#trombones writing challenge

[lordsecondsenju]

"How is that fireball jutsu coming?"

"Shut up, Hiruzen!" Kagami huffed as he finished wrapping burned fingers in bandages. He still was struggling with the jutsu even now, at almost nineteen. "It's not the fireball jutsu anymore, anyway!"

"Oh, whatever." Hiruzen laughed and shook his head as he leaned against a nearby tree.

Just as Kagami was about to retort, Tobirama's voice came from within the nearby forest. "Kagami!"

"Yes?"

"Are you ready to work on something new?"

Kagami's eyes lit up as the albino man stepped forward. "Something new?"

"Yes, I have a feeling it will come... Swimmingly." Tobirama gave a tiny smile as he led the way off towards the lake nearby to the training grounds.

[pearlywritings]

The Music of the Night

To get back on track with writing, I decided to make a somewhat writing event to produce short stories based on prompts as often as possible. Thus I invite you to participate in this little 'concert' of mine.

Event Masterlist

Some notes and Rules:

character x fem!reader (but can try to write without specifying gender).

1 character per ask. If one prompt is requested many times, I may combine the characters into one post.

1 character - 1 prompt.

~500 words per request (might be longer if I get carried away).

there can be fluff, angst, smut or even crack - and almost always it's going to be a gamble.

request any adult male character from HSR or Genshin. Which includes all playable, future playable, ones who LOOK like playable (*cough* Fatui Harbingers *cough*), I can even try some NPCs! First ones who come to mind: Crepus, Biram, Svarog, etc.

please, do not request Diluc. I am a bit tired of him.

and one more thing I want to note - this event's main purpose is to help me regain the will to write and test the capabiliities of my imagination, thus I am free to write the prompt according to the vision I have and to decline some of the asks for any reason.

Request:

for the sake of keeping it vague, I am asking you to simply send me the following combo: 'character's name' + 'musical instrument' + 'details if the prompt suggests it in the parentheses'

Prompts:

Since I couldn't settle on just one, this list is a mix of phrases, concepts and tropes

Accordion - work colleagues (platonic/romantic/up to me)

Bagpipes - overhearing how one partner talks about the other

Balalaika - cuteness aggression

Banjo - travel

Bassoon - not good enough

Bell - habit(s)

Biwa - exes

Castanets - opposites attract

Cello - challenge (fluff/smut/angst)

Clarinet - first time

Clavichord - dying in the arms of a lover

Domra - writing letters/texting

Double bass - one of you had a nightmare

Drums - “This was a mistake”

Erhu - “I will wait for you”

Euphonium - “I hate to say it, but I told you so”

Flute - morning after 😏 - was requested many times, so for now I won't be accepting this one (everyone who sent it before 17th of April, you are good)

Gaohu - too late to/for...

Guitar - random smut scenario

Guqin - broken in some way

Guzheng - arranged marriage

Harmonica - term of endearment

Harp - a gaze into the future/getting old together

Harpsichord - soulmates (you may suggest what king of: red thread of fate, tattoo of the first phrase a soulmate will tell you, a timer that counts the time before you two meet, colorblind until meeting the soulmate, etc)

Lute - tending to partner’s injuries

Lyre - showering/bathing together (fluff/smut)

Oboe - one of you gets jealous

Ocarina - spending time with your kid(s)

Piano - evening together

Pipe organ - random scenario (up to the writer (me))

Ratchet - the fight (can be the aftermath of it/making up)

Saxophone - kink (just write a kink)

Trombone - masquerade/ball

Trumpet - in denial/oblivious

Ukulele - cooking

Violin - date

Whistle - having/getting a pet

Wind Chimes - morning together

Xylophone - secret relationship

Zither - “It will never be the same again”

You alone can make my soul take flight

Help me make the Music of the Night

[candle-lamp]

challenge: assign the sbg group instruments/sports/hobbies that are different than the cannon ones! can be in addition to their cannon hobbies or make them all new ones...

Oooo this is neat, thank you for the request ^^ I'm gonna challenge myself to give them one of each :3

Ashlyn:

- I could see her playing a stringed instrument, maybe cello or double bass

- don't know how sporty this is but figure skating. do you see my vision

- I think as a hobby she would totally listen to podcasts. started off as a way to drown out noise but she got really into them

Aiden:

- trumpet player. we all know it

- would totally attempt extreme parkour. come on he's mr. durable. once again this barely counts as a sport whoops

- he gives me scrapbook vibes. he's always taking pictures, they've gotta go somewhere

Ben:

- we all know and love his guitar, but what if,, piano

- doesn't strike me as being too sporty, but I'd guess he tried a few and probably liked basketball, but didn't like how confrontational it was

- I think he'd like crocheting, he'd especially like giving handmade gifts to people

Taylor:

- I'm split between her playing trombone and clarinet, I think they both fit

- volleyball for sure. first sport on the list I'm confident in

- I could see her really liking logic puzzles, like sudoku and cryptograms

Tyler:

- he could totally play drums, be it a drum set or quads

- baseball yes, but also, hockey

- I could see him really enjoying writing but never having time for it

Logan:

- I know this is totally projection but,,, French horn. band kids know what I'm talking about

- I think he would enjoy tennis

- gives me big D&D/ttrpg vibes, would totally try and get the gang into them

[dathomirdumpsterfire]

Chat writes the plot! Time for more 👑🐲🐟 KotD!

🔥🔥 don't forget to reblog tysm! 🔥🔥

Want to be on the tag list? -> Comment with 'tag me!' Have an idea for next chapter or clicked the wrong option? -> Reblog about it! Check the bottom for the Ao3 link. Latest chapter is below the cut!🔥

~King of the Dragonfish: Chapter 16 ~

Obi-Wan is just about ready to begin figuratively climbing the walls…

…scratch that, he's just about ready to literally climb the walls.

‘Come with me…’ Maul’s voice echoes in his mind.

“No,” he says aloud, pacing circles around the magma ball. “No.”

But gods, does he want-

“No.”

The jedi spares a moment to be angry at the circumstances. Every jedi was met with challenges on the path of life. It was supposed to be that way. They were chances for self reflection and growth. But how many jedi had their mortal enemy return from the grave looking like something out of a wet dream -no pun intended- and kidnap them, only to change their mind and decide they just want companionship and sex? They just want him to stay with them, forever, simple as that.

It's absurd. It's enticing. It's sad. It's sweet.

It makes Obi-Wan want to punch something.

It makes him want other things too…

“No.”

He has to leave. He has to. It's only a matter of time before slick scales and stress levels mix him up into a cocktail of poor choices. Obi-Wan wants to rail Maul into the ground. He wants to see what all that mess at the apex of his tail tastes like. He wants to get on his knees and-

Blast it! It's time to try escaping, with or without help from local fauna.

The jedi walks to the water's edge, and gathers his mental fortitude. He knows he's unlikely to succeed in getting to the sparkle of his lightsaber crystal, or to somehow find his rebreather. However, Maul's force signature is far away. Now is a good time to explore, and hope, and trust in the force.

