Frédéric Chopin: Revolutionary Etude Op. 10 No. 12 arranged for Rhodes, drums and bass and augmented. 

This was played by me and recorded into Cubase as midi (using Korg SGProX digital stage piano as controller and Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer as audio interface). This was not recorded as one take but in several takes. Taking into account that this song is pretty tough on hands (especially because I changed the rhythm) lots of midi notes had to be corrected and quantized. The Rhodes sound is Scarbee Classic EP-88s. The drums and the groove come from Abbey Road 70s Drummer (drumkit: Ludwig Vistalite Tequila Sunrise 1972), with some minor tweaks by me. The bass is Scarbee Jay-Bass (late 70s Fender Jazz Bass).

F. Chopin: Revolutionary Etude Op. 10 No. 12. Arr. for Rhodes, Drums and Bass and augmented

Albinoni, Tomaso Giovanni / Giazotto, Remo: Adagio in G Minor for strings and organ. Orchestrated for VST strings, organ and Rhodes electric piano sound. 

Here is my interpretation of this famous piece of perfection. This was played by me with my old workhorse Korg SGProX digital piano using the below mentioned virtual instruments and Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer as an audio interface. The recording, midi note editing, mixing etc. was made with Cubase.

The instruments used were: 
- All String Ensemble Vel from the UVI Orchestral Suite, 
- Cathedral Organ from the UVI Orchestral Suite and 
- "Mello Soft" preset from the Scarbee Classic EP-88s. 

I also used the UVI Cathedral Hall convolution reverb with the strings.

There is nothing I can add to this. The song and the instruments used speak for themselves. What I will say however is the following: I hope listening to this song would bring hope, comfort and peace to at least one single person's mind for a moment, wherever You are, in the same way this song certainly has brought hope, comfort and peace to my mind.

Posted as a private person for non-commercial purposes.

Tomaso Albinoni - Remo Giazotto: Adagio in G Minor. Orchestrated for VST Strings, Organ and Rhodes

Whitney Houston, You're Still My Man - Cover, solo keyboard version 

A solo keyboard version of the larger-than-life-song "You're Still My Man" (written by Gerry Goffin, Michael Masser) which was originally performed no other than the world's greatest singer Whitney Houston on the first compact disc I ever listened to (the album "Whitney" by Arista Records LLC 1987). 

Played here by me (with my old Korg SGProX digital stage piano) with the following instruments layered: 
- UVI The Beast / My Dyno Piano 1, 
- UVI Key Suite Digital / T20 Electric 2 Chorus, 
- UVI Attack EP88 / Full Default,
- UVI FM Suite / TX Suitecase,
- Scarbee EP-88s,
- Audiolounge Rhodes Affair Yamaha Montage Edition / Cristal Affair; with an additional Montage FM-X part "Full Tines Chorus". 

I also had Arturia's Chorus JUN-6 Chorus as an insert effect on top of the Rhodes Affair part.

The Hi-Hat comes from Native Instruments Abbey Road 1980s Drummer. 

Posted as a private person for non-commercial purposes.

Whitney Houston, You're Still My Man - Cover

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Prelude in C Sharp Minor, Op. 3 No. 2. 

Played by me with my Korg SGProX digital stage piano controlling Yamaha Montage 8. The piano preset: Yamaha Montage CFX Stage. It sounds even better than my 2005 Motif ES synthesizer's piano sound which was already quite impressive. 

Played substantially slower than many pro players and e.g. the honourable Mr. Rachmaninoff himself on one recording (it may be also that I prefer this piece to be played a little slower than it is usually played). I got some speed however somewhere in the middle part.. I played it a lot faster however when I was young and didn't have to think about tomorrow. Because that's what this Prelude is about (much like the Scriabine etude Op. 8 No. 12): you really have to play it like there would be no tomorrow, so to speak, meaning, among other things, that you cannot think about some "secondary" things like hand injuries..

I learned this prelude initially in the 1990's at the time when also the piano movie "Shine" was released (the movie definitely was an inspiration). I practiced it countless hours with my Korg M1 synthesizer which was indeed not the best machine for this kind of piano music.  This was one of the first classical piano pieces I ever learned and, since I have learned it by myself without receiving any formal piano training whatsoever, this warrants the following conclusion: Anything is possible, remember that!

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Prelude in C Sharp Minor Op. 3 No. 2

Luis Miguel Devuélveme El Amor - Cover version (written by: Flavio Enrique "Kike" Santander Lora, Luis Miguel).

