Strange Dreams

I intended for Tankards & Tiaras to be written as a pub style sing-a-long song like Roll Out The Barrel, but it slowly started drifting into an instrumental piece.  

When I'm writing I have very strong visions, like scenes from a film and they live repetitively rent free in my head ... sometimes very annoying!  For this piece my vision began in an Edwardian-era working man's pub where folks have gathered at the end of a hard days work, joyous with each others company, raising their tankards to each friend's health.  When I sent it off to Oliver Lodge (composer) I knew I wanted it to transition from working man's pub to an upper-class party at a ballroom; two extremes of the British Edwardian era.

You will hear that the first half of the piece is simply a clunky piano (like you'd find in the corner of a pub) and violins are added to help build the track.  I then wrote a bridge to help lead into the next segment.  I kept the bridge pretty because I am a romantic and I also had visions of the two worlds crossing over romantically, like Romeo and Julia, or a Jane Austen story.  The second half of this track then builds to a full crescendo, as you would expect to hear at an oppulent dance in a ballroom, with Edwardian ladies and gentlemen dressed in full regalia.

How did I do?  Does this track give you any visions?  Could you hear it being played in a ballroom scene in an Edwardian-era film?  Or maybe as background music in a pub?  Or perhaps a music hall?

I haven't release this track as a single but it's on my Moments In Time album being released on Jan 5th, 2024.  Thank you for listening!

Moments In Time

Tankards & Tiaras

Tankards & Tiaras | Joanna Finnis

Journey's End is probably, to date, my favorite instrumental piece I've ever written.  I'm not sure why??  I love the melodies, the 6/8 rhythm and overall this piece, to me, feels very polished.

The first half of the piece came quite quickly but then I started to struggle trying write a continuing melody that flowed prettily into the next section.  I wanted to avoid the piece having too many looping, repeating melodies.  Usually with my songs, if I'm struggling, I keep at it.  I work on a segment, over and over, until something starts to work. However, for this piece I would sit at the piano for say a half hour and if nothing came I would leave it until the next day.  I think I was trying to avoid the piece feeling like a chore, like  "I gotta get this done!".  How do you work at your songwriting?

Anyway, I am sooo happy how it turned out.  Orchestration is by Oliver Lodge.  Journey's End is on the MOMENTS IN TIME album, streaming Jan 5th.  I hope you enjoy it, and thank you for listening!

Moments in Time

Journey' End

Journey's End | Joanna Finnis

This is an original composition in tribute to heroically good classic rock pianist Nicky Hopkins (a.k.a. “Edward” as he was sometimes called in the studio by members of the Rolling Stones).  He would have turned 80 years old today (02/24/2024).

This was not an attempt at impersonation, but rather an effort toward one specific aspect of his versatile playing style, namely, that elusive balance of flow and syncopation.  Simply put, listening to Nicky Hopkins makes my brain dance, and trying to capture that effect is what inspired this piece.  

Note: Many are unfamiliar with the name Nicky Hopkins, but everyone is familiar with his piano playing which has appeared on records of the Rolling Stones, Jeff Beck, the Who, Rod Stewart, Joe Cocker, the Kinks, Steve Miller Band, Art Garfunkel, Jerry Garcia, the Beatles (as well as solo work of all four individual Beatles), and many others.  He played on over forty top 40 albums, and dozens of singles.  He was practically a member of the Rolling Stones (and came up with many of the Stones’ most iconic piano parts including for the songs Angie, She’s a Rainbow, Loving Cup, Sympathy for the Devil), but his battle with Crohn’s disease prevented him from being able to commit to regular touring.  As a result, he spent most of his career working as a session musician. He was, however, an official member (from 1969-1971) of Quicksilver Messenger Service where his piano work generally sits up front in the mix and where you can hear his creativity fully unleashed (e.g., check out their songs Shady Grove, Edward the Mad Shirt Grinder, and Fresh Air).  In spite of his limited number of live performances, he was also a talented improviser as showcased in the Rolling Stones studio jam album “Jamming with Edward”, and another great example of this is the high-quality recording of his live performance with the Jerry Garcia Band on “Let it Rock: The Jerry Garcia Collection Volume 2" https://soundcloud.com/jerrygarcia/sets/let-it-rock-the-jerry-garcia.

Here is the Wikipedia article on Nicky Hopkins https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicky_Hopkins

Song art: The image depicting “a session pianist resembling Nicky Hopkins” was created with a lot of help from my brother-in-law Patrick McGee using a combination of AI art generators.

Edward Piano Hands

We welcome your feedback!

