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Production NotesTradition dictates that an album be released with notes. As more and more people get music online, and never see a physical album, printing the release notes on a CD liner seems an outmoded way of doing things. With the existence of such projects as the Internet Archive (a self-explanatory name, I think, whether it still exists as you read this or not), I suspect these 1s and 0s will be preserved long after the paper liners have crumbled. So, everything I have to say about OtherSong, I will say here. Perhaps the most common category of question that musicians encounter relates to the meaning behind names - pseudonyms, album names, song titles, etc. In this case, the album and song names are tied together, and relate to the original "philosophy" of Ambient music as initially described by Brian Eno. In his liner notes to Music for Airports, he said: "Ambient Music must be able to accommodate many levels of listening attention without enforcing one in particular; it must be as ignorable as it is interesting." My hope is that these songs will hint at different ideas, places, and things to each listener. I did not want to impose any solid ideas by providing concrete names, so I sought for words that I found particularly evocative, and combined them in ways that set my own imagination to work. You may notice that [almost] all of the names,including the album title, have the same three-syllable structure. I have read that it is something of an axiom among those interested in the creative process that imposing structure on art (the verse-chorus song form, the rule of threes in photography, or the sonnet form in poetry are a few of myriad examples) stimulates creativity, rather than stifling it as one might intuitively expect. If you ever find yourself suffering from writer's block, for example, try forcing yourself to write in haiku form, or adopt ample alliteration. The result may or may not be quite what you need, but it will likely help to get you past your block. To get back to the subject, Mr. Eno's statement of purpose for Ambient music guided my decision to include no English lyrics on this album. While I would be quite pleased to know that someone is giving their full attention to my music, I would derive equal pleasure to know that it is being used as (for lack of a better word) background music - what matters is that someone is listening. I find that there are few things as distracting as someone's thoughts being suddenly verbalized out of nowhere. I considered removing all vocals from the album altogether, but decided that those that remain lent more than they distracted. When I released Skye in 2006, I thought to myself that the time between releases from some of my favorite artists was absurdly long (Enigma in particular, who has been on a rough 3-year schedule since the beginning). Yet, here is OtherSong, three and half years after Skye. As with Skye, most of the production work took only a few months of spare time. I have realized, in retrospect, that the flow of new ideas is a serious limiting factor - while the bulk of the engineering on these tracks occurred only recently, the initial ideas from which the songs grew are dated from earlier this year, back to when I was working on Skye in 2006. Also, all ideas are not equal. For every complete track on OtherSong, there are two or three incomplete tracks on my studio's hard drive, some of which ended up leading nowhere or sounding like inferior equivalents of songs that are on the album. Others are simply the wrong style for Longing for Orpheus, or for this album in particular, and may end up being released somewhere else. While I continue to hope that I will develop the focus to produce music more consistently, I know that other projects and responsibilities will continue to vie for my attention. Computer LoveI suspect that sponsorships are the primary reason many albums include a list of brand names of instruments and recording equipment. I have no such obligations, but musical instruments are, themselves, works of art, and I would like to acknowledge some of them. My main sequencer is Sonar, though much of the rhythm section is provided by the generally-underrated Fruity Loops. A disproportionate amount of the synthesis on this album is provided by Native Instruments softsynths. Most of the melodies and harmonies were originally written on, and recorded through a Yamaha S80, which has a full-sized keyboard with wonderfully piano-like action. EthnomusicologyYes, that's a real word - part of the curriculum for music students at my college was a World Musics course, and this is the proper term for what we studied. This type of course (surveying the music of various cultures) can be interesting and enlightening, but it will shatter any illusions you may have that my style of music (and by extension, Enigma, Waterbone, Delerium, to a lesser degree Deep Forest) are really representative of the music of other cultures. Our music simply incorporates the sonic palate of other music traditions into the harmonic and melodic framework of Western Music; we still use the musical scales, song structures, and various other trappings of the Western classical and jazz traditions. Every culture's musical traditions can be wonderful and enchanting in their own right, and I highly encourage you to seek them out, but be forewarned that it takes some work to appreciate them. Musical preferences are, in large part, learned preferences - they develop over the course of our lives, based on what we listen to. So, even if you seek out the best and most famous recordings of, for example, Indian sitar music, don't expect to fall in love with it at first listen. Commit to playing it in the background on different occasions, over a period of time, interspersed with your usual fare. Do research into the elements of music as that culture sees it, and you'll have a much more enjoyable experience in the long run. Now, with all the disclaimers and caveats out of the way, lets talk about the actual World Music aspects of OtherSong. CopperSea - The flute-like instrument that first comes in around 0:55 is a sampled Shakuhachi - a Japanese bamboo flute, nearly two feet long, that is notoriously difficult to master. If you're listening to my music, you've almost certainly heard the Shakuhachi before - it features prominently in Enigma's Sadeness - Part 1, as well as many, many other recordings. I frequently hear it used in film and television soundtracks to lend a "exotic" air to things. Sadly, it seems that everyone uses the same small sample, and so we hear a breathy, descending major fourth over and over and over. The instrument has much expressive potential beyond this interval trick, so I avoided that particular sound in CopperSea. NeverTale - This