This is a simple cover version of a song which in my opinion is in every respect maybe the best, the most powerful and the most beautiful popular music song I have ever heard in my life. (Ok there are undoubtedly some pretty tough contestants, e.g. of course a few Whitney Houston songs, "He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother" by The Hollies, and also Cynthia Weil - Barry Mann, "Never Gonna Let Me Go" by Sérgio Mendez, and Michel Legrand's "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" (especially when played by Bill Evans on Rhodes EP), etc. etc...). Played here by me with the Scarbee EP-88S electric piano sound (Rhodes MK I). 

The song was originally written by Flavio Enrique "Kike" Santander Lora and Luis Miguel and first appeared on the record "33" by Luis Miguel (published in 2003, WEA International Inc.). The song was originally arranged by the greatest of them all, Mr. Robbie Buchanan, who also played the electric piano with the song.

Posted as a private person for non-commercial purposes.

Luis Miguel, Devuélveme El Amor - Cover Version

A Smooth Rendezvous (Edit: Mastered with Ozone on October 5, 2023)

I am not a professional and I have been very lucky and blessed to have been able to play music using so wonderful instruments as I have in all these songs. With them I have been able to try to mimic or recreate something that once was, something that could be and is "out there"; something that is so clearly and vividly expressed in the music genre often called "smooth jazz" - and in fact in the whole genre of "classical music". So I have wanted to try to demonstrate these amazing instruments, how I love them all and also how I feel playing them. This track maybe conveys some of that affection and the feelings to You and I hope this maybe would bring some joy or happiness to You, even for a brief moment.  

A minor partly improvised "song" (or maybe a basis for improvising) that also demonstrates once again the richness, beauty and potential of the Rhodes electric piano (which to me is maybe one of the world's most beautiful instruments) and hence also the Scarbee EP-88S. This was played by me with my old loyal workhorse Korg SGProX digital piano using the following sounds: 
- Scarbee EP-88S (Rhodes Mk I electric piano),
- Bass and Lead: Lounge Lizard EP-4/Insomnia sound pack,
- Strings: UVI Orchestral Suite/All String Ensemble Vel.

The drums and drum grooves come from Native Instruments Abbey Road 80s Drummer (with some adjustments and additions made by me and with a LinnDrum snare layer added with the UVI Drum Replacer).

Sorry about the large quantity of drum fills... I am an ex drummer (the quality of the fills of course is astounding bc they are from the 80s Drummer). I also am not a jazz musician so the lead lines in this piece truly are not very sophisticated; instead I tried to concentrate on the chords and chord progressions.

This track was inspired especially e.g. by 1) Mr. Bill Evans' song "We Will Meet Again"; 2) by my great hero Mr. Jeff Porcaro, who could easily record this kind of a drum track at one take (using his right-hand sixteenth-note hi-hat); 3) by Mr. Chris Rea's song "The Mention of Your Name" and 4) by a relatively large bunch of popular and classical music and jazz. Of course also everything Mr. Robbie Buchanan does and plays keeps inspiring me continuously.

A Smooth Rendezvous

Alexander Scriabin: Etude Op. 2, No. 1 in C Sharp Minor

This was played by me with Korg SGProX digital piano using Yamaha Montage 8 Synthesizer's CFX Concert sound.

Alexander Scriabin: Etude Op. 2, No. 1 in C Sharp Minor

"Through My Eyes" (Edit.: Mastered with iZotope Ozone 11 on December 4th, 2023)

This is a partly improvised "smooth jazz" or "lounge" track made as a humble tribute to my - for the most part American - collection of the wonderful musical adventure called smooth jazz that has given me so much over the years (maybe also the term "Westcoast music" could be relevant here). 

I shall call this track "Through My Eyes" because it kind of tries to capture and present something about the American smooth jazz tradition - as seen through my eyes. 

This track was loosely inspired first by Mr. Keith Jarrett's two wonderful songs, "The Good America" and "Country" which both express an enormously positive and hymn-like feeling, and second by Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 3 in F Major, III. Poco allegretto (Op. 90), the beauty of which has been "haunting" me for many years (and maybe also to some extent by Mozart's Symphony No. 40, I. Molto allegro, and Schubert's Symphony No. 8 "Unfinished", I. Allegro moderato, etc.).

I have not found out much about the origins of the two Mr. Jarrett's songs but in a recent interview he talks about them and rightly describes - if I understood correctly - the song "The Good America" as almost like a prayer. I also got the impression that both of these two Mr. Jarrett's songs kind of represent a view of America. 

I have also gotten inspiration here from the music of one of my all-time favorite jazz bands Spyro Gyra and from all the wonderful music that Mr. Carlos Santana has provided to the world. Last but not least as a source of inspiration I shall mention the music of Mr. Burt Bacharach (especially his breath-taking song "Bells of St. Augustine"). There is again also a bunch of other classical and popular music and jazz lurking on the background as a source of inspiration. 

