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🎼Emptiness\fogCore\Melancholy🎶

Music For Brains

Soundtrack Covers

New track from ETVRNE, the epic Dungeon Synth project from composer Michael Weeks, who recently contributed the score to the film BENEDICT ARNOLD : HERO BETRAYED. Also known for his projects THE WRETCH, ETHERINE, ZER0DIVIDED, and others. This is from the forthcoming album Chronicles Of Futures Past, out on cassette and digital on May 6, 2022 via https://chthonicstreams.bandcamp.com

ETVRNE : LIGHT FROM THE VOID (unmastered mix)

Hi there and welcome to the release of one of my compositions, written for the ‘Music for Brains’ Project, 'Central Park Sunday'.

I am honoured to work on this project and will be releasing more tracks soon. 

I first shared this track with John Styles in November 2022 and am delighted that it has received so much positive feedback from the listeners. John and I have regular meetings to share our ideas and experiences and it was following one of these talks that he suggested I start to upload the ‘Music for Brains’ project compositions for everyone to enjoy.  Given the popularity of this track we decided it should be the first.

About this track:
I was fortunate to visit New York City in October 2022 with my family. It was such a wonderful time, and I was so inspired by the sights, sounds and atmosphere of this wonderful, magical city.
The inspiration for this track came from a walk in Central Park on a Sunday morning. 

It was a crisp, sunny Autumn Day, we had walked along 7th Avenue to get to the park and then wandered into the middle of the park. We met a lovely Park Volunteer who gave us a friendly welcome and a little map. We slowly meandered along the winding paths and found our way to Strawberry Fields, climbing the small hill we finally reached 'Imagine', John Lennon's memorial garden. Buskers were playing Beatles songs and people gathered round to take pictures, share feelings, and enjoy this special memorial. We then wandered on through the tall trees watching the leaves fall gently on a breeze. 

I was just thrilled at seeing so many people enjoying a walk in the park. It was cold, but the leaves were golden, the sun was shining, and we had stopped off for some lovely chicken noodle soup by the lake. Later we sat and watched a group of children enjoy a magic show for a birthday party. It was lovely to hear their laughter and excitement. We wandered on and found ourselves by the Zoo and were able to see the sealions through the railings, playing in their pool.

Central Park had such a powerful impact upon me, and I felt so at peace. I have worked in Parks maintenance in the UK all my life. My first job was working for the Royal Parks in London so being able to see Central Park was absolutely amazing. I really loved how there are still sections of the natural bedrock visible, so if you stand in the right location, surrounded by trees, you can almost imagine that you have gone back in time, before the City was built and connect to the natural energies of this wonderful place.

My composition is trying to express so many feelings that it is hard to describe what I am trying to convey. But if you have been fortunate to visit this magical place, I hope that I have captured just a small part of its energy. If you have never been to Central Park, do not worry as I am sure my emotions were also inspired by the energy of nature that has been with me throughout my career.

Just relax, close your eyes, and imagine you are on a walk in the sunshine on a cold and crisp Autumn Day.

Composer: Matt Baker
All Instruments: Matt Baker
Arrangement: Matt Baker
Producer: Matt Baker
Recorded at: Yew Tree Studios Liverpool

Comments and Feedback are most welcome.

All the best for now

Peace & Happiness

Matt

Central Park Sunday - Matt Baker

Hi there and welcome to the latest release for the Music for Brains project, 'Valerian Dream'

I am immensely proud to compose music for this special project with John Styles and am thrilled when I learn that the music, I write helps other to rest and heal.

The background to this track:

Many of us struggle sometimes to relax our minds, we go to bed tired and get nice a comfortable, but then lay awake unable to sleep. 

Whilst I lay awake the other night, I thought I would do a little research to see if I could find out more about why we can find it so hard to fall asleep. I feel a lot has to do with how busy our lives are and the endless streams of information that surround us. From the minute we wake up we are bombarded with media, emails, adverts, text messages, phone calls, and then after travelling to work many of us sit in front of a computer most of the day.

