Title inspired by a passage in "Einstein's Dreams" by Alan Lightman. Recorded with Native Instruments Una Corda.

Piano Search

A Distant Arcade

Guitarist, multi-genre composer, keyboard & bass player (mostly self-taught). Music librarian and philosopher (I am retired now).
Music is new dimension of life.
“That is an artist as I love artists, modest in his needs: he really wants only two things, his bread and his art - panem et Circen.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Twilight of the Idols

PLEASE NO PROMOTERS or VIDEO PLEASE. I DO MY OWN ! 
🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎶🎸🎻🎸🎻🎶🎻
Mairidh Gaol is Ceòl: A well-known Scottish Gaelic proverb that translates to "The world will end, but love and music will endure”

Scottish born and bred. Just exploring some ideas spinning round in my head and putting them up here. Various styles of music and trying to find my niche !  All the songs are written solely by me. 
Im open to all sorts of music and appreciate the work folk have done. If you don’t like my music ! Move on. Don’t belittle yourself by leaving nasty comments. Im not influenced by idiotic behaviour or narcissistic twats 🥸

I am a pianist and composer in Maine; USA

My album "The Bleak Midwinter" was released October 2016. "A Distant Arcade" was released July 2022.

Thank you for listening!

I am a composer and producer of instrumental music in several genres, including ambient soundscapes, electronica, orchestral and chamber music.  

Musical influences include John Coltrane, Igor Stravinsky, Gustav Holst, Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel, Tangerine Dream, Robert Prince, Frank Zappa, Brian Eno, Heinrich Ignaz, Franz von Biber.

My Method of Composing and Producing
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I'm sharing my method of composing and producing music recordings in case other composer-producers like me might find ideas worth exploring in their own work. I use this method for Classical, Avant-Pop or Neo-Folk Instrumental genres, not for Ambient and Soundscape pieces. Non-composers might find this explanation interesting, but having a bit of music theory background will definitely help. I consider myself a humble learner when it comes to music theory. 

I owe a debt of gratitude to British musician and educator Gareth Green, whose Music Matters online courses and free YouTube lessons have taught me so much over the past few years. Thanks to his instruction, I’ve moved from struggling to compose music by trial and error to something more enjoyable and productive. The knowledge I've gained has taken my work in new and expanding directions. As the saying goes, “Theory is not a cage — it’s a map. It doesn’t make the journey for you, but it keeps you from getting lost.” 

When I start a new piece, I begin by choosing a key, and picking a scale drawn from one of these sources:
 
1) Western Tonal / Functional Harmony - major or minor chords I II III IV V VI VII
2) Modal Harmony - Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, etc.
3) Slonimsky's "Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns" 
4) Messiaen’s "Seven Modes of Limited Transposition" 

For many pieces, I also decide on a progression, one as a simple as I IV V, or something more elaborate.  

Next I create a "scales and progressions" piano track in my DAW (digital audio workstation software) and enter the chords I to VII in my chosen key. These harmonized scales serve as a basis for writing multipart harmonies and finding pivot chords for key modulations. 

At the start, I know what instruments I want to use, making adjustments along the way. I tend to write chord parts first, then melodies created through a mix of improvisation and direct input in the DAW. Sometimes I start with a melody.

I develop melodies and variations of a phrase by some combination of: a) passing it from one instrument to another, transposing it by an interval that sounds pleasing, b) reversing it, c) inverting it around the tonic (first) note of the scale. These are well-known methods. 

After completing a section, I choose another scale and maybe a new key and repeat the process until I have a draft of the entire piece. Then I export a recording and listen to it “offline”, take notes of errors and new ideas, and incorporate them back into the piece. Often this “compose / listen / compose” cycle is repeated many times. These iterative cycles include adding new ideas, polishing transitions between sections, changing the arrangement, and incorporating expressive details like accents, and articulations (staccato, sustain, portato etc.). I’m often working several different pieces at once. 

Last is mixing and mastering: balancing the loudness between instruments and adjusting elements like reverb, compression, and equalization. I tend to mix as I compose, even though many producers frown on that approach. I find mixing as I go helps me envision the completed piece and make adjustments to the choice of instruments; it self-inspires me when the piece is starting to sound good.  At the end I do a final mix, but as the saying goes, “A mix is never finished — it’s surrendered.”

In the end, this method gives me a basis for exploration and creativity and helps me stay focused. The goal is always to make a piece of music that feels expressive, cohesive, and emotionally resonant.

Raccontastorie......


Spotify :
 https://open.spotify.com/artist/0uN9UGWMNzHyNa2kTZDGm5?si=3vM1ZfpdRKu7sZafk4XyWw

you tube : https://youtube.com/@davidezappettini6287


instagram : https://instagram.com/ìni?igshid=MzNlNGNkZWQ4Mg==


facebook : https://www.facebook.com/david.zappettini

bandcamp : https://davidezappettini.bandcamp.com/

amazon music :

https://music.amazon.it/albums/B0CQN3TFNB?trackAsin=B0CQMX1Q39&do=play&ref=dm_sh_UnnWIQtKlwUvZZRPA0Ypg0lJ8

Apple music :  
https://music.apple.com/it/album/deep-blue-single/1722110314

Deezer : 

 https://deezer.page.link/iGqrATJJzK2wpVDa8

Tidal:
https://tidal.com/track/336081345


On my way down the endless rabbit hole into sonic wonderland...

Welcome to my SoundCloud page.  It serves as a jar of sorts, to catch the musical ideas flying around in my head!  My hope is that you find something to listen to that offers encouragement and refreshes your soul.

All music is original with a few exceptions (such as new arrangements of old Christmas songs, etc.).  All music has been composed and performed with absolutely no AI-assistance.  I primarily perform and record on the Yamaha MODX8, with an occasional recording on my older Yamaha Clavinova.  You will also find collaborative works on my page, featuring some other amazing musicians on SoundCloud.

It is a joy to share my music with you, and I hope you enjoy listening!

A Distant Arcade

Jeff Chipman