The instruments and plugins I have been privileged to use here are once again my old workhorse Korg SGProX digital stage piano (master keyboard), Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer (CFX Concert) and the wonderful instruments from Scarbee (Rhodes, EP-88S), Native Instruments (Abbey Road 80s Drummer), the UVI SonicPass and Arturia V Collection. The drum grooves, fills etc. are from the 80s Drummer and edited by me.

Through My Eyes

An amateur cover version of Chick Corea's song "Eternal Child" (from the album "Eye of the Beholder", 1988). Not much improvisation here.... just a basic version showcasing Mr. Corea's ingenious composition. After installing the new awesome Rhodes V8 plugin I decided to try to record this song using a lovely and dynamic Dyno Rhodes type of electric piano sound.

Played by me with my Korg SGProX digital stage piano using the Rhodes V8 Pro virtual electric piano (Rhodes MK8; preset name "Dyna-Mite" and player profile "Dyn-O-Mighty", with some tweaking by the undersigned), Yamaha Montage 8 (CFX Concert) and Arturia CZ V (cf. Casio CZ-1, CZ-101). 

Posted as a private person for non-commercial purposes.

Chick Corea: Eternal Child (cover)

"The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing"
- Archilochus. See also  e.g. Ronald M. Dworkin, Justice for Hedgehogs (2011)


A song to the one and only who knows it. 

This is an improvised song I played and recorded the other day (my apologies for the mistakes). It is not much but I just had to play it. I am not in the advertising business and I have to mention as a private person for non-commercial purposes that this song is also a mellow celebration of the Rhodes Electric Piano which is one of the most beautiful instruments I have ever encountered in my life (after my U1 upright piano..). I first heard Rhodes electric piano when I was a little child, and for many years I wondered "What is that?". Now after all these years I got enough resources to get the official Rhodes V8 Pro virtual electric piano.

In a larger context this song is also - despite the fact that it's played in the minor key - a mellow celebration of life. It is to celebrate this particular day and everything this day brings with it.

This song was inspired especially by a particular performance of an old song loosely translated from Finnish to English as "The Vagabond's Night Star" (composed by Mr. Toivo Kärki and arranged by one of the greatest jazz pianists in this country, Mr. Olli Ahvenlahti); it was the song where I for the first time heard the amazing sound of an electric piano many years ago. This song was also inspired by the song "Eternal Child" composed by the late great musician and composer Mr. Chick Corea, and also especially by the memorable music of The Alan Parsons Project.

The song was played by me with my Korg SGProX digital stage piano, using Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer as an audio interface and using e.g. the following instruments: 
- Rhodes V8 Pro electric piano (Mk8);
- UVI T20 Electric 2 Chorus (cf. MKS-20);
- Arturia V Collection / 1982 Acoustic Grand;
- Arturia Mellotron V (guitar, strings);
- UVI Kroma (brass);
- UVI PX Memories (brass, pad; cf. Memorymoog, LAMM);
- UVI Ultramini and Arturia Mini V (bass) and
- UVI Soul Drums. 

Once again I use this opportunity to present a wish: Please let us have the strength to take decent care of each other and ourselves and let us always try to treat each other with due concern and respect.

The Mellow One and Only

A simple "hymn" or "anthem" in the name of fresh beginnings and everything they can bring with them.

The feeling with this track is kind of similar with some previous ones of mine since I so love playing with all these wonderful instruments. 

Played by me with Korg SGProX stage piano and Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer using the following instruments: 
- Drums: Native Instruments Abbey Road 80s Drummer (with a layered Linndrum snare);
- Bass and lead: AAC Lounge Lizard EP-4 Insomnia;
- Electric piano: Scarbee Classic EP-88s;
- Strings: UVI Orchestral Suite;
- Choir, voices: Arturia Emulator II V;
- Guitar: Native Instruments Session Guitarist - Electric Sunburst.

For New Beginnings

An improvised little "End of March Jam" which I played the other day with my Korg SGProX digital piano and Yamaha Montage, using the Rhodes V8 Pro Electric Piano sound and Scarbee Jay-Bass (Fender Jazz Bass; I so love this bass!). The awesome drum groove is from the Lumbeat Jazz Drummer for iOS ("8th Fields") with some tweaking by me. The drums are Native Instruments Abbey Road 50s Drummer with an early-50s Gretsch Cadillac Green Nitron drumkit (Spring kit) and a snare that I believe is the Leedy Professional 14 x 5 from 1920s.