I reflected that years ago there were only limited TV channels, and programmes use to finish at around midnight. If you wanted to stay up later, you would either read or listen to some music, or the radio. 

Whilst I was reading about sleeplessness I can across some information about Valerian, which is an herb that is renowned for its calming, sedative effects.

People have claimed that it helps reduce feelings of nervous tension and helps improve aid sleep, but there is limited scientific research to support this.

The valerian plant is native to Europe and Asia and has been cultivated in North America. Traditionally, the root of the valerian plant has been used for centuries dating back to at least the times of ancient Greece and Rome.

I really liked the idea of this and decided to compose this track as an aid to relaxation. I spent time carefully layering the instruments and melodies in this arrangement so that they gently wash over you as you rest. The instrumentation has been very carefully selected so each sound is gentle on the ear. I intentionally made it start and finish with a soft ambient sound, so it will loop if you need more than one go.

I hope you enjoy this track and that it helps you to relax.

Recorded at Yew Tree Studios in Liverpool
Composer: Matt Baker
All Instruments: Matt Baker
Arrangement: Matt Baker
Producer: Matt Baker

Comments and feedback are most welcome.

Kind regards

Matt

Valerian Dream

Valerian Dream - Matt Baker

Stream/download here:
https://tr.ee/ABVjbDClAG

There Is A Future

Hi There

I have recently been working on tracks for the Music For Brains Project and have been requested to work on a few classic movie soundtrack covers.

I have always loved John Williams and decided to try and attempt a cover of the awesome theme from 'Jurassic Park'. This theme brings back so many fond memories for me as I loved watching the films with my family and was fortunate enough to also experience the amazing theme park rides at Universal Studios.

Composer: John Williams
Cover version by: Matt Baker

Recorded at: Yew Tree Tree Studios Liverpool (non commercial)


Comments and feedback most welcome, although I can hardly take any real credit other than trying my best to capture the magic and majesty of this wonderful soundtrack.

Thanks for listening

Peace, Respect & Love to All

Jurassic Park - A Tribute To John Williams

Jurassic Park - A Tribute To John Williams - Matt Baker

Hi there and welcome to my latest track 'Interstellar - A Tribute To Hans Zimmer'

I have recently been working on tracks for the Music For Brains project and was requested to work on some covers of a few soundtrack pieces. I knew immediately that Interstellar by Hand Zimmer would be a perfect track.

Ever since I first heard the soundtrack to Interstellar I was so mesmerised at the mastery of the composition. It is just perfect and is so emotionally powerful, carrying so many emotions to this powerful and thought provoking film. Every time I hear it I get goosebumps and find myself drifting through my own emotions.

I was fortunate enough to see Hans Zimmer live in Liverpool a few years ago and it was just awesome to witness the master at work!

I haven't really done a great deal to this other than add a few little sprinkles of my own here and there.

Composer: Hans Zimmer
Cover Version: Matt Baker

Interstellar - A Tribute To Hand Zimmer by Matt Baker

Interstellar - A Tribute to Hans Zimmer - By Matt Baker

Hi there and welcome to the release of 'Born Free - A Tribute to John Barry, by Matt Baker' Columbia Pictures 1966

I was recently asked by John Styles as a request from one of the client of Music For Brains, to work on some music inspired by John Barry.

I have always been a huge fan of his amazing movie soundtracks an knew straight away that it would be fun to see what I could do with 'Born Free'

I decided to deviate a little from the original score with the addition of some extra melodies, percussion and vocal performances.

Composer: John Barry
Arrangement: John Barry & Matt Baker
All Instruments: Matt Baker
Production: Matt Baker

Recorded in Yew Tree Studios Liverpool (non for profit)

I hope you enjoy my creation and that it brings you some time to relax and reflect.

Comments and feedback most welcome.