Obi-Wan jumps into the frigid water, grimacing as it rises around him. He swims as close to the exit tunnel as he can, and starts taking deep breaths, trying to hyperoxygenate a bit.

Then, he dives.

What follows is a slow and cautious exploration of the nearby tunnels that serves as a double blessing for how it takes his mind off Maul. He swims one way, and finds nothing but tunnel that goes on further than he can see. The jedi returns to air, catches his breath, and goes out again.

The other direction offers a split in the road. One way leads to a dead end, the other hits a second divide. Again, he reoxigenates, and despite the terrible cold he goes back down for a third attempt.

Then a fourth, a fifth, a sixth, a seventh… a hour passes and the chill sinks into his bones. He finds two more air pockets, not quite as fresh as the algae and moss crowded caves, but still breathable.

And then, he stumbles across another ‘room’.

Obi-Wan breaches the water's surface and finds himself in a trove. He crawls up onto land, and looks around curiously. This cave is a series of smaller rooms that connect, with an exceptional number of pock marks in the walls. Perhaps millennia ago this was living coral? Whatever the case, the larger pockets have been turned into shelves, and these shelves hold myriad items.

Droid parts, sea shells, and pearls as big as his head. Tin cans, fabric scraps, and a silver platter. An entire trombone, half rusted, sits in a footlocker without a lid. There's a pile of datapads which all look to be out of charge, and a statue of some long forgotten nubian queen. These and more, a flee market’s worth of curios.

His most unexpected find is an area of sand, which seems... combed? Gemstones and polished rocks in shades of blue combine with patterns in the sand to create a garden of sorts. Many of the stones are no bigger than a bean. The largest is a chunk of lapis lazuli the size of his fist. Obi-Wan ponders the rock garden for a few minutes before moving on, not quite sure what to make of it.

A sith with a sense of artistry... that's just... odd?

From what he had seen in the archives, the sith of old stuck to geometric patterns and flat colors. Their ideal temple was a barren monolith or an angular ziggurat with either no decoration, or, records of horrible deeds carved in words. Sometimes pictures.

Yet... Maul had made a lovely little garden, in shades of blue and white and beige. Strange.

Obi-Wan turns away from the mystery, and goes digging through the droid parts to see if there's anything that could boost his comm signal. It's a possibility, there's a lot to work with here. Rather than take anything, the jedi memorizes what he sees and makes note of it. He will plan what to take and where to hide it to work on before risking revealing the direction of his thoughts.

At the very back of the caves is a large cubby of stone that looks like it was carved into the wall with a lightsaber, then carefully sanded smooth.

On a shelf beside it sits a saberstaff. Obi-Wan can feel the song of the kyber from here, now that he listens. Two notes in harmony, one longing and angry, the other spiteful and determined. The jedi knows this blade, and has no desire to touch it… but it's good to know where it is.

He shakes his head sadly at the sithly melody, and sits down at the edge of the cubby, exhausted and sluggish. Obi-Wan rests his elbows on his knees, needing a minute to gather his strength. Even with a jedi's ability to propel himself with the force and slow his heartbeat, it was still a long swim back.

Emotionally Obi-Wan feels a lot better though. He's mapped a significant amount of tunnel, found three places to get air for further exploration, and most importantly he's gotten his mind off-

Oh, kriff.

The jedi master groans, flopping backwards onto the smooth stone with a wet smack, exasperated with himself. Truly? Truly. A single stray thought about beautiful black scales, and he's back in the thick of it like he'd never left.

Obi-Wan covers his eyes with a shaking hand, hiding from reality for just a moment. Two moments. Perhaps five moments…

He sighs, removing his hand to look up at the ceiling. This is, inconveniently, when he realizes his fingers are very pale. Bother. He needs to get up, and… and swim back to the radiant heat of the magma ball.

Just the thought of it is dreadfully tiring, and he is comfortable here. Very comfortable... So very…

Oh no.

He knows exactly what being sleepy when one is very cold means. The jedi curses under his breath, forcing himself upright. His vision is slow to catch up with where he's looking. He's pushed too far, and now his body is paying the price of that.

Obi-Wan draws in the force to support himself, and rises unsteadily to his feet. Every bone in his body pleads with him to lay down. He denies the instinct in favor of a survivalist mentality.

The problem? He is much too cold.

The solution? Getting out of wet clothes and closer to warmth, or barring that, some kind of insulting material.

He thinks through a mild fog, and recalls the cloth scraps. Obi-Wan goes hunting around in the treasure trove as he pulls off his belt. He dumps his clothes onto the floor, managing to lay them out to air dry for what it was worth in the relative humidity. Then he gathers up every last scrap of fabric he can find.

The pile of scraps. A sail cloth. Half a tarp. His best find is a pair of old wool socks, which he puts on right away. The lot of it he piles in the cubby, and curls in on himself in the midst of it. Obi-Wan knows he just needs to warm up, then he can put everything back, and return to where he was supposed to be. Maul's force presence was still far away. He wasn't in a rush…

…and that's part of why the jedi falls asleep precisely when and where he really shouldn't.

Obi-Wan wakes sometime later with his head tucked under a pointed chin. A scaled tail curls around his naked legs, and a lumpy magma hemisphere radiates heat against his back.

... kark.

Obi-Wan can't deal with this right now. He's beyond exhausted, possibly a bit ill. The jedi master takes a deep breath, and just... goes back to sleep, held close in red and black arms.

To be continued...

-Tag list- (Comment if you want added!)

@obimaulartfire @savageopressbignaturals @icequeen8043 @moonsickvampire @maulish @milkcioccolato @cyborg0109

New? Start from Chapter 1! 👇🏽

[wanderingaldecaldo]

2025 Writing Resolutions

I'm not usually one for resolutions but I've been kicking around the idea of having some writing goals after the post I shared last week, and came up with a few that are feasible:

Finish the first draft for one (or both!) of the stories I started last year in new-to-me fandoms

Edit and post the Presidential PWP

Finish the DA:I Blackwall fic that's been 95% complete for years

Daily 15min sprint

Some personal musings about writing (and reading) and WIPs under the cut.

Last fall I lost my Cyberpunk hyperfixation but, after three years of nonstop Val and Mitch (and Rosalind) through VP and modding, it's been a boon to my writing, and once more I'm reminded why I love hate one of my oldest hobbies. I really wish I could reassure my younger self that actually, no, I'll never run out of things to write.

Over my tumblr break, I rewatched the whole Daniel Craig Bond series, all because I really wanted to watch Skyfall, my fave of the entire franchise. Something new happened this time around as I watched the films — Judi Dench and Daniel Craig's chemistry gripped me by the throat and wouldn't let go.

I'm not generally one to visit AO3 (or ff.net back in the day) after consuming a piece of media; I could list out the ones that have on two hands, and still have several fingers left over, even with including the new ones mentioned here.

This time, I was lucky to have found a ship with a backlog of fics to work through. For weeks I read fics, and rewatched their scenes ad nauseam, ever thankful I'd bought the 4-disc set and wasn't reliant having the correct streaming service. Eventually inspiration struck and I started what I thought would be a oneshot. But where there's a WIP there's always more ideas lurking around the corner, and suddenly the oneshot developed into two chapters, with the second spinning quickly into a third.