This song was partly inspired by the awesome composer and pianist Stu Goldberg's song "Dedication", a song which I first came acquainted with through an album from 1995 by a Finnish jazz band Trio Töykeät. 

Comments would be more than welcome! It sure would be nice also if someone some day would like to try to play for example a melody over this track or collaborate with some other way.

End Of March Jam

"Spring Light" 

The enormous power of spring never ceazes to amaze me. 

Here is a little - for the large part improvised - track I have been working on. It came to life due to the encouragement, teaching and chord progression by Mr. Anomon (@gary-courtland-miles). I tried to improvise a little and this is what I ended up with. In a way, that is, I tried to let the virtual Rhodes V8 and Yamaha Montage 8's piano sing for me. 

From the bottom of my heart I want to thank kind Mr. Gary Courtland-Miles for providing the chord progression and for giving me wings and telling me that I can fly. So all possible credit(s) for this song belongs to him. Thank you Gary!

This was played by me with Korg SGProX stage piano as a master controller. The drums are from the Native Instruments Studio Drummer and the bass is the Scarbee Jay-Bass (Fender Jazz-Bass).

Spring Light

A cover version of the song "Europa (Earth's Cry Heaven's Smile)" composed by Carlos Santana and Tom Coster. (Edit: Mastered with iZotope Ozone on 25 September, 2023.)

You know, for all my life I've played mostly for myself. But then I discovered SoundCloud and then suddenly as of fall 2022 I have been blessed with the possibility to play for you (in addition to listening to you and with you). 

So, here is a modest version of one of the loveliest songs I have ever heard, played here by me with the Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer. I have never had a real DX7 and I wanted to try to play a whole tune using only DX7 sounds the beauty of which surprises me every time (especially the guitar sound is incredible in my opinion). Here all but the drums are to the best of my knowledge as pure DX7 as it can get with Montage. 

The sounds used are E.Piano1, ElecBass, Guitar1, Syn-Lead1, Strings2 (converted wonderfully by Hideo Harada, Kamoda Music). The drums and drum groove are "Emulated CR-78 Kit" (Roland CR-78 drum machine) from the awesome Montage "Vintage Machines" soundbank by Easy Sounds.

Posted as a private individual for non-commercial purposes.

Santana - Coster: Europa (Earth's Cry Heaven's Smile)

This is my humble first take of Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov's famous "Flight of the Bumble Bee" (transcribed by Sergei Rachmaninoff). 

It was played by me on May the 2nd, 2023 with Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer ("CFX Concert" sound). It was recorded into my DAW in one take as an audio wav file without any midi recording, and hence no midi or other corrections were made. I only added some reverb. I've been practicing this for weeks and I wanted to get this out of my hands so to speak and this is what I ended up with. My apologies for the numerous mistakes.. but nobody ever taught me how to do this and this is the result so far.. It may be that this is the best I can do but I have to say that I still am a little bit proud of myself because lately I had started to think that I will never be able to make even a mediocre recording of this piece!

I am not sure what the exact tempo here was. The sheet has a designated tempo of 144-152 but many real pianists including Horowitz, Lang Lang and David Helfgott of course have played it much faster. I also almost lost the rhythm at some point but I think I got it back after a while..

Some day I will maybe try to make a better recording with fewer mistakes. But since it took me maybe about 17-20 years or more with this piece to get to this point (although I had maybe a 10 years break in the middle) I can make no promises.. 

I first started playing Rachmaninoff and Chopin seriously after I saw the movie "Shine" many years ago and after that I tried to learn as many of the songs as possible. There was some great piano playing in the movie and the main character in the movie played the Bumble Bee in one scene (a recording which according to my knowledge was played by Mr. David Helfgott himself). After seeing that I wanted to learn the piece myself. I guess the line of thinking I had at the time was that "If they can do it, I can do it". And I think here is an important lesson for all the youngsters out there: You can do anything. Never give up! Although a little bit of proper guidance and teaching probably won't do you any harm...

Posted as a private individual for non-commercial purposes.

Rimsky-Korsakov: Flight of the Bumble Bee. Transcribed by S. Rachmaninoff

"Spring Chicken" (Edit: Mastered with Ozone on September 28, 2023) 

I can't help it, I just have to keep playing these songs. 

We had a minor "setback" with the spring here in the north in that after a good start we've had a kind of cold spell for quite some time (minus degrees at nights, +5 Celsius in the day time). But as of today May 9th 2023 the spring finally is of more permanent nature:)! So in order to properly celebrate the development I tried to make a little song partly in late 70's and early 80s' style. I used Rhodes sound and the Native Instruments Abbey Road 70s Drummer (the drum beat is mine and some of the fills are from the 70s Drummer) and also some synth sounds that were used in the late 70's (especially the CS-80 sound), and I layered the synth sounds with e.g. the DX7 and MKS-20 soundscapes. The awesome bass is the Scarbee Jay-Bass (late 70's Jazz Bass) software instrument.