Thanks for listening

Peace, Respect and Love to All

Matt

Born Free - A Tribute to John Barry by Matt Baker

Born Free - A Tribute To John Barry - by Matt Baker

Hi there and welcome to our latest track, a tribute to the original soundtrack from the 1982 version of 'Conan the Barbarian', 'The Anvil of Crom' by Basil Poledouris.

This piece of music is one of my most favourite movie soundtracks of all time, as for me it captures perfectly the feel and atmosphere of the movie. I remember from the minute I first saw the opening sequence, I was in total awe of the power and majesty this track presents. 

If you are familiar with some of my other compositions you will see how much the structure and style of this track has influenced me. The combinations of sound are just perfect, with the driving drums and deep brass, accented with those chilling anvil hits, then to the sweeping, epic open string section, which suggests another side to the warrior king! Awesome!!!!!!

So for me, it was great fun to work on this track, as it gave me the perfect excuse to lose myself in the soundtrack for a few days! As well as another viewing of the film LOL!

John has taken my raw composition and helped to produce this initial pre-take, but both of us have already decided we want to revisit it and add our own style, making a longer extended version. Which will be an awesome challenge for both of us.

Composer - Basil Poledouris
All Instruments - Matt Baker & John Styles
Arrangement - Matt Baker & John Styles
Producer - John Styles

We hope you enjoy our version of this epic soundtrack and welcome any comments & feedback.

All the best for now

Cheers Matt & John :)

Matt Baker & John Styles - The Anvil Of Crom

Hi everyone, welcome to our latest release. 'Terminator' a tribute to the original movie soundtrack by Brad Fiedel.

We thought, with the release of 'Terminator Genisys',  it would be nice to release a cover of another one of our favourite soundtracks. 

Based around the original 1984 movie soundtrack, we thought it would be fun to evolve the piece to give it our own feel and to see what we could do using some additional orchestral layers.

The track is in two sections; the first remaining fairly close to the original, with a few extra bits, but in the 2nd half we let go and added more of everything LOL!

It was great fun to work on, but fairly tricky, as the original track already has such a great rich sound, which is for me perfect. This remains as one of my all time favourite tracks, so it was very exciting to find some additional orchestral melodies and layers that would compliment the original without losing that iconic feel!

We had to be strict to keep this to only two parts as it was tempting to add more, but John and I have agreed that perhaps 'We Will Be Back' with another version someday LOL!

Composer: Brad Fiedel
All Instruments: Matt Baker & John Styles
Arrangement: Matt Baker & John Styles
Producer: John Styles

We hope you enjoy our creation and welcome any comments or feedback.

Thanks for listening, all the best for now

'Hasta La Vista Baby'

Cheers Matt & John :)

Matt Baker & John Styles - Terminator - A tribute to Brad Fiedel

Hi there and welcome to the latest in my 'Sci-fi Inspired' sound set. 'Predator - A Tribute to Alan Silvestri'

Predator is one of my all time favourite Sci-fi films, featuring Arnie at the peak of his career, the first appearance of the now iconic 'Predator' and that unforgettable theme tune. 

Predator is the official soundtrack album of the 1987 science fiction film Predator. It was composed by Alan Silvestri. The score is completely orchestral and was released in 1987. For me it is another  track that has given me so much inspiration. That relentless rhythm that just does let up, those beautiful deep piano notes that provide immediate tension and a sense of foreboding that stick with you through the whole film; and those beautiful orchestral melodies that add character and feeling in the face of such a strong movement.

It was great fun to work on this and I've added a few bits here and there to give a little more bit, but hopefully without detracting from the original, which for me is already perfect.

Composer: Alan Silvestri
All Instruments: Matt Baker
Arrangement: Alan Silvestri & Matt Baker
Producer: Matt Baker

I hope enjoy my tribute to this great soundtrack. Comments and feedback welcome.