Over the course of a two-week head cold that knocked out all writing aspirations, I binged all of Ted Lasso and became enamored with the characters and themes, but especially the relationship between Ted and Rebecca. As I watched, I didn't know the status of the show; in fact I had assumed season 4 was in the works. :sad trombone: No slow burn for me. After I finished it, I wanted to rewatch it immediately but decided not to; I wanted to sit with it first, to let it digest. I really didn't think I'd reach the AO3 stage — usually it's like the proverbial bolt of lightning that strikes quickly — but this time, appropriately, it was the friends-to-lovers trope that I adore.

Again, I was lucky to find a veritable treasure trove of fics. I wasn't the only one who wanted more of those two, and again, I found myself inspired with an idea that was two lines of dialog and half a scene held together with spit and twine, and since then it's spaghettied into —yes, you guessed it — three chapters.

Neither of them are anywhere close to being shitty first drafts; they're hand-scratched pages written over consecutive nights where I wrote seven sentences, or maybe seven words or even paragraphs, before nodding off over the notebook. The 00M fic has 2k words transcribed, and that's just the first half of the first chapter, while the rest is mostly vibes and smut, and now there's a fourth chapter, because of course there is. The tedbecca has less than a quarter of that, but it's at least all transcribed now.

Enter Cyberpunk 2.2 and remaking Val and falling in love with this stupid kleptopunk streetrat all over again. Glory shared a "what AO3 tag are you" quiz and I got "only one bed" and said it was ironic since I'd never written one, and she jokingly (???) challenged me to change that. Welp, friends, my brain couldn't stop poking at that and now I have an idea for a new fic featuring fan fave "only one bed" trope, and also a fix-it, another first. Usually I am content to leave canon as is and play within the margins and behind-the-scenes of what we're given, though maybe I will add my own touch to scenes; but I always felt that Driss's death was cheap and easy to avoid. Maybe if we'd been given an actual RPG with real choices, it could have been, but that's a topic for a different rant.

And with the reignited love for Cyberpunk, plus the desire to mark things off my to-do list, I opened the Presidential PWP tonight when I was going through my folders, and my god, it happened — I'd forgotten it! I read a few paragraphs and decided I need to save the reread for another night when I can read it uninterrupted and take fresh notes on it. Probably should recruit a beta, too.

Another very long standing to-do is the Blackwall fic. I started it in maybe 2015, and worked on it off-and-on for a couple of years alongside a ME Shakarian/Shaeed love triangle (don't at me), trading off between them as the hyperfixations switched back and forth. The Blackwall fic is a true oneshot and has been waiting on an ending for for 6+ years now. It's literally 95% done, and I fucking adore it so much, and just need to Write It, and get that draft out the door (and maybe to a beta? idk, we'll see).

So that gets to the last resolution — this is the one that I know I'll fail in that I won't do it daily; I will miss days. But it's an aspirational goal, and I know firsthand how beneficial writing daily is, even if I only get a few words out of it. It still gets the ol' compost bin in my brain going in the background, churning all those ideas and thoughts into more WIPs.

I've also been thinking about the why. Writing is one of my oldest hobbies, following reading and video games. Returning to the Cyberpunk setting runs the risk of me picking up VP and modding again, newer hobbies that offer faster and more immediate feedback from other fans; hobbies that I know will cut into both my desire to write and my free time. By writing out my... writing resolutions, it will be easier to remember my priorities for the year.

Rat asked about our writing accomplishments in 2024. I answered that I wrote four new characters in two new-to-me fandoms, and that I let myself move from projects as did my interest without guilt. Now, it feels freeing to have four fandoms and a dozen stories to choose between when I want to write, but I will say the color-coded notebooks are getting hard to keep track of.

[yellowcakeuf6]

I usually try to shrug off negative criticism but I'm annoyed and upset by some of the hoity and belittling comments being left on my work saying it isn't relevant or credible enough for sci-fi. The latest one kindly advises me to stick to "low brow urban drama" as it's more in keeping with my limited scope.

I realise my stuff has its limitations because I write what I know. I write in several fandoms, but I especially love Star Trek, and maybe I do shoehorn unlikely characters into that universe, but it's what I'm comfortable with. As for the more accepted "new high flyer on the Enterprise hooks up with Data, Riker, Worf etc" trope, I'll be upfront and honest - I can't pull it off. I don't have the fancy academic credentials to create an OC/potential partner who is a scientist or engineer. I'd need to pore over extensive research online which is way too time consuming for me right now. Jeez, it took me long enough just to research how to play a trombone for a drabble lolz. Anyway I know Data never came to Earth, and his metier is largely logic and science based, but...he did visit many planets, and I believe it's not outside the realms of possibility that he might engage with someone who has something different to offer other than just being a young, beautiful high achiever who can "fix it all".

But...as I delete yet another snide remark on my fic, I want to say this: we all have our dreams and ambitions but sometimes they fall short. Fanfiction is a means of escapism, not some highfalutin intellectual challenge, and we should all be able to indulge in that guilty pleasure however we choose to interpret it without getting needless grief.

That's all. Rant over :<(

[burlveneer-music]

Laura Jurd & Paul Dunmall - Fanfares and Freedom

A live recording from a piece premiered at the 2023 Cheltenham Jazz Festival, and later recorded at The Vortex. Laura Jurd was commissioned to write this piece for scored ensemble plus improvising quartet, and the resulting piece balances the composed and improvised elements beautifully in the fast moving 45 minute work which is very much in the tradition of the best British jazz. "I don’t think I’ll ever forget hearing Paul Dunmall play for the first time. Whilst aware of his gravitas as an improviser, I hadn’t been in the same room as him playing the saxophone until the first rehearsal of this music. His utterly courageous and no-holds-barred engagement with the present is something to behold. This album was recorded live at the Vortex Jazz Club in London. In an effort to capture the music at it’s best, we performed the same set of music twice, the resultant recording being the second set (bar one short improvisation from the first). Paul’s energy and dynamism was unwavering and I have no doubt that he had a third set in him also - a true ‘tour-de-force’. When commissioned to write this music, I was immediately excited and in some ways, joyfully daunted by the challenge. Aware of the dynamic magic of his quartet, it was immediately clear that the only role for Paul in the work was one of complete freedom. The question at that point, was how to make this the work of a ‘composer’ and put my artistic stamp on the whole affair? Whilst there are many composers interested in the blur between the written and the improvised, I wanted to give the listener a satisfyingly coherent sense of when they were listening to improvisation and when they were listening to conventional notation - the written music for the most part, fairly brazen in it’s stylistic identity. I’ve long been excited by the prospect of composing music for a chamber ensemble of brass players - all at equally home reading notation, improvising freely and in more of a typical jazz context . And there it began - a musical dialogue between the Paul Dunmall Quartet and Brass Quintet, both parties summoning, reacting to, propelling, welcoming, daring and disrupting the other. This was an album I never expected to make, which in itself feels like a celebration of spontaneity and the unexpected. I hope you enjoy listening." - Laura Jurd, May 2024  Paul Dunmall - tenor & sopranino saxophones Liam Noble - piano Caius Williams - double bass Miles Levin - drums Laura Jurd - trumpet Chris Batchelor - trumpet Alex Paxton - trombone Raphael Clarkson - trombone Oren Marshall - tuba

[gamezcatt]

DNI: ABLEISTS (I fucking hate you fuckers), homophobes, transphobes, racists, zionists, trump supporters, terfs, radqueers

🇵🇸FREE PALESTINE!! 🇵🇸 (To any of you asking for donations I’m REALLY REALLY sorry, but I am not in a position where I am able to donate, but I will reblog your stories!!)