The keyboard part consists of a layer of the Scarbee EP-88S (Rhodes), the new Rhodes V8 Pro (Rhodes Mk8) and "The Twenty" from the UVI Key Suite Digital (cf. MKS-20). In addition I used a DX7 lead sound played with Yamaha Montage and also the somewhat newer UVI Six-12 from the "Ob Legacy" software instrument collection ("Ob-12 Brass" sound) and layered them with the lead sound I made with the Arturia CS-80 V. The strings come from the UVI Orchestral Suite.

This track is in a way a humble tribute to the great composer and the best bassist off all times Mr. Jaco Pastorius, who's signature song was the tune "Chicken" by Mr. Pee Wee Ellis.

This track is also a kind of tribute to the wonderful Casio PT-50 which was my first ever keyboard and which I will always remember. The Casio had some lovely demo songs which had "the breeze" in them, meaning e.g. that they felt like the warm summer wind on a beautiful summer day.

Spring Chicken

"Rays of Summer Sun" 

Here is a small summer-related excercise I played the other day using my old Korg SGProX as a midi keyboard! Everything except the brass was created using sounds from the wonderful UVI Emulation+ virtual synthesizer (representing the lovely hardware sounds of the E-mu Emulator, Emulator II, Emulator III and Drumulator). The brass is from the UVI JP Legacy/Saturn-6 (cf. Jupiter 6).

Rays Of Summer Sun

🤍UA 

Remembering the victims of war and injustice. 

This was played by me today using especially the following wonderful instruments that I have been privileged to play: 
- Electric piano layer: Neo-Soul Keys Studio 2 / LA Dyno AMP; Neo-Soul Studio 2, Dyno Expansion /Full Dyno Chorus; UVI DS-890 (cf. JD-800/JD-990);
- Strings: UVI Orchestral Suite / String Ensemble;
- Bass: UVI ultra mini, Arturia Mini V, Lounge Lizard EP-4S /Insomnia 1. Bass;
- Drums: UVI prime8+(cf. TR-808) with added gated reverb etc.

A Brief Moment

"Northern Lights" (Edit: Mastered with iZotope Ozone on September 25, 2023)

A little tune where I had in mind the beauty of the North where my heart will always be.

The instruments used: 
- EP layer: Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer (Yamaha TX816 Electric Piano sound), Keyscape (LA Custom Rhodes Suitcase 80s, Roland MKS-20/E. Piano 2, Roland JD-800/Crystal Rhodes)
- Piano: Keyscape LA Custom C7 Grand Piano (Yamaha C7) 
- Drums: Native Instruments Abbey Road 70s Drummer, with some layered Linndrum sounds (snare, toms)
- Guitar: Native Instruments Electric Sunburst
- Bass: Native Instruments Prime Bass Session Bassist
- Lead sounds: Arturia DX7 V/VHS Flute & VHS Strings, Arturia Prophet-5 V
- Brass and synth sounds: Yamaha Montage (TX816 Horns & Filter Synth)

Northern Lights

"Chilly Morning"

Lately, the nights have been really cold and in the morning, the grass and rooftops are all covered with frost. It’s beautiful… and chilly. So I was working on a song and at some stage I came to think that this name would suit the song!

This was played by me using my old Korg digital stage piano as a master keyboard and the following instruments: 
- Piano/EP layer: Keyscape (Yamaha C7 Grand Piano/LA Piano + MKS EP)
- Electric piano: Keyscape/Rhodes - LA Custom Suitcase
- Lead layer: Yamaha Montage 8 (DX7 French Horn), UVI FMX4OP (Power Lead), Arturia Prophet-5 & Jup-8 V, AAS Lounge Lizard EP-4
- Strings: UVI Orchestral Suite, String Ensemble
- Drums: UVI Emulation II+ (cf. E-mu Emulator, Drumulator, SP12)
- Bass: Arturia Acid V

Recorded with Cubase Pro 12 using Yamaha Montage 8 as an audio interface. Mixed and mastered with iZotope Neutron 4 & Ozone 11.

Chilly Morning

A short improvised tune played by me with my old loyal companion Korg SGProX digital stage piano as a master keyboard, using an old lovely retro style Grand Piano sound from Keyscape (Yamaha C7, preset "Vinyl"). (Edited the track a little bit on Sunday, November 12, 2023; e.g. changed the last note:)

This song is dedicated to the one who knows it.

