If there were only one thing to write about this week, that would have to be the weather... The days get darker and greyer, the nights get colder and feel unwelcoming now. How should we counter attack these gloomy days? With music of course, and it is all better if the music is played on a piano - so our hoarse voices don't get in the way of beautiful music.
With this in mind, let's review our usual Multicolored Piano playlist updates.
As always: read on below or dive right into the music here:
1. "Sunflowers"
by Andrei Poliakov (me again!) from Switzerland.
It feels a bit odd to release a tune called Sunflowers in the beginning of the winter 🌻🌻🌻❄❄❄
But at the same time, let's admit it, we always long for the past - coming back to the good moments of our lives and trying to relive them in the now.
The summer of 2021 was full of hopes and expectations of a promised happiness: still at the backdrop of the world health crisis, hoping for the better future and waiting for the normal life to get back on track (as if it were possible at all)...
Well, all of it has yet to happen, and we are now drilling into the winter with a bit frozen minds and stiff bodies, all our emotional power being well spent feeding the positive expectations for the future🤝🤷♂️
So remembering the Summer is not a bad idea all in all, and what would be a perfect symbol of Warmth, Revival, Sunshine, Beauty, and Love?
The Sunflower 🌻🌻🌻 of course, the most peaceful and gorgeous flower on Earth! (subjective, I know 😋)
Let's treat this little piano melody as a tribute to the Summer and to the Sunflowers, and then it will summon all the summer happiness, power, fun, and energy, inject it right into the now and we all will become stronger and happier to live through whatever this Winter brings us in its long sleeves!
The video was featured on YT, Insta, and Facebook, but let me drop the link here as well if you haven't seen it already https://youtu.be/kQyLkHzPY_0
2. "DayDreaming"
by BAWK from the UK and Landegren from Sweden
This is the latest release from BAWK in a collaboration with new Swedish classical artist, Landegren. It's a peaceful and relaxing body of work with some really lovely melodies throughout.
BAWK are a collective of pianists from around the world releasing emotive and beautiful pieces of music under one umbrella.
3. "Heart Strings"
by Mark Sutton from the UK
This is a Beautiful soft felted piano track from Mark Sutton.
Mark Sutton is a composer and musician who creates background and theme music with a reflective and nostalgic appeal from his studio in Dorset. His masterful approach to digital orchestration gifts him the ability to compose to brief or to picture. For his non-commissioned work, Mark doesn’t set out with a mission to create a particular piece; instead, he arrives at his pieces, guided by his fingers and directed by his soul.
Since an early age, Mark has been a master of his piano and takes inspiration from an eclectic mix of modern and classical composers and artists, from Chopin to Coldplay, there’s something there for Mark to source from.
Mark’s work combines orchestrated and pure piano tunes, it’s the perfect ’study’ music, and guides the mind, body and soul towards feelings of contentment and peace during the times you wish to relax and unwind.
His 2016 album Quest of The Spirit, offers up 12 tracks of discovery, tracks that chart the evolution of the soul’s journey, an internal voyage everyone takes. Every note, every rise and fall in the music, maps out the way ahead as the sounds escort you on your quest to the very heart of your soul.
Mark Sutton’s music takes listeners on a journey, directed by a man who has masterful control over music and a deep, innate understanding of the human condition.
4. "Berceuse"
by Marcin Kuczewski from Poland
"Berceuse" is a first single from Marcin Kuczewski upcoming solo album "Nocturnes".
All the songs from the album were recorded during late night improvisation sessions between 2020 and 2021.
Music is characterised by a minimalist approach to melody and simplicity of the form.
5. "All Things Pass"
by Neil Foster from the UK
All Things Pass, is a melodic piece of cinematic modern classical with ambient elements. It is a meditation on the passing of time, and the melancholy beauty of being here.
Neil Foster is a Composer, Multi-instrumentalist and Producer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His music spans ambient, classical and downtempo electronica. Neil's debut 'Hiraeth' was released in October 2018. His second album 'Stormlight', a blend of cinematic IDM, experimental classical and lyrical ambient, followed in 2021.
6. "Les Trois Vies de Marie-Laure"
by Jonathan Grow from the US
This is a classical piano composition in the style of early 1900's French classical composers. Composed for solo piano, it was inspired by the story of Marie-Laure, a young girl in the novel All the Light We Cannot See who was caught in the Second World War in Saint Malo, Brittany, France.
Jonathan Grow is an American pianist and composer. Composing primarily piano and orchestral composition for production libraries and solo projects, he also works in tv, advertising, and occasional film scoring. His passion is telling stories through the medium of music.
7. "Figurine"
by Rob Burger from the US.
Rob Burger’s keyboard work can be heard in everything from Guggenheim showcases to the blockbuster film Ocean’s 8 -- in addition to albums by John Zorn, Laurie Anderson, and Iron & Wine -- but the moonlit compositions he spins up on his own may be his most compelling work.
New single "Figurine" gracefully opens the album with a melodic piano refrain that eludes expectations as much as it soothes them. The elegiac piece sets the stage for an album that skillfully ballasts searing, beat-driven grooves with contemplative, piano-based ruminations.
Where 2019’s The Grid braided the joviality of mid-century exotica with the controlled exploration of krautrock and kosmische, the new album Marching With Feathers further reveals Burger’s command of mood and texture without the need for stylized referentiality, featuring some stunning, inward-looking piano work. It’s out February 11th 2022 on Western Vinyl.
8. "Amethyst"
by Jonathan Carlisle from the US
Neo Romantic and Neo Classical this piece is from the album Opus 1 which consist of original piano compositions. A love song for the piano and it's listeners
Jonathan says:
"Amethyst is a love song that I composed for a woman that ended up being my wife. This piece has always been apart of our relationship and was later arranged for a string quartet. That version was performed on our wedding day as she walked down the isle."
9. "Rebirth"
by Daravan from France
This is a rather sad and melancholic song, which aims to cheer up and motivate the listener. It's simple, peaceful and melodic. This is also the 5th song of the artist's EP released last week. It's the most melancholic and sentimental one. Hope you enjoy it.
Daravan is a French composer based in Madrid and making neo-classical and ambient music since 2020.
9. "Gagnon (for Piano & Strings)"
by Prof. Lacasse from Canada
"Gagnon" was written as a tribute to Canadian pianist-composer André Gagnon, deceased in December 2020. The piece is written with his style in mind. It is a touching piece with a mix of joyfulness and nostalgia.
Listen to these and other wonderful piano pieces at Multicolored Piano on Spotify here
Blessings and a good Sunday to everyone! andrei