Hi! I’m GamezCatt!

he/she/they pronouns

Genderfluid, Bialterous, Aegosexual

I’m that one person everyone forgets about

I am a minor!!!

Only professionally diagnosed with GAD, currently looking into other potential disorders, I’m also pretty depressed tbh

As for my actual blog:

I love writing poetry and will definitely post and reblog poetry or deep quotes a lot

I go absolutely insane over song lyrics. Music is such a big part of my life, and I will absolutely talk about it. Here’s a list of my current favorite songs (I might remember to update it):

1. Lua - Bright Eyes

2. Waves - Imagine Dragons

3. Nerve Endings - Too Close To Touch

4. Dial Tone - Catch Your Breath

5. Sick And Disgusting - Beartooth

6. Hospital For Souls - Bring Me The Horizon

7. What Could Have Been - Sting & Ray Chen

8. Good In Goodbye - Catch Your Breath

9. Sick Boy Soldier - Palaye Royale

10. Love - Imagine Dragons

Fandoms I am currently interested/involved in (I may or may not remember to update this too):

Life is Strange

Arcane

The Dragon Prince

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage

Interests:

I play the trombone in concert band, jazz band and marching band

I fucking love dragons. I can draw them pretty well too but I barely ever get time to draw.

I love hiking and have done several quite challenging hikes before, the hardest being 65 miles over two weeks in the backcountry of New Mexico

When I’m not doing anything important, I love playing lots of genres of video games! Some of my all time favorites are No Man’s Sky, Age Of Empires 2, Life is Strange and of course Minecraft

Here’s a list of song lyrics quotes I like since I love them so much (under the cut):

“Time doesn’t hear if you ask it to wait, so own all your tears and just roll with the waves”

“I know that it is freezing, but I think we have to walk. I keep waving at the taxis, they keep turning their lights off”

“What is simple in the moonlight, by the morning, never is”

“Why explore the universe when we don’t know ourselves?”

“We all walk alone on an empty staircase, silent halls and nameless faces”

“Even hell can get comfy once you’ve settled”

“Funny thing is, all I ever wanted, I already had. I just had to start again”

“We set ourselves on fire just to burn”

“They say it’s better to burn out than slowly sink and drown, but I don’t want to die today”

“They say that either you’ll sink or you’ll swim on your own”

“There’s no such thing as hate, just acts of fear and love”

“If you’re still bleeding, you’re the lucky one, because most of our feelings, they are dead and they are gone”

“You’re staring at the sky, watching stars collide”

“Gardens of misery won’t grow your sympathy. Don’t dig your own grave, it won’t help you bury the pain”

“There’s something strange going on in this house, it’s like we’re pushing all these buttons trying to start a war amongst ourselves. But we don’t know what we want, all we know is that we don’t want what they want”

“We’re just a room full of strangers, looking for something to save us. Alone together, we’re dying to live and we’re living to die”

“We’ve got the same blood, but will it be enough? We’ve got the same heartbeat, we’re living for the same dream, so where did we all go wrong? Love”

“He comes from the town of normal, of which he’s ashamed. People remember him kindly, but no one remembers his name”

“All my friends say it’s raining, but I don’t see no rain”

“If life ain’t just a joke, then why are we laughing? If life ain’t just a joke, then why am I dead?”

Am I glitching in and out again? When the game is over, will I see the end? Maybe they just forgot to plug me in. The screen is black, and now I’m seeing red”

“I’m shaking at night, sweating my sheets out, grinding my teeth out, but still the world will glamorize it all”

“Don’t chase your nightmares”

[nerdierholler]

All of the October writing prompt and challenges are something that usually get my writing going, for a few weeks at least. But work looks really busy so I may not have the mental energy for very much *Sad trombone noises* I think I’m still gonna try though just maybe not as consistent for the month as years past.

[casseyjournal]

Principle Study Class Journal (Semester 1)

Week 5: Review on Woodwinds

For this week, we ended up reviewing how to write for the woodwind instruments.

Points: 

Sound Effects

Double Tonguing

Triple Tonguing

Harmonics

Flutter Tongue

Common Functions

Harmonic Background - Homophonic wind writing

Solo passages - Choice of Timbre/Colour

Contrasting Colour

Double Other instruments to add richness or brighten it up

Special Effects & Other 20th Century Devices

Penderecki Dies Irae

Play at the highest pitch, then trill until the end of ark ink with arrow

Stachowski, Irisation for Orchestra

Remove the mouthpiece from the instrument and ‘play’ through them. [Frenetic Sound]

Recommended Books & Videos:

“How to write for Woodwinds” [Composing Academy]

The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra [Benjamin Britten]

Wagner’s Rienzi 

Good Woodwind Writing

Extended Flute Technique [Nicole Chamberlain]; A series of youtube video by Nicole Chamberlain that explain different type of extended technique such as:

“Sa”

Vocal

Beatboxing

Above would be some of the topics that were mentioned in this lesson. As the lesson went on, she also gave us a few pieces that showcase great usage of the woodwind instrument such as ‘Tres Curumis’ by Dori Caymin. This piece would showcase the creative usage of bassoon as it showcases how bassoon can create a good melodyline and how a higher range can create beautiful sound. 

Briefly, the Brass section was also reviewed, especially the french horn as it is an instrument that would be assessed in the exam. 

Points:

French Horn & Trombone are not agile instruments

Trumpet is quite agile

French Horn highest note (before it sound horrible) is C3

Technique for Trumpet

Harmon Mute; best example from Chris Batti

Techniques for French Horn

Hand stop - creates a warmer sound

Stop horn - creates a more brighter sound

¾ stop - bring ½ step down

Lontano (an equipment) - to sound more distant

Recommended pieces:

Gaspard de la Nuit, No. 2 by Ravel (Rearrangement version by Rachael Wang)

A sorrowful hanging historical

Use of Harmon Mute Trumpet; it creates a tragic sound rather than a very punchy sound as commonly known with trumpet

My Funny Valentine (Rearrangement by Chatt Baker)

Use of Harmon Mute Trumpet

Recital Pieces (Individual Fruits):

Slow pieces have been on my mind lately—the kind that has a sense of tranquility and such. In addition to the new idea that was given regarding wind instruments, I began to feel inspired by a piece that would showcase sadness and tranquility. Thus, I decided to use the extended technique of a flute to set the whole vibe of the piece. 