I know this is a short one but I'm not a trained jazzer and it has practically taken all my life to get to this point in playing (I'm still learning every day:). If I had to name a few sources of inspiration here, I would first name Mr. Erroll Garner; I would also name Mr. Robbie Buchanan, who's fantastic, memorable and genius playing, compositions and arrangements I have listened to (knowingly or unbeknownst) practically all my life and keep listening today. A song that especially inspired me to make this track is "Somebody in Your Life" by Diane Warren and Robbie Buchanan and the incredible complex chords and progressions present in that song. Later Mr. Luis Miguel made a spectacular version of that song ("Alguien Como Tú"). Third, I would also mention as a source of inspiration the memorable music of the late honorable composer and pianist, Mr. Juan Carlos Calderón. And of course, the music of Mr. Bill Evans is always inspiring me.

Peace (solo piano)

"It's Hopeful Time Again" (v2, 2023)

A new version and arrangement of my earlier song, a.k.a. ”It’s Xmas Time Again”. I experimented with some different chords, inversions, voicings and chord progressions etc. and this is the result!

This was played by me using the Korg SGProX digital stage piano as a master keyboard. The main keyboard sound here is from the Yamaha Montage 8 (the great and ever so lovely Yamaha TX816 Electric piano performance which was converted from the original TX816 patch), layered with Gospel Musicians' Neo-Soul Keys Studio 2 (Dyno Rhodes) and Keyscape (Roland MKS-20). Other sounds that I have been privileged to use come mainly from the great UVI SonicPass instrument collection and the Arturia V Collection. The drums come from Native Instruments Abbey Road 80s Drummer. 

Recorded and mixed using Cubase Pro 13. Mixed with Cubase, with some very significant amount of help from iZotope Neutron 4. Mastered with iZotope Ozone 11.

Please take care of yourself and each other and please let us try to treat each other with due dignity and respect in this hopeful time of year.

It's Hopeful Time Again (2023)

"Jamming w/ Jazz Bass" (Edit: Mastered in iZotope Ozone on January 13th, 2025.)

A little excercise that I finished today. I made this track originally some time ago playing a VST bass, but after I finally got a Jazz Bass recently I wanted to try to play and record something with it, and here we go! 

Played by me using sounds from different VST instrument collections (Rhodes V8 Pro electric piano, Native Instruments Komplete Now collection & Abbey Road 1980s Drums, UVI SonicPass collection). The bass was played by me with a Fender American Ultra Jazz Bass (Cobra Blue). 

Sorry about the mistakes with the bass.. But after I sold my beautiful G&L Interceptor bass guitar in the late 1990's it has now been maybe 25 years since I played bass the last time, and I'm practicing:) 

Especially playing with the correct timing and with right & consistent velocities was really challenging. I also actually played the bass line maybe too loud, so had to do some EQ'ing and stuff afterwards.

Jamming w/ Jazz Bass

"Moods 'n Waves"

They say different moods come in waves, and that was something I had in mind when making this song! Also if you listen carefully, you may recognize a familiar sound or two:) 

I used two virtual instruments here: the synth lead, bass and the keyboard all come from Arturia Mini-V (emulating the ever-so-lovely classic Minimoog synthesizer), and the drum track was programmed mainly with the EG Pulse drum machine/sampler for iOS, using the 707 drum kit.

This was played using a 37-key Korg microKEY Air midi keyboard as a midi controller. Don't ask what the chords are.. I have no idea:) I just started stacking voices and chords on top of each other and this is where I landed. 

Recorded and mixed in Cubase using iZotope Neutron. Mastered with iZotope Ozone.
 
Have a nice weekend!

Moods 'n Waves

"Going Home" 

A little demo song I made and played this weekend.. still subject to some changes maybe. This was played using my old Korg SGProX as a master controller. The main keyboard sound comes from Yamaha Montage 8 synthesizer (original TX816 Electric Piano FM sound converted into Montage format), layered with Keyscape (MKS-20 sound). The main lead sounds come from Arturia Jun-6V (Juno-6) and UVI CS-M (CS80), and the bass is Arturia Mini V (Minimoog), layered with UVI Ultramini. The drums come from Native Instruments Abbey Road 80s Drummer. 

Recorded and mixed in Cubase with some significant help from iZotope Neutron. Mastered with Ozone 11.

Comments are more than welcome! wish a great and wonderful summertime to everybody!

Going Home

"Starting Over" (demo v2)

Made and played by me on August 16 and September 12, 2024, using sounds e.g. from Yamaha Montage 8 (TX816 Electric Piano), Keyscape (Roland MKS-20 EP sound), Arturia Jup-8 V and UVI SonicPass (Emulator II, Marcato Strings sound).

