Name: Etude Old Town (remastering 2012) by LeoMReznik
Duration: 2 min 48 s
Description: Instrumental etude. Theme and all musical instruments - LeoMReznik.

Peaceful and beautiful, really healing sounds!

Glad I checked the old page. This is gentle and lovely. :)

Sweet harmonica elements. Just little splashes of flavoring. :)

Delighted to hear your sensational music!

beautifully serene vibes, great fingerpicking!

Instrumental etude. Theme and all musical instruments - LeoMReznik.

Etude Old Town

Etude Old Town (remastering 2012)

Music for this clip
https://youtu.be/07oXun5IcCE
Downloadable CC BYNC
ISRC NL1BH2300026
27-7-2023
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dirrksv/albums/72157614980749778
for MB

Forest stream Leuvenumse beek

Forest Stream Leuvenumse beek

And this be song six (and also the title track) for my upcoming album. This one was originally finished on 12/04/2023. I have just one more left to share that was finished last year, and two finished early this year... and the final song for the album is in the works as we speak. 

I'll try to keep to these Friday releases (almost missed it tonight though. haha). So whilst you wait patiently for the others, I offer you 'What Color Is Your Paradox'. :)

Paradox?

What Color Is Your Paradox?

Life is one big adventure. There are many challenges to overcome, many paths to take, many decisions to make. Pursue your goal even if it is difficult or precisely because it is difficult. And when you have achieved it, you will look for the next adventure.

DAW Cubase
Halion Sonic 7
Groove Agent SE
Retrologue 2
Padshop 2
Evo Elysium
Apollo
XPhonica
CRE8 Poly Engine
CRE8 Wave Engine
Colors LoFi Tapes
Taped Vibes
Kalimba
Halion Symphonic Orchestra
Iconica Sketch

115 bpm

Picture by Cilvarium on pixabay

adventure

And here is the seventh song destined for my upcoming album. This one was originally finished on 12/16/2023; and the last song completed in 2023. Just three more songs and I'll be caught up, and back to releasing new stuff as I make it. I hope you enjoy 'We'll Burn That Bridge When We Come To It'. :)

We’ll Burn That Bridge When We Come To It

Happy Friday everyone. :)

Silly story behind this song name. My family can get a little snarky at times (surprise, surprise); and the title is definitely a running joke around the household... following the adoption of our first dog ever. 

Needless to say, we've determined these frightening, bite-sized culinary experiments gone wrong are your furry little friend's worst nightmare. So if you spot one wandering your neighborhood while out on walkies... do not engage. o.o

I hope you enjoy my first actual 2024 offering (completed on January 15th; and also destined for my upcoming album), a dangerous little delicacy called 'Chocolate Covered Garlic Grapes'. :D

Chocolate Covered Garlic Grapes

Happy Friday to my SC friends. Today’s musical offering is very special to me because it signifies a breaking away from my old patterns. Long story short… old Justin was pretty set in his music making/production routines (solo work belongs on solo albums. Collab work belongs on collab albums. And never the two shall meet). 

But new Justin is proving to be surprisingly more flexible in his thinking; an interesting (I might even go as far as to say… shocking) result of my new paradigm. And while it might seem like a ‘nothing burger’ to most people… the way my brain is wired, this is a huge change… and one I am grateful for.

So today I happily offer my first collab song, also intended for my first hybrid album. The song is called ‘Life In Twilight’… and my guest artist is our dear friend, Carlos Vivanco (https://soundcloud.com/carlosvivanco-1, https://carlosvivanco1.bandcamp.com), offering up the lovely Alto Sax and Guitar you hear in this piece

If you haven’t already crossed paths with Carlos, you are missing out. He is one of the most prolific people I have encountered in my travels. He plays about 30+ instruments, each with impressive skill. And if the instrument doesn’t exist... he creates it himself. And 'musician' is just one aspect of his inspiring and adventurous life. He is a great example of a person who discovered his passions early, and is now living a beautiful life pursuing those passions. We need more people like him in this world, reminding us of what is truly important.

On a personal level, the stuff Carlos has taught me over the years has helped me ease into this new sober life with tremendous grace. The music theory and instrumental lessons have helped make my sonic worlds more sophisticated (and therefore more rewarding to craft). And the moving and breathing meditations (Chi energy exercises) have proven fundamental to my mental/spiritual well being too. Needless to say, he has been a major influence in my evolving life; and I will be forever grateful. 

Carlos, I am honored beyond words that you are the guest artist on my first hybrid album. It signifies a great new direction for me. I’m excited to be on this path, and I’m glad you agreed to join me. 

To everyone else, we hope you enjoy “Life In Twilight”, the first of two new songs with Carlos that will ultimately wrap up my upcoming album “What Color Is Your Paradox?” 