Dissertation:

At the same time, I began to write about the possible research questions and ideas that I have in mind:

Main Idea: How does sociology or social construct help compose film music?

(How does our knowledge of sociology or social construct help us compose music that fits different scenarios in film music?)

The Role of Social Constructs in Shaping Emotional Narratives in Film Music

How do social constructs influence the emotional themes portrayed in film scores?

In what ways do composers use musical elements to align with or challenge societal norms and expectations?

How do these emotional narratives enhance audience engagement and understanding of the film’s storyline?

Sounding Identity: The Role of Film Music in Representing Character Through Social Constructs

How do composers use musical themes to reflect or construct character identities based on social constructs?

In what ways do these musical representations influence audience perceptions of characters?

How do social issues (e.g., race, gender, class) shape the musical language used to portray characters in film?

There are a few things that became common throughout all of the ideas that I have, but one of them would be the fact that I would like for my dissertation to be a PAR (practice as research) dissertation rather than just a written one. As my dissertation leans more on the fact that I will be doing some composition in my research, this led me to have a composition dissertation teacher. 

[lordsecondsenju]

A soft 'oof' left Tobirama as a wrapped package was plopped into his lap. A surprisingly hefty, wrapped package.

"What is this?" He asked as he sat up from the couch, turning so his feet rested on the floor.

"You could open it to satisfy that curiosity instead of asking, you know." Madara responded as he sat beside the albino man.

A playful huff came from the famed swimmer as he tore into the simple, blue wrapping paper, before opening the box to reveal...

"Boots?"

"Snow boots, to be precise."

"Why would I ever need snow boots?"

"For the vacation I'm making you take to the Americas. It's cold this time of year, and you don't own a pair."

Tobirama was surprised, as he turned to Madara, a small smile tugging at his lips. "The thought is much appreciated."

[jwgh]

Song spotlight: The Christmas Lobster (listen on spotify) / (listen on bandcamp)

The kickstarter campaign ends today (around 6:30 pm US Eastern Time), and I wanted to go out with the one song on the album that is already recorded (I put it out as a Christmas single last year).

The genesis of this song came when I participated in a song challenge, in which I had a month to write a song on an assigned theme, which was something like "everybody knows my name."

An important part of my creative process with these sorts of challenges is putting off writing anything until the last minute, and then complaining about how impossible it all seems to my friends. In this case, as I was doing that, my friend Katy said, with total conviction: "You should write a song about the Christmas Lobster."

The idea of writing a song whose basic assumption was that everybody knows who the Christmas Lobster is -- a mythical figure that, as far as I know, Katy made up in that instant -- tickled me, and the result is what you hear here. Ultimately it gets a little Lovecraftian in spots, but that isn't so different from other Christmas songs. At least the Christmas Lobster doesn't claim to see you when you're sleeping!

Many of the musicians featured on this recording will also play on the other band recordings on the album: Pamela Murray on trombone, Keith Munslow on piano, Marty Ballou on bass, and John Cote on drums. (The guitarist on this track, Chris Monti, won't be able to play on the July sessions, but I've recruited some other great guitarists: Tom Ferraro, Natalie Markward, and Paul Alexander Williams aka Sweet P!)

If you haven't already pledged to the Kickstarter for the new album, then this is your last chance! In addition to getting an early copy of the album, there are various add-on rewards you can get, including a tee shirt featuring the Christmas Lobster itself. Pledge at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jwghaller/totally-awkward-my-next-album !

[musicarenagh]

Shane Rennison Talks About Latest EP 'Nice To Meet You' While most people like to perform under a moniker, Shane Rennison felt detached when she used a pseudonym. Previously,  he released songs under the moniker “Rennii” but according to him, he often felt detached from the music he was making. It wasn’t until 2019 that Shane Rennison bought a guitar, and that was when the fire-burning desire in him was rekindled. Since then, he has dedicated his life to sharing awesome music with music lovers across the globe, and a bit of that is his latest EP which is titled “Nice To Meet You.” In a recent interview with Mister Styx of Musicarenagh, Shane Rennison was asked the real inspiration behind “Nice To Meet You” and this is what he had to say: “I chose Nice to Meet You because I feel it’s a perfect name for a debut project. It’s like “hey, nice to meet you, here I am!” I just loved the effect it had on the project as a whole.” Nice To Meet You” contains five tracks that are like a sneak peek into  the life of the sensational singer and songwriter. The EP is a blend of Shane’s favorite a blend of pop, rock, and rap. In the interview, Shane Rennison delved deeper into his personal life and shared some of his achievements as well as the challenges that he has faced on his musical journey. Listen to Nice To Meet You below https://open.spotify.com/album/5pYDSklcDo4IYEeHdds1XL Follow Shane Rennison on Facebook Spotify Soundcloud Youtube Instagram Tiktok What is your stage name Shane Rennison Is there a story behind your stage name? I decided to start releasing music with my real name as a metaphorical way of bringing authenticity to my projects. I used to release music under the moniker Rennii and I often felt detached from the music I was making. Where do you find inspiration? At this point in my life, inspiration can come from anywhere. I work really hard spiritually to connect to the highest vibrations of love that exist in the universe so every moment of every day feels so fresh and alive. Therefore, something as simple as cooking a nice meal can be inspiring for me. Life is so awe-inspiring. It’s just a matter of us gaining that perspective. What was the role of music in the early years of your life? I’m kind of a late bloomer when it comes to being a musician. I played the trombone in middle school but never really took it seriously. In 2019 I bought my first guitar and as soon as I started learning, I knew it was something I wanted to dedicate my life to. Are you from a musical or artistic family? To be honest, not really. I come from a family of hard workers, which is where I get my work ethic from but I have no musicians in my direct family. A few distant cousins here and there played some instruments but no one that would’ve inspired me at a young age to pursue music. That being said, my dad is a classic rock and roller from the ‘70s so there was always good music being played in the house. Who inspired you to be a part of the music industry? There’s really no person that I can point to as someone who inspired me to be a part of the music industry. I just had this feeling when I started learning music theory that it was something I was supposed to be doing with my time on earth. It just felt so right I knew almost instantly that I had to get started and see how far I could take it. How did you learn to sing/write/to play? A lot of YouTube videos! I just started looking up basic exercises on the guitar and piano and coupled that with a consistent vocal routine. Writing music kind’ve came naturally to me. I have this innate ability to hear clear, unique melodies. So it was really a matter of learning instruments and music theory so that I could better understand these melodies that I was hearing in my head and get them out efficiently and effectively. What was the first concert that you ever went to and who did you see perform? Super random but my family and I actually own a kettle corn business. One of the venues we do is Bethel Woods Performing Arts Center in upstate New York.