Edited a little on September 12, 2024 (changed melody a bit & added and modified some chords, added some chorus etc.). Mastered with Ozone 11 on September 12, 2024.

I'm also working on an instrumentalized version. Also, this song could maybe use some lyrics, and it is still something I have to look into. All comments would be more than welcome, especially regarding the melody (it seems that good melodies are pretty challenging to develop).

As two sources of inspiration here I could name Luis Miguel's versions of the songs "Toda una vida" (by the great Osvaldo Farrés) and "Ese momento" (by the great Armando Manzanero).

Starting Over (v2)

"I Just Can't Live Without You" (demo v1)

A short demo song made on September 5, 2024, still under development, e.g. lacking a second verse, bridge and modulation etc. Since the name "Never Gonna Give You Up" is already taken I have to think of another one:) One possible alternative could be "I Just Can't Live Without You". This tune came into my mind when thinking about the chords and progressions in my earlier song "Peace".

This was made and played by me using sounds e.g. from Yamaha Montage 8 (TX816 Electric Piano), Keyscape (Roland MKS-20 EP sound), Arturia Jup-8 V (Horns), UVI Ultramini & Arturia Mini-V (Moog bass sound) and UVI PX Memories (cf. Memorymoog mod).

Mastered on Ozone 11.

I'm certainly not a lyricist, but the idea here was that the lyrics in the chorus would be something like this:

I'm never gonna let you down [etc.]
- - -
I'm always gonna bring you up / I'm always gonna cheer you up
- - -
Im never gonna let you down
- - -
I just can't live without you
....

The track in Youtube: https://youtu.be/eMT30WzyurM

I Just Can't Live Without You (demo v1)

"Stellar Lounge" 

I would like to thank each and every member of the SoundCloud community who keeps creating fantastic music for us to hear, and my sincere thanks also go to everyone who has taken the time to listen to some of my songs this year and perhaps even also given comments to them. 

For quite some time I've been planning to try to create kind of a synthwave-like track. So without further ado, please join me on a trip through intergalactic spaces to the "Stellar Lounge"! 

Made and played by the undersigned in the autumn & winter of 2024. Recorded in Cubase Pro with significant help from iZotope Neutron 4. Mastered in iZotope Ozone 11. The cover art is a picture of my Yamaha U1 piano, blended with a picture of northern lights (picture taken by me in the Finnish Lapland).

All comments would be very welcome!

I used VST instruments including, but not limited to the following:
- Rhodes Chroma VST by Cherry Audio (melody and lead lines), 
- Native Instruments Electric Keys Diamond,
- Rhodes Anthology (Rhodes Mark V electric piano),
- UVI Soul Drums,
- UVI ultra mini & Arturia Mini V4 (Minimoog bass sound),
- Native Instruments Session Guitarist - Electric Mint,
- UVI Beatbox Anthology 2 (LDrum-Shaker),
- UVI PX memories (Memorymoog kind of pad sound),
- UVI FMX-8 (electric tines),
- UVI JP Legacy, Saturn-4 (lead Sax sound, cf. Roland Jupiter 4) and
- Arturia Analog Lab Pro (lead sounds).

I also want to take this opportunity to wish you all a pleasant holiday season!

Stellar Lounge

"Let's Face the Music!" 

YouTube video: https://youtu.be/0rumOoxeGHc

A song I made & played only with my Yamaha Motif ES8 and Yamaha Montage 8, played through their Lo-Fi effects. Every instrument part was played by me as audio one or two at a time on top of a Motif  stock drum beat and recorded straight into Montage's audio recorder on a USB stick. However, all but the electric piano & lead sound part were recorded as short one minute audio clips which I then mixed & sampled together etc. 

I first laid down the drum & bass lines (the bass comes from Motif and the pad sound is Montage's "PWM Ensemble" FM-X patch). I then overdubbed some Prophet style horns from Motif ES8 and an awesome "DX Designer" patch from Montage. After that I overdubbed two layers of vocals through some Motif's patches & effects and Montage's Vocoder after which I recorded the keyboard part using Motif's "Chorusdyno" patch and the background lead sound using Motif's "Singleline" patch layered with Montage's "Chillin' Ibiza" FM-X patch. 

It all started only as a short one minute jam exercise and I wasn't meaning to make a song out of it, but then one thing lead to another.. and I decided to try to make it into a song. Kind of "groundbreaking" for me was that this is the first song were I finally got to sing a bit (although through Vocoder effect:) and also that now I mainly recorded everything as "live" without any midi sequencing (except for the drum part). 

