Name: Not Ourselves, Why Aren't We? by Kayll Frappier in Piano Diaries
Duration: 7 min 30 s
Description: This song is me asking the question: why are we not ourselves? why do we hide behind smiles or white lies? why don't we cry when we mean to? why do we shy away from saying what we really mean? why are we not ourselves?

Piano pieces. Some improv. Some with strings.

Photo credit: "Retro Piano Keys " by nuchylee from Freedigitalphotos.net

Piano Diaries

Something different again from my last 'uplifting piece' [Moths to a Flame], this one slower,  more simple and gentle …… and in progress [I think!] hehe ….

The night was silent at the start of a another heatwave here in Australia, houses still warm despite the coming of relief and 'cool' air over the last few nights. The only sound was that of the portable air conditioner struggling to fill the room with cold air. On nights such as this, during the worst times, one dreads to leave that 'cold' room to enter into rooms where a furnace seems to envelope one.

Despite the silence, I couldn't sleep. Feeling unwell, drained from heat, worried about someone dear to me, I felt a strong urge to play the piano. A melody of sorts had formed in my mind, a melody to soothe the soul. So I pushed past that pain and mental barrier which was telling me  'I can't get up', and I got to the piano. Darkness surrounded me except for the gleam of lights from the street lamps outside my window, …..The only other light came from the glow of the computer screen spilling out onto my piano.

So I closed my eyes and just gently played in that silent warm night,… to my surprise it sounded soothing and delicate, my fingers seemed to hit the right notes and a gentle melody and harmony was created - after a difficult patch with my music, I was surprised at how my fingers effortlessly 'found' what I 'felt',….. I was so engrossed with what was happening, how calm it felt, how much joy I was gaining from playing, thinking that maybe things would be ok for the person I care for,  that I couldn't pull myself away to simply press the record button. 

My heart sank.

Could I play it again, play an improvisation, the way in which had just been created from nothing, or from within? To soothe my soul and the person I cared about so deeply, and hopefully others too.  I tried to forget that it was recording and ignore that darn metronome which I had forgotten to turn off - it throws me, hindering the free-flow nature and freedom of an improvisation

I continued to play, attempting to recapture this melody once again, and this is the result after several problems with my DAW and it not capturing the recording properly.  No, its not the same as my first attempt, no, it doesn't seem to flow as well, or find some of those harmonies that just 'came' so effortlessly from within the first time……  …..simple and imperfect though this piece may be, it still portrayed a sense of the gentleness I felt, ….. in playing ……. "quietly in the night" …. hoping that my dear friend would be alright ….

Improvisation/Composer: Megan McCarthy
Piano Solo: Megan McCarthy

I would also like to draw your attention to  David Ackerman, who surprised me by sending me a wonderful version and interpretation of this track, adding a new dimension of guitar and ambience which suited [playing] quietly in the night' so beautifully, so I most gratefully said yes for him to upload it …. You can find him and the track at: https://soundcloud.com/deephod/quietly-in-the-night-feat  :-)

If this piece [Quietly in the Night] speaks to you in anyway, I would love to hear your feedback, the more I continue on my 'journey' …..  I might also attempt a second version of this with added instruments, and/or if anyone is interested in a collab?  :)

Graphic Source:Julie Lueders  http://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large/walk-quietly-into-the-night-with-me-julie-lueders-.jpg  

Quietly In The Night - Megs McCarthy

Vision

Neighbors

I haven't been working on music for months and then after watching some movies with beautiful scores and also watching TV shows with beautiful backdrops (ala Doc Martin), I just found myself compelled to work on this song. I really should go to bed, but I had to post it. It's simple and relaxing. Hope you enjoy.

Free download. 70 BMP if anyone wants to add to it.

This beautiful photo is by Megan Nel entitled New Growth. You can find it here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/megannel/15940454037

Hope's Echo

Heron's Path

Prism

Luna

Near

Passages

Younger

About Time

This song is me asking the question: why are we not ourselves? why do we hide behind smiles or white lies? why don't we cry when we mean to? why do we shy away from saying what we really mean? why are we not ourselves?

Not Ourselves, Why Aren't We?

Re: Pyramid Lung - Philip Daniel and Shawn Williams

This little song came to me while I was improvising on my current piece and since the melody did not get out of my mind I decided to take a short break and release this one inbetween ...

watch the "lullaby..." video at youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/ascoltadi?feature

If you like my music please give me a smile and like my Facebook page :-): http://www.facebook.com/Dirk.Maassen.Music





Dirk Maassen - Lullaby For The Sleepless - Video Link in Description

Emotional, building piano piece. Written at a difficult time in our lives, hopefully conveying that emotion.

Waiting

This is a piece I recorded in 2012. It's actually almost 20 minutes long, but I only uploaded the first 5 minutes of it. This was also recorded with my digital piano so I had more range than with using the midi keyboard.

Image credit: "The Stars" by Piyaphon from freedigitalphots.net

Trusting the Dark

I just sat down and got in the flow for this one. It's long, but I like having it in the background. 

Image credit: Swans On Lake by anankkml - FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Sleepy Afternoon Improvisation

I recorded this on May 3rd in my Piano Diaries folder. It's actually the third piece I recorded last night which needed the least amount of edits (only one note I changed).

I was going to add pads to the song, but I think it's beautiful and relaxing without it.

Image credit: "Avenue Of Limes" by Tom Curtis from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Hallway of Thought

So when I saw that Dirk let us download his gorgeous song, I jumped at the chance to add even a little bit of myself to it. It's not perfect, but I think the violin adds a beautiful touch. I hope you enjoy it Dirk. Thanks for letting me have fun with it.

And for those of you who aren't familiar with my work, I also play the piano as well.

Thank you so much for listening.

Image credit: Lavender by prozac1 - FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Dirk Maassen & Kayll Frappier - Les Jours D'été (Collab)

Thank you so much for coming to my page. I love using strings, piano, and electronic elements in my songs. 

Nothing makes me happier than expressing myself with music.  I'm always striving to learn more to expand my creative expressions.

Thank you again for listening.

Not Ourselves, Why Aren't We?

Kayll Frappier

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