artists: the descending and ascending eighth note scale is from Loreena McKennitt's “Un Flambeau, Jeanette, Isabelle” on her Christmas album and the jig is from the Chieftain's Bells of Dublin Christmas album from the track "I Saw Three Ships". Both of these artists may also have been also quoting other traditional tunes. Only the arrangement is original on my part.  I hope you enjoy it.

Merry Christmas and all the best for the holidays!

Artwork: Luc Olizier

I Saw Three Ships (v8 Master)

Over a year ago, a friend and past work colleague posted this picture by Melinda Pryor Landscape Photography of Lake Gunn in New Zealand on FaceBook. In the post he mentioned that some day perhaps I should compose some music to go with the photo.  I was indeed moved by the artistry of the image and thought that it would form another destination for the Fantasy Journeys Project.

Over the last year I have tinkered with ideas for a short, immersive piece that soaks the listener in the environment of the image, such as walking along the lakeshore and seeing the mountains towering above the lush vegetation.

This piece is dedicated to two gents who live in New Zealand: Dale Barker, who provided the original photo for inspiration, and Thomas Goss, an orchestrator who generously shares his considerable knowledge with a treasure load of wonderful instructional material and from whom I still have much to learn.

This piece used Adagietto and Silka from 8Dio, Hollywood strings, Woods, Brass and Fantasy Orchestra from East West, Cineharp and Tina Guo Cello from Cinesamples, and the soloist from Forest Kingdom by Eduardo Tarilonte.

Lake Gunn in Autumn

WSO Love Theme V4

This release is a re-work  and re-issue of many pieces I've published over the last decade.   Each piece has its own setting in terms of imagined time and place.  While the styles are different, the underlying theme is one of capturing the essence of moments of experiencing.  Enjoy!

Aural Pastures

Angels Riding The Nightwind 2017 V6 Sstream Master

I wrote this piece as an entry into the 2018 composition contest for the group Virtual Orchestration.  It describes in a cinematic style a mythical encounter between a ship’s crew and the Sirens of the Odyssey.  As Wikipedia tells it, the Sirens were dangerous creatures, who lured nearby sailors with their enchanting music and singing voices to shipwreck on the rocky coast of their island.  Unlike Ulysses, who is depicted in the artwork by John William Waterhouse, the unfortunate crew in my score had no prior warning about the Sirens and the magical power of their voices.  

In this piece I imagined that there was a turbulent sea as the adventurers neared the rocks around the craggy cliffs of the Sirens’ island home.  This makes for a conflict between the bewitched desire of the sailors to get closer to the singing and their sea-sense which would have steered away from the shoals. 

Enjoy!

Made with libraries from East West, 8Dio, Spitfire Audio, Soundiron, Strezov Sampling, and Heavyocity.

Italian Influences

VO2018 Encountering The Sirens Doug Somers Cinematic Action

The idea for this song came during some discussion of current events  at a dinner party with my musical good friend and neighbour Pat (p.j.) Walsh.  Before the dinner was over a melody took shape and over the next while we bounced ideas back and forth and refined it into this song.  Vocal is sung by Pat, midi instrument 'performance' comes from my studio.

Pat's Soundcloud page is here if you'd like to check out his other work: https://soundcloud.com/pjwalsh

Audience Of One

Composer for media and performance including orchestral, choral, ambient and fusion works with a little jazz thrown in for variety...

Doug Somers

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