Thanks for listening, all the best for now

Cheers Matt :)
  

Matt Baker - Predator - A Tribute to Alan Silvestri

Hi there and welcome to my latest track, 'Gladiator - The Battle - A Tribute to Hans Zimmer'

Gladiator is the original soundtrack of the 2000 film of the same name. The original score and songs were composed by Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard and were released in 2000, titled Gladiator: Music From the Motion Picture. The Lyndhurst Orchestra performing the score was conducted by Gavin Greenaway.

The album won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score and was also nominated for the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Score ("Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music").

Background:
I remember the first time I watched this movie I was in absolute awe of the amazing soundtrack music composed by Hans Zimmer. 
Although I love every single piece from the soundtrack, I have to admit that 'The Battle' is my most favourite. 

This scene in the movie is visually incredible and illustrates the true grittiness and gore of Ancient Warfare, without any of the glitz and glamour of earlier films about the Roman Empire. The opening scene had the same impact on me as 'Saving Private Ryan', pulling you straight into the midst of a terrifying battle.

Although the visual quality of the costumes, props and scenery are amazing, for me this scene is brought to life by this amazing piece of music. It is so powerful and evocative and like a battle once its started, there is no turning back. 

I have often enjoyed playing around with small parts of this soundtrack, and always thought it would be an awesome challenge to try and cover just a small part of this awesome theme, as a tribute to Hans Zimmer.

So about a year ago, I set about a little project to do exactly that; and after about 2-3 months of work, gave up as it was simply to hard LOL!

My method, had been to load an MP3 of the original motion picture soundtrack into my DAW. I then proceeded to pick instruments that were as close to the originals so I could play along, instrument by instrument, track by track. I continued to do this bar by bar, sometimes note by note,  until I had enough to switch off the original MP3 and get the basic structure and feel. I then set about picking even more instruments so I could fill in the gaps with additional layers and sounds in an attempt to get that same rich sound quality. 

The first 1.5 minutes took me about 2 months and during the 3rd month I only managed another minute or so, largely due to the complexity of how the waltz movement emerges from the end of the bridge that follows the introduction section. It was awful giving up, but then I did reflect that trying this in the first place was a rather tall order and a lot harder than I imagined.

A few months ago I came back to this and listened to my intro section. Listening with fresh ears got me instantly hooked again, as I realised I had done well; and that it would be a great shame not to try and finish it. So I started the whole process again from the start of the waltz. But only tried to do a small section at a time, taking breaks in between to work on my other compositions. This worked well, as it gave me that fresh ear each time I came back to it. and boosted my confidence as I knew if I was patient that I would get it finished.

I personally feel this tribute track is a real achievement for me and now I have painstakingly picked my way through it, am looking forward to using some of the lessons learnt on some more original compositions.

I hope you enjoy my creation and welcome any comments and feedback.

Composer: Hans Zimmer
All instruments: Matt Baker
Arrangement: Hans Zimmer & Matt Baker
Producer: Matt Baker

Thanks for listening, strength and Honour

All the best for now, cheers Matt :)

Matt Baker - Gladiator - The Battle - A tribute to Hans Zimmer

Hi there and welcome to my latest release, 'Escape from New York - A Tribute to John Carpenter'.

John Carpenter has been a huge influence to me, both in terms of his amazing films, but also his awesome soundtrack music which pioneered the use of electronic music in film. 

I was fortunate enough to be able to see John Carpenter live last night when he played at the Olympia in Liverpool. I was more excited about this concert than any other artist I've ever seen. Its not very often soundtrack music is performed live, especially by a true legend. It was a fantastic night and the mixture of the music combined with the visuals from the films made it a truly memorable night!

I started work on this tribute several weeks ago and thought it would be fun to see if I could create a rendition of the original, but with a few of my own twists. 

Background
Escape from New York is a 1981 dystopian action film co-written, co-scored, and directed by John Carpenter. The film is set in the then near-future 1997 in a crime-ridden United States that has converted Manhattan Island in New York City into a maximum security prison. Ex-soldier Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) is given 24 hours to find the President of the United States (Donald Pleasence), who has been captured by prisoners after the crash of Air Force One.