Everything was run through Motif's and Montage's Lo-Fi effects and especially through UADx 1176LN Rev A & E compressor and ValhallaVintageVerb plugins and iZotope Neutron & Ozone. Mixed and mastered in Cubase Pro with significant help from iZotope Neutron & Ozone.


The chorus could go something like this: 

Let's face the music 
Beneath the moonlit sky
Let's face the music 
Beneath the moonlit sky
I see it in your eyes
Only you and I 
... 

Right here in my arms
You make my world go 'round
Let's face the music

Here are links to the last of the "making of" videos on Instagram and YouTube: 
- https://www.instagram.com/p/DFDAnXTyEMu/ 
- https://youtube.com/shorts/tCO_HOzuBck?si=7cnZ16Gymv6kGbS-

Lets Face The Music

"Micro Jam" (demo v1) 

A short one minute jam or sketch I played this weekend using my 37-key Korg microKEY AIR as a MIDI controller. The VST sounds come from Arturia Mini V4 (Minimoog bass sound), Audiolounge Key Affair 3, Spectrasonics Keyscape, UVI FMX2 XL, Gospel Musicians' Neo-Soul Keys Studio 2 and UVI Emulation III. Drums and the fantastic drum beat come from UVI Beatbox Anthology 2 (The 7o7 kit).

Recorded and mixed in Cubase Pro with significant help from iZotope Neutron. Mastered with Ozone 11.

Here are links to a short video where I played the bass line: 
- https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2nyKmNNCI_o
- https://www.instagram.com/reel/DH1mauaSv8M

Micro Jam (demo)

"I Just Can't Live Without You" (Instrumental)

First of all, I would like to wish a happy springtime to all of my fantastic friends here on SoundCloud!  

Without further ado, here is the full instrumental version of a short demo song I made on September 5, 2024. Originally this tune came to me when thinking about the chords and progressions in my earlier song "Peace".

This song was made, played and recorded by me as MIDI and with e.g. the following instruments and sounds: Yamaha Montage 8 (TX816 Electric Piano), Spectrasonics Keyscape (Roland MKS-20 EP sound), Arturia Jup-8 V (Horns), Arturia Synthx V, UVI Ultramini & Arturia Mini-V (Minimoog bass sound), Arturia JUN-6V (the "55 Pop Corn" sound, cf. Juno-6 Synthesizer), Native Instruments Session Guitarist - Electric Mint; and other sounds from the UVI SonicPass VST library including UVI PX Memories (cf. Memorymoog mod), UV-XXX (from the UVI "OB Legacy", horns & the brass sound), UVX-10P (cf. Roland JX-10, the flute sound) and Marcato Strings (from UVI Emulation II). The drums come from Native Instruments Abbey Roads 1980s Drummer, layered with the fantastic Simmons SDS 5 style kick & snare drums from UVI Beatbox Anthology 2.  

Recorded, edited and mixed in Cubase Pro 14, with some significant help from iZotope Neutron. Mastered in Cubase Pro with Ozone 11.


I'm certainly not a lyricist but I got some help with the lyrics! And the idea was that the lyrics would go something like this:


VERSE 

My life is good 
having you by my side
We face the future together
The years roll by
... 
It wouldn’t be the same without you
... 


CHORUS 

I just thought that you should know
I never wanna let you go...
... love you so
I just thought that you should know 
I never wanna let you go
... I just can’t live without you


I Just Can't Live Without You

A partial remake of my earlier rearrangement of Frédéric Chopin's Revolutionary Etude, Op. 10 No. 12. 

A Sunday excercise where I laid down a bass part with the Jazz Bass Ultra on top of my earlier rearrangement. I played the electric piano part originally 2.5 years ago as midi in several takes. Also some midi note corrections and quantizations were made back then especially since the changing of the rhythm turned out to be more difficult for the left hand than I expected.. I'm not a pro bassist but it sure was fun playing this! I also didn't want the bass to steal all the attention from the keyboard part:)

I also made a short video of this: 
- https://youtube.com/shorts/3aKReG3pI0o
- https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKp3o9FMKNC

Original full version with a VST Bass: https://soundcloud.com/vintageklavier1980s/chopin-revolutionary-etude-op-10-no-12-arr-for-rhodes-drums-and-bass

F. Chopin Revolutionary Etude Rearranged w/ Bass (excerpt)

Self-learned piano and keyboard player (pop, classical, jazz). Have also played violin, some drums and bass etc.

I came here to play!

Contact: vintageklavier88(at)gmail(.)com

VintageKlavier1980s

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