(And yes... this is the last song I still had in the archives from my little break; originally finished on 1/20/2024. It's all going to be new content from here on out). :)

Life In Twilight | Carlos Vivanco & GrevusAnjl

In recent years, I have been very interested in the ethnic music of different nations. Common roots in music are often found. The ancient Celts and Slavs have a lot in common in traditions, symbols and musical turns. In this thing, I tried to express my thoughts about it. Maybe someone will like it. Good luck to everyone!

Forest dances

Greetings and good afternoon to my SC friends. This is the 10th and final song intended for my upcoming album ‘What Color Is Your Paradox’. It is also my 7th mind-blowing collaboration with our dear friend Carlos Vivanco (https://soundcloud.com/carlosvivanco-1, https://carlosvivanco1.bandcamp.com). 

This piece was highly entertaining and challenging to work on. We started with clearly defined regions (mine being the more techno sounding stuff… Carlos building the traditional instrument sections). I then mangled the whole thing, and tried to blur the lines more as the song progresses, until both worlds felt fully merged by the end. At least, that was the goal. I’ll let you decide if the structure succeeds in that regard. :)

The title is also quite significant to me at this point in my life; based on the idea of ‘masking’, and our growing inability to do so. 

If you aren’t familiar with the term ‘masking’, one Mental Health Care website I found defines it this way: “Masking often involves suppressing or hiding true emotions, which can lead to a buildup of unresolved feelings and contribute to increased stress, anxiety, and emotional turmoil in the long-term. In the context of mental health and neurodivergence, masking refers to the actions or coping strategies that individuals use to conceal their genuine thoughts, emotions, or challenges.”

It didn’t really occur to me at first that I was masking when I was younger. I guess that idea doesn’t resonate when you’re deeply lost in the illusion; at least, until something makes it obvious. But in hindsight, I’ve worn many masks over the course of my life (Art Director, Technician, Pre-Press Specialist and Graphic Artist would be some of my professional masks. And I would even go so far as to include Husband, Father and Son, since I was on auto-pilot during the earliest stages of those as well). 

As my life progressed, I felt more and more insincere in those roles. I felt something was wrong. I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Then COVID (something that actually required us to wear real masks. What irony!) came along, and miraculously changed that for all of us. We gained the necessary space we needed, to finally see the illusion more clearly. Now, that illusion grows more fragile and transparent by the day. So while I’m still in the early stages of trying to figure out the new paradigm… I suspect the really critical takeaway at this point is just recognizing when we’re being our genuine selves, and when we’re lost in a role; especially if that role is debilitating to our personal growth and well being.

Another thing I’m thinking a lot on these days…. Society is dependent on me playing those roles. And society doesn’t really care whether I’m happy or not (as long as I keep paying my bills, and buying their products, and believing their lies). So maybe, just maybe, society doesn’t have my best interests at heart (as I had originally hoped). Maybe… just maybe… we’re going to need to redefine who we are personally, as we stop playing along with this globally unconscious and ultimately destructive agenda.

Thick and chunky topic, I know. But that’s the way the world feels to me these days… like we needed a brisk slap across the face to wake us all up. COVID was that slap (and probably just the first of many still to come). It’s time to prioritize our own self interests; because if we don’t, they certainly won’t. So rip off those masks, and let your freak flag fly. It’s our life, and we’ll be the ones sitting on our deathbed, asking ourselves if we lived life true to ourselves…. or if we just fulfilled the role demanded by this illusion.

We hope you enjoy “Cracks In The Surface”; and it inspires you to think about what aspects of your reality are cracking. Keep in mind… if you still have a pulse, there is always time to change things up. :)

Cracks In The Surface | Carlos Vivanco & GrevusAnjl

The Trial
A Pico-Operetta for our Times

International Cast

Lady Humanity - Oddrun Eikli - Norway, vocals and lyric on the last song; @oddrun-eikli
Lord Mammon - Peter - England, All poetic lyrics in the operetta, except the last song; soundcloud.com/user-264930040/tracks
The Judge - David Dunham - USA, and acoustic guitar in the third song; @david-dunhamuser589535203
Music & Production - Seagull - Sweden, compilation, mixing, sound effects etc; @farout-music-studio

Here you can download all poetic lyrics: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/37k203an5c6azz0ekltvn/The-Trial-Libretto.pdf?rlkey=mope1vjiyqhaeo17b5u74dp2i&e=1&dl=0

Synopsis

Following unprecedented worldwide growth in human conflict, an emergency plenary session of the United Nations was convened late in 2023, tasked with finding new approaches to defuse global tension and ease conciliation. Recognising the abject failure of extant UN jurisdictions and powers, and in a radical restructuring of the international legal and security framework, that session established a new UN institution to sit alongside the International Court of Criminal Justice. The International Court of Moral Justice was formally incorporated into the UN Constitution on 1 January 2024.

The foundations of this infant organisation and those of the UN itself were shaken when it was revealed that the inaugural case to be heard by the ICMJ was to be a private prosecution brought by greed itself against the defendant, mankind’s innate sense of humanity.

