These songs are influenced by images from the poem Dover Beach by Matthew Arnold. I’m not sure how this poem came to me, I’m not a big reader of poetry, but there is is. I used several images from the poem to name the songs, as well.

The Tide is Full

The Light Gleams And Is Gone

Summer Storm

Pausive

ACDP stands for Alex M, Cyril Mendez (@canm), DAN-DT (@Dan-T-3) and Patrick aka DjArtw2001 (@djartw2007). This is our 2nd collaboration as a quartet. We hope you'll enjoy it as much as the 1st.

Remix by DjArtw2001 of 11-13 March 2023. Artwork cover by Cyril MENDEZ of 4-5 April 2023, annotated with text by Alex M on 16 April 2023.

Merci infiniment, mes amis de SoundCloud, Cyril, Dan et Patrick, pour cette 2-ème belle collab remix de nos musiques !

Duration: 9:37

0.00 - 0.18	DAN-DT 
0.18 - 1.07	Alex M, from "Back Home - Roberto B & Alex M"
1.07 - 1.44	DAN-DT
1.44 - 3.59	Cyril Mendez, from "Diva"
3.59 - 4.17	DAN-DT with arrangement by DjArtw2001
4.17 - 5.10	DjArtw2001
5.10 - 5.58	DAN-DT
5.58 - 6.17	DAN-DT with arrangement by DjArtw2001
6.17 - 7.48	Alex M, from "Le navire de croisière part - Roberto B & Alex M"
7.48 - 9.37	DjArtw2011 (Cinematic Synths - DN1el - Analog Synths - Revolta2)

Return to Life - Collab Remix (2023): ACDP

Voici une chanson très personnelle pour tous les amoureux de la Bretagne et de cette magnifique côte en particulier 
(translated below)
---- 
D'une Emeraude, une pierre
S'est enfuie la lumière
Pour se perdre en mer
Dans l'eau belle et claire

A La Garde-Guérin j'ai contemplé l'horizon 
J'ai vu : ciel, mer, le bleu le vert
Et si c'était la vision
D'une éternité sur Terre

Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Loin d'ici ? près d'ici ?
Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Mais je le sais, je reviendrai 
 
Là, laisser s'envoler
L'esprit sur les vagues
Et mon âme libérée
De mon corps qui s'évade

Je n'ai plus ce besoin de partir 
De parcourir le monde dans une quête infinie
Au fond de moi pour ressentir
Que tout le bonheur reste ici

Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Loin d'ici ? près d'ici ?
Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Mais je le sais, je reviendrai  

Et par là, sur les chemin escarpés 
J'aperçois le Nessay
Et par là, dans ce vent à décorner
Les diablotins, la Pointe du Décollé
Et c'est là, au banc de granit en retrait
Que sont encore gravés tous les amours secrets

Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Loin d'ici ? près d'ici ?
Je ne sais pas où me mènera la vie
Mais je le sais, je reviendrai
Je reviendrai pour rester

-----
From an Emerald, a stone
Light has escaped
To get lost in the sea
In the beautiful and clear water

At the Garde-Guérin I contemplated the horizon 
I saw: sky, sea, blue, green
And if it was the vision
Of an eternity on Earth

I don't know where life will take me
Far from here? near here?
I don't know where life will take me
But I know I will return 
 
There, to let fly
My mind on the waves
And my soul free
From my body that escapes

I no longer have the need to leave 
To travel the world in an endless quest
Deep inside me to feel
That all the happiness stays here

I don't know where life will take me
Far from here? near here?
I don't know where life will take me
But I know I will come back

And over there on the steep paths 
I see the Nessay
And over there in the wind
The imps, the Pointe du Décollé
And it's there, on the hidden granite bench
That all the secret loves are still engraved

I don't know where life will take me
Far from here? near here?
I don't know where life will take me
But I know I will come back
I will come back to stay

L'Emeraude

Based on an Anasazi cedar flute melody; flute built by Michael Allen (Coyote Old Man), uses Yangqin in Kontakt, tongue drum and other VSTs

Anasazi Moon

Out of the Box April 2023
Weird and Wonderful variation of the original Open the Box 1 recording August 2022

Bush REMIX

A little Les Paul guitar and Precision bass.
Photo base for artwork by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

The Groove Is All

The Best Of Us 1

DRUMAX No. 13 // SOULMATES
@docfritz // Composition, Arrangement, Soundscape, Rhythm-Design, Drums, Mix & Production
@joerxworx // Electronic Wind Instrument, Horn-Arrangement & Synthesizer
© 2022 by docfritz and joerxworx // DRUMAX PROJECT

DRUMAX No. 13 // SOULMATES

Wah-Wah

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
------------------------------------------
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.

The Light Gleams And Is Gone

Jim Lynch