Composed, produced & performed by Srouly Frank

Just You And Me

Just You and me

Iced

On this day, Friday, I woke up to rain, silence and a feeling of having missed something. So, I sat down and this came out of my fingers, or rather my chest. On this day, Friday. Recorded in Logic, 5 stems, Felt Piano and some ambient effects. The cafe sounds are downloaded from freesound.org.
I am not sure I quite like Quantizing - not sure at all....but sometimes, You know...

On Friday Afternoon (Piano)

Piccoli quadri sonori esposti con intensità varie, sempre con interesse melodico.

A waltz for you

Hello dear Listeners,

Indeed, it's been a long while since Tim and I posted New Music together as  Shekinah Fire*, but today's the day!

This improvisation was recorded by our one Stereo ZOOM Mic on April 8th during the Solar Eclipse. 

I am on Tim's ancient upright Grand Piano and he's playing his Telecaster electric Guitar. What came forth as we played were Allelujahs for  the Joy of Spring and the wonders of improvisation.

In case you're wondering about the title, the jewel-like 'sparks' made visible in the Sun's Corona just before it reached Totality then as it exited (as captured in the Photo), are called 'Baily's Beads'. We hope you'll hear them as the music unfolds.

May you enJOY!

Music © Gary Courtland-Miles & Tim Elliot 2024
℗ Gary Courtland-Miles 2024 & Tim Elliot 2024

Edited and Produced by © Anomon

Image Credit & Copyright Daniel Korona
titled:  'Baily's Beads' - Total Solar Eclipse of April 8th 2024

Baily's Beads * Shekinah Fire

Welcome back friends and Listeners,

The month of May was very kind to Tim & I insofar as inspiration and opportunities to improvise and record together... and this piece was the fruit of our last session, just after the world-wide Auroras  of May 10th.

We found ourselves in a different modal tonality in this one and hope you will enJoy it's tones and phrasings. Tim was playing his Telecaster and once again i was on the ancient Upright Grand Piano. 

He often characterizes our interactions as being born of Strings (for guitar and piano strings) and Bells (for piano tones). The other element, Winds, refers to Spirit.

But we will leave you, the Listener... to decide what you liken to.

© Gary Courtland-Miles & Tim Elliot 2024
℗ Gary Courtland-Miles & Tim Elliot 2024

Edited and Produced by Anomon

Strings, Winds and Bells *  Anomon & Elliot

Nothing Held Back | Epic and Emotional Cinematic Music |

“I dreamed of you last night - as if I was playing the piano and you were turning the pages for me.” ―  Vladimir Nabokov

The sheet music of this and some other of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

Free Download

Piano Dreams

Sometimes you know it's just a dream, but you can't wake up

The sheet music of some of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

Endless Dream - Piano Improvisation

Once I read a book... about myself... never finished... what was the end?

The sheet music of some of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

Forgotten Book - Piano Improvisation

There's nothing to be afraid of... Always do what you're afraid to do...

The sheet music of some of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

There's Nothing To Be Afraid Of - Piano Improvisation

You lose... No happy end... no mercy...

The sheet music of some of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

Scary Tale - Piano Improvisation

“The night is the hardest time to be alive and 4 am knows all my secrets.” ―  Poppy Z. Brite

The sheet music of some of my compositions can be downloaded from my website https://pianoimprovictor.com/
If you like my music – share it with your friends!

Insomnia

pianoimprovictor@gmail.com
Victor Birkan resides in Beer Sheva, Israel. In his youth, he obtained a classical musical education in St. Peterburg, Russia. Even then, he showed an interest in piano improvisation, although his teachers did not encourage it too much. Then came a long break… Victor tried different professions – biologist, computer IT. His passion for music did not interrupted, but he only started playing regularly again around 2016, and in 2018 began posting his compositions.
After receiving positive feedbacks on social media, he focused on improvised music. He is deeply convinced that improvisation is not a privilege of jazz, it is the classical piano that finds its way to people's hearts. Victor Birkan never prepares for his recordings. Sitting down at the piano, he has no idea where to start, what will be in the middle and how he will finish. The melody will come from somewhere... He seeks to capture pure emotion and splash it onto the keyboard. Practically does not use computer effects. His listeners often write about the "magic", bewitching influence of his compositions.
Over the past year, Victor’s composition, “Between Night and Day”, has been nominated for Best Solo Piano Single by the ONE WORLD MUSIC RADIO, and some interesting compositions have been created in collaboration with Yellow Roze Records label. Victor is constantly striving to expand his audience.

Insomnia

PianoimproVictor

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