song is a multicultural playground. The main rhythm and harmony instrument is, of course, a harp, which is associated with both Classical and Celtic music. The breathy flute that comes and goes throughout the album is a handmade Navajo flute. The sound you hear in this song isn't very representative of how the flute sounds in person - I added a lot of reverb to lend a sense of space and depth. Finally, mutliple tracks of Djeme come in at the bridge (around 3:05), and keep going through the final chorus. The djeme is goblet-shaped hand drum, which is thought to have originated in West Africa, but has been adopted in various forms by myriad cultures. I believe mine, which is a hand-carved specimen with about a 10" head, was made in Java or Bali, but I'm relying on my memory of what a salesmen told me a number of years ago. EverSoul - One of my favorite instruments is the Erhu, sometimes called the "Chinese Violin", and it (at least a sample-based synthesis of it) is the focus of this song. Both the main melody and string section in the choruses are Erhus. It bears sonic similarity to a violin because it is a bowed string instrument, but it is unique in that the bow actually fits between the instruments two strings, and so cannot be separated without restringing. Like the western violin the erhu is a wonderfully expressive instrument, and while the MiniErhu softsynth has captured some some fine examples of expressive elements, it's very difficult to emulate via synthesis the crying glissandos of a skilled human player. WinterStage - Another traditional Chinese instrument features in the second half of this song (entering at the bridge around 1:55). This one is a plucked string instrument called the Pipa. I used a combination of a sample-based synthesizer to create most of the melodic lines, and some longer samples of musical phrases played on an actual Pipa. The rhythms in the song include a hefty number of Bodhran samples - the Bodhran is a frame-drum used to accompany Celtic tunes, and you're likely to see one or more at any tune session. It's an unusual percussion instrument, in that it is played with a double-ended stick called a "tipper." CloverLight - This song features two Tin Whistles, also known as Penny Whistles or Irish Whistles. The main whistle is a Low D model, and is actually a PVC instrument despite its name (this is the same flute I played on Athar from the previous album). It is my understanding that low whistles came into prominence only recently, thanks to Davy Spillane's performances on Riverdance. The higher, more piercing tone comes from a more traditional D whistle by Clarke - it is simply doubling the melody an octave up for most of the song. But, it is featured prominently on the next song... UmbraStory - As I mentioned earlier, I considered not including this song on the album, out of fear that it's being the sole vocal song would throw the balance. But, I love the juxtaposition of the Irish whistle, so closely associated with Celtic music, and the Chinese vocals. These vocals came from a sample CD (there are entire businesses that exist purely by creating sample CDs and selling them to musicians - its a small world, you can hear one of the samples I used in the background music of an episode of Firefly), and I'm sadly unaware of what they may mean. If anyone speaks the dialect, I'd love a translation. In any case, I treated the vocals as another sonic texture, and they're placed as they are in the song purely for melodic and harmonic reasons. ArtworkThese are links to the full-sized album art; if you have a slow internet connection, consider how long you're willing to sit and watch them load, as they're very large. Many thanks to Claudia Meyer, on whose beautiful photographs all the artwork is based. 
Thank YousOf course, no work of art is truly the sole creation of the artist, but is the result of everyone and everything that has contributed to the artists' abilities, tastes, and personality. To that end, Thanks to all of my music teachers, in particular Dr. Robert Whalin, Peggy Brunner, Linda Dogherty, Dr. Joey Martin, and Bill Parcher - though I seriously doubt any of you expected your teachings to be incorporated into mellow electronica, you all shaped my sense of musicality, and I hope the best of that came out on this album. Thanks also to Richard Evans and Sam Trim - I am indebted to you both for showing me the ropes. Thanks to all friends and theater families keeping me busy and connected. Thanks to my parents and family for helping me get to a place where I can undertake this kind of project. And of course, much love to Becca and Pan for every day. AvailabilityOtherSong is now available from CD Baby, Kunaki, iTunes, and Amazon, and many other online sellers. If you are a retailer interested in stocking Longing for Orpheus' releases, please e-mail via the "Contact" button in site menu for wholesale information. SkyeSkye is Longing for Orpheus' debut album, released in February of 2006.
ReviewsBill Binkelman review at the New Age Reporter. RJ Lannan's review at the New Age Reporter. Brian Douthit's review at CD Baby (previously at Perfectly Said). Informal review from the Enigma Message Board by Jay Rivera of Black Ether: There's a lot of music these days that people refer to as New Age, mostly because they can't get their arms around it to firmly categorize what they are hearing. The result is that a lot of so-called "new age" is not new age at all, but progressive electronica in disguise. But there is a sound that most old time purists like myself, those of us that came through the school of Tangerine Dream, that represents what New Age is really all about. A post electrionica, neo classical sound that feeds on texture and emotion. Over the past week Ive had the pleasure of immersing myself in a CD that captures this sound with such stunning precision that it's gotten exclusive play on my car CD player (i do most listening in my car). Lush, bold, epic, perfectly orchestrated and full of feeling. Inspiring as hell and easily the best New Age CD I've heard in a very long time. A MUST listen for anybody who professes to love the genre and those who aren't quite certain what new age is. This is it, in all its glory, as good as it gets and on a par with the old masters who created the genre. Stories
AvailabilityPhysical copies of Skye are available at CDBaby. MP3 versions are available from a variety of online music stores, including iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody and Soundclick. |
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Longing for Orpheus | After Enigma |
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| Copyright 2006-2009 Derek Smootz | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Photographs by George Bosela and Sara Nevalainen | |||||||||||||||||||||||