In papers lodged with the court, the protagonist, Lord Mammon has asserted that the fundamental basis for human misery, the creation of discontent, thence envy and hence conflict, is to be found exclusively in false moral goodness and self-righteousness borne of a misplaced sense of benevolence. The human race survived and thrived, he states, not by moving at the pace of the slowest, or sharing resources with the weakest, but by taking and keeping, for the self alone, much more than is needed for basic subsistence, this being the singular route to strength, individual contentment and thus tolerance of others.

In reply, a broken and demoralised Lady Humanity has been compelled to present her own defence after failing to secure funding for a legal team to counter the advocates ranged in front of Lord Mammon. The case for the defence rests solely on the premise that good comes from within and cannot be created from nothing. So whilst she may try to bolster the moral cause in her work, she increasingly finds that the human souls she sees have no humanity in them whatsoever for her to strengthen, nothing to work with and as such, concedes that she has failed, but denounces the notion that it was for want of trying. Devoid of resources, supporters and allies of any kind she single handedly has held the fort against the self-perpetuating, self-reinforcing massed ranks of Mammon.

The Lord Chief Justice of the ICMJ along with his bench of associate judiciary adjourn proceedings to consider their findings and in the final act, return to deliver their verdict.

The Trial. A Pico-Operetta for our Times.

Good evening to my SC friends. I hope life is treating you all well.

First thing I want to share… there is a reason why so many of my recent songs don’t include write-ups. I promised myself a long time ago I would search out positive and productive ideas, and only share those. But lately, I’m wasting a lot of time and energy dwelling in darker territories. It’s way too easy for my ego to jump on the ‘fear’ bandwagon (that’s happening to a lot of us these days); and I feel an intense responsibility to never use my writing abilities to spread more of that kind of thinking. 

Granted, I am also in a regular state of arguing with that very convincing voice, reminding it that it is only focusing on one perspective (the ‘fear’ one). That right there is gift number one… having a separate voice in my head, working diligently to raise the bar. And it’s a gift we all have; the voice that gently sits above the voice of the ego… reminding us ‘this is all about discovering the love in any given scenario’. The problem is, the ego can get noisy enough to mute that other voice; and it’s easy to forget it’s still there.

But when I achieve those moments of clarity, I laugh at how susceptible I am to my own negative thinking. What I really believe deep down is that (as experiential souls) we’re all actually doing great, and this is all going according to plan. 

I know, I know. Have I lost my mind? That can’t be possible, right? We can’t be ok? There is simply too much evidence to the contrary.

That ‘evidence’ is gift number two. Thanks to tools like the internet and social media, we can see this all happening live, everywhere, and all at once (including the now obvious lies). For the first time in documented history, anything you want to know is readily at your fingertips. 

Granted, the folks who want to control us understand human psychology well enough to use that information (drizzled in fear) to manipulate us… which seems like a bad thing. But I want to suggest it’s actually a good thing. Our hearts really only want to love (and be loved): and our ego can only take so much negative info before the body grows sick with that energy. Using a nightmare as an example… you’ll endure a lot in that sleeping state, until you reach a tipping point. And then you snap awake from the nightmare, cringe at how convincing it was, and tell yourself “I don’t ever want to experience that again. That was scary.” We need these nightmares for perspective. And the worse the nightmare gets, the more people are destined to wake up from it.

Here’s where my ideas get weird. Instead of fearing all those voices who are currently driving civilization to the brink (of who knows what, just yet). What if we thanked them. What if those frightened/frightening voices are inadvertently doing exactly what we need them to be doing… breaking the nightmare, by making it unbearable. These days, when someone tells me I need to be afraid, I immediately gravitate to the thought ‘what do you stand to gain by making me feel that way?” And that is usually enough to spark other ways of thinking. 

Simply speaking, we can determine the trustability of a message by determining its underlying energy: Fear = Bad, Love = Good. So many institutions want us to be afraid right now, and I genuinely question the motives behind anyone pushing that agenda. So yes, I thank all those leaders out there; the ones forcing fear on us so relentlessly. You are waking us up faster than you realize. And while your precariously unsustainable structure won’t survive this awakening… the human race will. 

I hope you enjoy my latest sonic swirl, ‘Poly Ticks And The Powdered Keg’. :)

Free DL on SC :)

Poly Ticks And The Powdered Keg

Hello everybody! My own musical thoughts in my performance. Sometimes I improvise on interesting, well-known themes. This is mostly instrumental music. I really love doing collaborations with my musician friends.(Musical instruments used: electric and acoustic guitars of various types, slide guitar "dobro", ukulele, synthesizer, live percussion, harmonics).(Recorded on a modest home Studio).Thanks for listening. RECOMMENDED USING HEADPHONES                                             LeoMReznik (Leonid Reznik).
My new compositions, archive and reposts on SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/user-924553333

Etude Old Town (remastering 2012)

LeoMReznik

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