So basically from the time I was 8 years old, I’ve seen some of the best musicians stepping on the stage. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Deep Purple, The Eagles, Elton John - just to name a few. I’m extremely fortunate for this! [caption id="attachment_52571" align="alignnone" width="2000"] Shane Rennison Talks About Latest EP 'Nice To Meet You'[/caption] How could you describe your music? I usually describe my music as a blend of pop, rock and rap. My three favorite genres! Describe your creative process. My process is mostly about creating a safe space in which to create. As a musician, I work tirelessly to become a true instrument of the universe so that the highest vibrations of love can manifest through my medium (music). Therefore, I just have to create ideal conditions for the spirit to flow through me. This means I have to be in a comfortable setting so that I can fully surrender to the creative flow of energy. Once I have that space, it’s just about finding the right tool (instrument) to “get out” whatever is trying to manifest in that moment. And then once I feel comfortable in my space and I’ve found the right tool for the moment, the energy guides me in manifesting my spirit’s intention. It’s hard to articulate because it’s become such a spiritual practice for me but it’s gotten to the point where I can create that space pretty easily and work consistently on new material. What is your main inspiration? Honestly just life in general. I’ve worked hard over the past few years to develop a healthy, spiritual regimen and this has allowed me to be fully present in each moment. Therefore, every moment of every day just feels so alive and rich. We are all connected as one pure moment of energy and so through this understanding I am able to conjure up motivation and inspiration from just about anything. There’s magic all around us! What musician do you admire most and why? In modern times, I’d say Harry Styles and Miley Cyrus. They’re just two prime examples of true artists. You can say what you want about their music but their creative identity is so real. I also have an affinity for classic rock and rollers that have stood the test of time. Guys like Steve Miller, Billy Joel, The Rolling Stones - just to name a few. They give me hope that it’s possible to find longevity in the music industry and that it can be done on your own terms. Did your style evolve since the beginning of your career? Absolutely! Like I said, I started out as a rapper. However, that music never really felt authentic or real for me so it gradually evolved into the music I’m making today. Who do you see as your main competitor? I know its cliche but myself. I don’t compare myself to anyone else. We’ve all been born into this physical reality, some with more and some with less. It’s about utilizing the opportunities given to your unique human experience to create the best version of yourself. There’s no one in this universe that changes that work for you. What are your interests outside of music? I’m a big New York sports fan. I love the Knicks, Jets, Mets and Rangers. I love to hike, play basketball, workout, meditate and do yoga. I love to cook as well. I’m in the kitchen just about every night creating a feast for myself. If it wasn't a music career, what would you be doing? I’ve always said if not for music I would be some sort of exotic travel guide. Basically, just an excuse to travel the world consistently. What is the biggest problem you have encountered in the journey of music? Just getting my name out there. I’m from a small town in the mountains so it’s been a challenge just building recognition. But in this modern day of technology and social media, we’re able to do so much while living in rural areas. It’s just a matter of time! If you could change one thing in the music industry, what would it be? It’s hard to say. The industry is so fluid and ever-changing as it is that I really don’t think too much about what I’d like it to look like.

I focus more on what I want my life to look like and how that plays into the music industry. Why did you choose this as the title of this project? I chose Nice to Meet You because I feel it’s a perfect name for a debut project. It’s like “hey, nice to meet you, here I am!” I just loved the effect it had on the project as a whole. https://open.spotify.com/artist/1xtGmt2UnVuvZpgp2iK91v?si=R5dzN9ofQJmQrtwMw8aulw What are your plans for the coming months? Currently my team and I are working on releasing a live EP with three songs that we recorded with a full band. There are two videos that will be released on YouTube as part of the project, along with the EP releasing on digital streaming platforms on November 24th. We’re also getting ready to release a full-length LP. We hope to release that in early 2024. Do you have any artistic collaboration plans To be honest, not really. I feel as though I have so much work to do on my own right now that I’m just not in a place where I feel collaboration is necessary. We still have to better understand our own creative identity before tying it in with others. What message would you like to give to your fans? My whole point for pursing music is to show that our work as human beings is to discover our true passions and then to use them as outlets for the unconditional love of the universe to enter into our physical reality. I chose music because it spoke to me but everyone has their own unique passion that they themselves must discover. This is the work of the spirit. You must look deep within yourself through open meditation to fully understand what it is you’re supposed to be doing with your time here on earth. And then go do it!

[bobabees]

hey i saw that your orders are open, and i want to order Frederick with a conductor reader

“I Just Wanna Be Part Of Your Symphony”

A/N: i unfortunately don’t know much about the profession, but i hope this is good enough! I kinda lost myself in a ramble writing this so skbdnsbdnnd ┐(￣ヮ￣)┌

Genre: Fluff

Frederick Kreiburg X Conductor Reader

Finally! Someone as passionate about music as he is!

He greatly admires your fervour for the art of music, the way you put your soul into your movements that seemed so fluid—he could watch you for hours, especially when you try and direct Antonio, Luca, Freddy, and Ganji for the next upcoming performance.

You always did seem to be excited for those, rambling on and on about ideas you had with the other survivors

It intrigued him greatly, so much so, that he wanted to join the quaint band.

But he was nervous.

He didn’t know why he was, in all his years of playing the piano, not once had he ever felt nervous about playing in front of so many people—and even if he had, he was strong enough to push past it

But this? It was different. You were different. He couldn’t quite place it—was it your seemingly bursting passion? Was it because of the fact you had a hunter in the group? Was it because he was afraid to disappoint everyone should he ever play in front of them? To disappoint you? You, who seems to view music as something more than what it is—to see it as something so ethereal?

Despite his reluctance to join your band, the moment you heard of what he used to do before the manor, the moment you found out that he played the piano, that he was a composer—you went off to find him.

And now, here he was, sitting in the practice room, with you telling him more and more about your group.

“I’m honestly finding it hard to believe that such a place would even be allowing such entertainment,” you laughed at his words, it was such a beautiful and charming sound, like a song he could never get out of his head, no matter how hard he tried.

“Oh, it took a while for us to convince Mr DeRoss to grant permission, but it worked!” Your words were filled with pure joy as you retold the story of the arduous challenges you and the others faced as you desperately tried to tell him how much entertainment was absolutely necessary for the sanity of both hunters and survivors, “Music, I believe, is a vital part of our lives. At least, for me it is. It’s a way for us to express emotions that we could never have done with just words, and for us to connect with people we never thought we would—I mean, I was terrified of Antonio when I first met him, he is a hunter, after all.” A nervous giggle escaped your lips, “and it was hard to look past the kind of—eerie grin he had or all the times he chased after me in matches…“ a shiver ran down your spine as you tried to suppress the memories of Antonio practically dragging you to the chair, or the times you couldn’t escape the notes he flung towards you.

“But the moment I heard him humming such a lovely tune—the moment I had the opportunity to actually listen to the music he played outside the matches—beneath such a terrifying exterior, was an artist—“ you whispered at the last word, stars glimmering in your eyes as you looked towards the small group of musicians before you. “We all are—and I want people to be able to express that parts of themselves instead of living in fear constantly, sure, we may have willingly come here and maybe knew what we were getting into—but we’re human. We need to express ourselves. This is just one of those ways. I mean—Look how happy they are.”