Escape from New York is a soundtrack album composed and performed by John Carpenter, featuring the score to the 1981 film Escape from New York.

Composer: John Carpenter
Original Instruments & Arrangement: John Carpenter
Tribute Instruments & Arrangement: Matt Baker
Producer: Matt Baker

I hope you like my tribute, comments and feedback most welcome

All the best for now

Many thanks, Matt :)

Matt Baker-Escape From New York-Tribute to John Carpenter

I've always been interested in music, even from my earliest memories it has played an important part of how I relate to my feelings and express ideas from my imagination. From hours spent playing an old, slightly out of tune, upright piano and plucking away on my sisters guitar I was hooked.  Through school I struggled to learn music theory and to be honest still can't read or write music, but during this time I got my first introduction to the Casio VL tone calculator that could be used as a keyboard for recording short tunes. During my teenage years all of my spare time and money was spent buying gear and covering theme tunes, pop songs and punk rock on various home keyboards and old guitars with my friends. In my early 20’s I jammed and played with several bands, hung round pubs and clubs and lived it up, great times, but long nights. During this period I also continued to further explore electronic music, and purchased my first half decent kit was acquired, Kawai Keyboard, Technics Sequencer, Alesis HR16 Drum Machine and a Yamaha MT100 4 track. Being in a Band gave way to developing my own music and I experimented with dance music and the almost endless possibilities that midi music could provide. Having always been a keen fan of Sci-fi and Fantasy it wasn't long before theme music became the primary focus as I spent nearly all the time I wasn't playing music listening to soundtracks as Movies are perhaps my 2nd biggest passion. My 30’s gave way to my career, marriage and family with only minor time spent developing ideas. My 40’s provided me with an opportunity to acquire new gear, take stock of old ideas and finally, with the aid of the information revolution, launch a new attack on writing and producing music.

Now I have my home studio, which I have spent nearly 10 years developing, I am able to realise my ideas to the full. Current set up includes: Korg Triton le, Cubase 11, Steinberg UR824 Interface, VST's Kontakt, Halion Sonic SE, Halion 6, Retrologue, Embracer, Spector, Padshop pro II, Shavanis Elven Choir, East West Opus Symphonic Choirs Gold, Symphonic Orchestra Gold, Fab4, Voices of the Empire, Voices of Soul, Fantasy Strings, Voices of RA and many more.

Now working on ideas from my home studio in Liverpool, I am keen to develop my interest in soundtrack for TV & film and hope to one day to have to opportunity to be given the task of writing a full musical score.

Since joining Soundcloud I've been fortunate to make contact with some excellent new friends and musicians from all over the world. 

A major influence on my music development has been the awesome work that I’ve shared with John Styles, covering almost every genre of music. I am also, via John, very proud to be the principle composer for ‘Music For Brains’ a project that is specifically focused at healing through music and creativity. It has given me a huge amount of satisfaction to connect with people through music and compose tracks that are inspired by individual stories and emotions. Helping me to connect to the audience and develop my ideas in ways I had not thought possible.

I hope you enjoy my creations and would really appreciate and comments and feedback as this helps me to understand what's working best. Although its fair to say I'd love to work in the music industry one day, I am primarily a very happy family man, who is fortunate to have a wonderful, loving family, which gives me a full heart. I thank my family and friends for their endless support for my music and for encouraging  my passion and enthusiasm to do more. If there is anyone out there looking for some music for a production, then please contact me and perhaps let me have a chance to use my imagination to support your project. I would be willing to work for experience and hope to develop true partnerships.

Thanks for your interest, look forward to hearing from you soon

All the best for now

Cheers Matt

Peace and Respect :)

Interstellar - A Tribute to Hans Zimmer - By Matt Baker

MattBaker1970