Performed on Steinway Spirio concert grand recorded at Curt Schwartz Studio, Sussex, England.

(For information on the Spirio: youtu.be/2kj2Oy3qkuY?si=lDc8T-yXsYT9nD0o)

Photo: Lisbon, Portugal.

Toccata

"Echoes of Nothing" is the next piece in the series of piano works which looks at the end of the universe. The piece does not include any synth or sampling. Only two piano files were used to create the music and the 6th interval in the C Major scale were used. The music looks at empty space in the universe, specifically emptiness and the fact that when the universe ends, there will be nothing. Absolutely nothing.  

Enjoy the music and remember "there is always more music coming"...

Echoes of Nothing

Echoes Of Nothing

The sound of our latest, brand new model of an Una Corda Piano - the 64-key Una Corda in Oak wood, without a steel frame. Listen in and feel those special vibes, there's hardly any description that would do it justice. This particular piano will go to Japan and will be presented at the Fuji City Festival on July 23, 2023, by the brilliant pianist and representative for Klavins Pianos in Japan - Katsushi Sakamoto!

Contemplating Japan

“Onder Papegaaiberg” is pure piano. The piece looks at the town Onder Papegaaiberg, located in Stellenbosch, in the Western Cape of South Africa. The town is part of the Cape Winelands District. It is one of many places we lived when I was a kid.  Thinking of the stories my parents told me of those years bring warm and happy feelings to my mind.  The music offers a happy and peaceful aesthetic. The piece consists of three piano sound files and the A major scale/mode was used to create it. 

Enjoy and remember, there is always more music coming!

Onder Papegaaiberg

"End Of The Journey" is another standalone piano piece which is loosely based on a song I wrote in the early 1990's. It was originally an Afrikaans song and created using A minor, E minor, D minor and G major chords. I stripped it all back and kept the words in poetry format. I mainly focused on the A and E minor chords and hints of the main melody idea.  

In Afrikaans the piece was called "Oor Verhoe, Berge, Vlaktes" (over stages, mountains, plains) and it was meant as a love song for the only person who mattered to me, my best friend. I got myself lost in my music during my teenage years and clearly, I never left. I love making new work, reworking old ideas and more... 

This piece has a hint of sorrow, with hints of light, nostalgia and memories. I always love playing the original music on my guitar. The music also has a hint of Erik Satie influence. 

Enjoy the piece and in the meantime, while I am away and off the grid enjoy all the other music on offer @ H.S. Botha Music. Remember, "there is always more music coming".

End Of The Journey

"Stilness" is a representation of stillness itself which exist in between every note on the page, between every note in the piece itself. It looks at the tension and how stillness wraps itself around every note, how it moves, how it behaves. It is the stillness itself which takes us into events, places, spaces and the unknown. 
The piece is reminiscent of Erik Satie's work with influences from other composers like Morton Feldman, John Cage and Schoenberg.   

It is how we listen and where we find ourselves at any given point in time. Listen, really listen and find the stillness. 

Remember, there is "always more music coming..."

Stillness

"In Tandem II" is stripped back to only 5 piano sound files. No extra piano was recorded for this piece. Play "In Tandem I" and at the 1 minute mark, start playing "In Tandem II" in unison with the first track. It makes for a very interesting sound experience. Imagine you are singing in song in a round, this is what you are doing with these two pieces. The music is much fuller. Many people may wonder what is the purpose of the second piece. The idea is to break down the original piece and that is exactly what happened. The piano sounds were cut in half which leaves the listener with a minimalist piece where you can predict what is coming. No, this is not an academic exercise. It is actually a lot of fun doing this, it shows me how every piece of music is linked together. Everything is connected.

In Tandem

In Tandem II

In Tandem III is another breakdown of the original piece. This piece consists of 5 piano files and 2 synth files. The music creates motion which has a linear trajectory. The track has an uplifting feel to it with a sense of purpose which I didn't expect. Essentially the 3rd track is another deconstruction of the original tandem piece. I anticipate that the next track will have even less piano files. In the meantime, enjoy the music and remember "there is always more music coming".

In Tandem III

In Tandem IV continues on from the third piece in this series of piano music. The music follows on with the theme of reducing the amount of piano files from the original track "In Tandem". There are distinct differences in this piece. Some of the melody lines are clearer in comparison to the original piece. This track has a wonderful meditative quality and can be listened to as a single piece or in unison with the other released tracks in this series. 

Enjoy the music and remember "there is always more music coming!"

In Tandem IV

Performing my latest work for solo Piano

Regards,

Saul

Legend

Sean Botha builds music and has a deep love for the arts, music, sound and all forms of storytelling. He builds music and sound experiences for his listeners through improvisation and profound in-depth listening. Each piece is a fusion of different styles which means there is something for everyone. The music Sean creates is Immersive & Contemporary and ultimately an experience for the listener. Enjoy the music and as he always says, "there is always more music coming"...

A new piano sound is here to be explored: the Vertical Concert Grand Klavins M450i. An Everest of sound, a friend commented - she may be right... :-)

Our Una Corda piano has been sampled and is available as a VSTi at Native Instruments - they did a great job, it's fascinating! Also take a look at The Giant from NI, the VSTi of our Model 370 vertical concert grand piano...

Love to express myself on the keyboard now and then, only improvising... sometimes it works out, sometimes not - like real life... :-) Actually I'm a piano builder, not a pianist... ;-)

I'm recording mostly using the Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol S88 keyboard, Reaper for DAW, and various Native Instruments sound libraries, sometimes live on the Una Corda.

Wish I had more time to explore all the fine musicians here - it's fascinating, always something new and inspirational to find, within the infinite world of music..!

Please be patient with me in case I'm not replying on your comments short term - I'm extremely busy building pianos... I definitely appreciate your remarks, ideas, suggestions, and will get back to you as I can afford..!

Having been on SC since April 2012, I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who contributes to this wonderful world of music - all the friends I've made here, and the SC-Team as well..!!

Dave

I'm a pianist and a composer living in Brooklyn New York.

Thanks for listening: I am always very grateful for open ears and minds.

New tracks tagged #New Piano