Frederick slowly followed your gaze, his eyes taking in every inch of the view before him; Luca’s eyes were furrowed as he focused on the melody that was being played from Freddy’s trombone, his fingers twitching above the keys as he tried to figure out a euphony that fitted it. Ganji playing his bansuri, the typically irate and vigorous batter was calm as he played the instrument from his culture, his shoulders sagged as he leaned against the cushions of the couch, his eyes half-lidded, and he swore he could see the corner of his lips tilted up in a smile. And there stood Antonio, a much gentler smile on his face as he—or well, his hair, played the violin, a low hum accompanying the tunes that echoed through the room.

“It’s fascinating, isn’t it?”

He turned to you, his heart nearly stopping at the way you smiled, “Music unifies us all, one way, or another, it’s one of the most beautiful creations man has ever made. It flourished far beyond our expectations, with different genres, subgenres, with using instruments from all around the world—even using things that weren’t meant to be instruments!” You laughed once again, and he couldn’t help but lean closer as if wanting to hear more of it. “It’s such a powerful thing that can bring us emotions that even we couldn’t hope to understand, it can bring memories of the past—or perhaps even an image of the future. This is what I told Mr DeRoss, and he seemed convinced enough after that since he permitted us to perform at least once a month. We’ve come a long way since then.”

He pursed his lips, holding onto his tuning fork tightly as he looked back at the small group of people—people he never thought could play such melodies. “And you dragged me here because…?”

“Because I figured that you wanted a chance to play your music. I thought offering you a space to express yourself would make you feel more at ease here.” You explained, placing your hand on his and giving him a reassuring smile. “So, what do you say? Do you want to join us?”

Frederick’s mouth gaped slightly, the words hanging on the tip of his tongue as he questioned himself for a moment. A soft sigh left his lips, “As much as I would love to,” he began “I’m afraid I am not as good as I was before, I do not want to dampen any of your performances-“

He heard a light scoff, pulling your hand away—he was sure you were going to leave the moment he rejected your offer. But instead, you gently nudged your elbow against his arm, “Nonsense, I’m sure you’re great—and besides, that’s why we practice, right?” You grinned “You don’t have to be the best of the best, that’s not what this is about. It’s about expressing yourself, playing to your heart's content, playing your music the way you want to.” You seemed so sure of your words, it contrasted so greatly with the people in his life who slowly abandoned him over time as his skills declined. His knuckles began to grow a bright red as he gripped the tuning fork tightly, “So?”

“I—“ His voice fell slightly, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes for a moment before looking into your eyes. Those eyes seemed to radiate with a fire that burned for your love for music and the arts, and the certainty that he was good enough. “I’d be honoured to join this group of yours—“

“That‘s great!” You clasped their hands together, excitement bubbling in your voice as you slipped off your seat, the weight next to him lightening as you offered a hand for him to take, “Now, come! We must introduce you before we practice!—“

“Wait—we’re practising now?!”

“Of course! What better time than now?”

It was like he had strapped himself to a rollercoaster, with no idea where it was going, when it was going to stop, and how long it was going to go for. But he would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it.

He adored the way your group bickered at times, the way they all seemed to have such different ways to play and yet played so beautifully the moment you came in to try and organise everything.

He cherished the way you and the others applauded him and smiled when he helped with composing the music you would play, and how he would practice with Luca in playing the piano, even creating what he would consider was one of the best pieces he has played. He never knew how amazing it would feel to play with someone else.

There were some mistakes here and there, and you always seemed to be able to calm yourself and make a light joke of it as you encouraged the others it was alright.

It was he, who made most of the mistakes the moment he joined the group, but he wasn’t entirely to blame. You should take some of it—he was constantly distracted by the fluidity of your movements, the way you swayed with each note that played, the smile that graced your face when you conducted with your baton.

Even in matches, when you two would decode together, he would find himself so mesmerised with the way you still spoke about music.

Oh, when you spoke of music. You were so passionate, it was like a fire he couldn’t control, the moment the topic was mentioned, you would go on a ramble about it. The history of it all, the beauty of it all.

And how you quelled his fears the moment he first stepped on that stage with the others, you stood before him with that encouraging smile and began to conduct—and maybe it was simply because you faced away from the crowd and was in front of him, but it felt like it was just you and him in the stage. Like it was another one of those practice sessions you all would have.

By the heavens above, did he love those moments.

The times you two would laugh at the small mistakes you both would make, how you playfully sang as he played, how he would teasingly mock you by swinging your baton around whilst you scolded him and tried to snatch it back as Luca and Antonio laughed from afar.

For the first time, in a long time, he felt excited to play the piano. And not just for the validation of those who came to watch him play—but because he truly enjoyed it.

[valentinesweetheartspecial]

hii vinciie im listening to more bands lately n since i play bandori but arent too well versed in music,, do u rec any argonavis bands for me to listen to? also what r some comments on said band if u want to give em?

i generally like pop / pop rock so my taste isnt anything super special but i do like songs that r melancholic n sad!!

HELLO LAB! I’m sorry for being so late to answering this , I was fighting demons and eating my homework . I DO have many Aaside recs heheh, I have a entire Aaside playlist but it’s on apple music which I don’t think you have (? Maybe you do I can send it if so) so I will simply write a list here. I’ll put some bands and songs and a brief description of their styles!!!

For your Main Band, Standard Mobage Music, I’d recommend Argonavis! At times I like their music and at times I don’t. They actually use a large variety of instruments in their songs despite being a 5 man band, so I don’t know where they’re getting these strings and all that but I’ll suspend my belief for the tunes. Their music is like, upbeat inspirational pop rock tunes with an odd amount of strings if you pay close attention. There’s also a heavy focus on piano in their songs! Some specific songs I would recommend are Hey! Argonavis, AASIDE (only listen to the argonavis version. If you listen to the all leaders version your ears will bleed), JUNCTION, Starry Line, VOICE, and my personal favorite of all their songs, Root of Love….Root of Love is not at all like any of their usual music, it’s much more subdued and a bit more…..tender…..? Well, it’s really great anyways, so if I had to choose one of their songs to listen to forever, it would be that one. Their covers of Melissa and Kuchizuke Diamond are also really good! Imo the second one is better than the original

For METAL ROCK GRAHHHH HEAVY DRUMS HEAVY GUITAR HEAVY VOCALS GAAHHGRAHHH I HATE MY DAD music, listen to GYROAXIA! No, I do not know what their name means nor will I ever know. Their music is extremely heavy on the guitar and drums, it’s fast paced, Nayuta is screaming mid song, sometimes he’s rapping, it’s a good time. Occasionally, Ryo is forced to look God in the eyes as he’s forced to play the synth and the bass at the exact same time, and despite the challenge, it always sounds good. Couldn’t they just have one of the guitarists do that? Guess not. Anyways, some of my favorites of their songs are MANIFESTO, SCATTER, BREAK IT DOWN, GET MYSELF, EGOIST, GETTING HIGH, and WORLD IS MINE. And, yes— all of those titles are officially in all caps, and in English. I also really like their cover of Kyoran Hey Kids!!, it’s pretty cool. I kind of hyped them up too much but if you listen I hope you enjoy

I was hesitant to add Fantôme Iris since you said you like more pop rock BUT they do have some melancholy bangers. Their music is vkei! They have a lot of strings in their songs , but in a more…goth way than argonavis. Felix’s va, Arthur Conant Lounsberry, is seriously amazing and I love everything he’s done, in and out of AAside. Yeah I….I don’t know how else to describe their music other than It is Vkei. They also have two guitarists, and sometimes one of them plays the piano. So…here’s some songs: Gin no Yuri, Hitsugi no Naka no C’est la vie, XX in Wonderland, Rhapsodia, and historie. I think rhapsodia is a masterpiece. Also , based on what you’ve told me I think you’d like historie most out of all of these? If you’d wanna hear some of their covers, I recommend 1/3 no Junjou na Kanojo. Um. And only that one. I’ve only listened to the one cover it’s really good I promise.

Next up is HAPPY FUN TIMES MUSIC: Fujin RIZING! They have only had one sad song so far, there’s some crazy lore behind that one….Fujin Rizing is apparently Ska, but I’m a fucking loser and I don’t know what that is or if Fujin Rizing really is Ska. So don’t take my word for that one. What I CAN say is that they have trombone and saxophone in their songs! The focus of the band is to have fun, and that’s exactly what their songs do tbh. You just need to listen to it I like their stuff a lot actually. Some favorites: Banzai RIZING!!!, SWORD!, Run Gun Run, Furareta Otoko No Love Letter, and Jokyou Jokyou Ittekimasu! They also have a cover of HOT LIMIT that goes so unbelievably hard.

Lastly. Epsilon! They are the electronic group yay.….they have the largest amount of songs per band in the playlist, so very sorry if this song list gets long. I was a super big fan of their music even before I got obsessed with Shu so….Yeah….Their music is the darkest out of all the bands, Shu is a emo little fuck and makes sure everyone knows it. They’re the only consistently dual vocal band pre-Kimisute, which is super cool, I love how Shu and Haruka’s voices sound together…Uh, not much else to say honestly , Stream epsilon phi 👍👍👍👍👍 So here’s some songs so you can do that. (Clears throat), Hikari No Akuma, Cynicaltic Fakestar, End of Reason, Play with You, Sake it LOVE!, YUMENOATO, re:play, and finally The song thag gives me diseases: Orthros. They also have a Shu Self Realization song, Raison d’etre. I also wanted to say, Haruka has two solos that are honestly some of my favorite all time AAside songs: Egoistic Sai Phi and Heroic. They both do a really lovely job of capturing Haruka’s most important points as a character….Kanata also canonically wrote a song for epsilon Um. It’s trash. It’s called I’m picking glory, it’s really bad, if you want to listen to a really terrible song listen to that one. Some really good epsilon covers are Enigmatic Feeling, Roki and WATASHIGA MOTENAINOWA DOU KANGAETEMO OMAERAGA WARUI 🫡🫡. Epsilon also has a YouTube channel where they did some vocaloid covers, most of them are bad, but you should check them out anyways. I’m picking glory is on that channel

ONCE AGAIN DEAREST LAB I AM SORRY THIS TOOK ME 40 MILLION YEARS. I do hope you check these songs out and let me know what you think……Love you..!!!!!🫶🫶🫶❤️❤️❤️❤️

[bananaofswifts]

By Paul Tingen

From sketches to final mixes, engineer Jonathan Low spent 2020 overseeing Taylor Swift’s hit lockdown albums folklore and evermore.

“I think the theme of a lot of my work nowadays, and especially with these two records, is that everything is getting mixed all the time. I always try to get the songs to sound as finalised as they can be. Obviously that’s hard when you’re not sure yet what all the elements will be. Tracks morph all the time, and yet everything is always moving forwards towards completion in some way. Everything should sound fun and inspiring to listen to all the time.”

Speaking is Jonathan Low, and the two records he refers to are, of course, Taylor Swift’s 2020 albums folklore and evermore, both of which reached number one in the UK and the US. Swift’s main producer and co‑writer on the two albums was the National’s Aaron Dessner, also interviewed in this issue. Low is the engineer, mixer and general right‑hand man at Long Pond Studios in upstate New York, where he and Dessner spent most of 2020 working on folklore and evermore, with Swift in Los Angeles for much of the time.

“In the beginning it did not feel real,” recalls Low. “There was this brand‑new collaboration, and it was amazing how quickly Aaron made these instrumental sketches and Taylor wrote lyrics and melodies to them, which she initially sent to us as iPhone voice memos. During our nightly family dinners in lockdown, Aaron would regularly pull up his phone and say, ‘Listen to this!’ and there would be another voice memo from Taylor with this beautiful song that she had written over a sketch of Aaron’s in a matter of hours. The rate at which it was happening was mind‑blowing. There was constant elevation, inspiration and just wanting to continue the momentum.

“We put her voice memos straight into Pro Tools. They had tons of character, because of the weird phone compression and cutting midrange quality you just would not get when you put someone in front of a pristine recording chain. Plus there was all this bleed. It’s interesting how that dictates the attitude of the vocal and of the song. Even though none of the original voice memos ended up on the albums, they often gave us unexpected hints. These voice memos were such on‑a‑whim things, they were really telling. Taylor had certain phrasings and inflections that we often returned to later on. They became our reference points.”

Sketching Sessions

“The instrumental sketches Aaron makes come into being in different ways,” elaborates Low. “Sometimes they are more fleshed‑out ideas, sometimes they are less formed. But normally Aaron will set himself up in the studio, surrounded by instruments and synths, and he’ll construct a track. Once he feels it makes some kind of sense I’ll come in and take a listen and then we together develop what’s there.

“I don’t call his sketches demos, because while many instruments are added and replaced later on, most of the original parts end up in the final version of the song. We try to get the sketches to a place where they are already very engaging as instrumental tracks. Aaron and I are always obsessively listening, because we constantly want to hear things that feel inspiring and musical, not just a bed of music in the background. It takes longer to create, but in this case also gave Taylor more to latch onto, both emotionally and in terms of musical inspiration. Hearing melodies woven in the music triggered new melodies.”

Not long after Dessner and Low sent each sketch to Swift, they would receive her voice memos in return, and they’d load them into the Pro Tools session of the sketch in question. Dessner and Low then continued to develop the songs, in close collaboration with Swift. “Taylor’s voice memos often came with suggestions for how to edit the sketches: maybe throw in a bridge somewhere, shorten a section, change the chords or arrangement somewhere, and so on. Aaron would have similar ideas, and he then developed the arrangements, often with his brother Bryce, adding or replacing instruments. This happened fast, and became very interactive between us and Taylor, even though we were working remotely. When we added instruments, we were reacting to the way my rough mixes felt at the very beginning. Of course, it was also dictated by how Taylor wrote and sang to the tracks.”

Dessner supplied sketches for nine and produced 10 of folklore’s 16 songs, playing many different types of guitars, keyboards and synths as well as percusion and programmed drums. Instruments that were added later include live strings, drums, trombone, accordion, clarinet, harpsichord and more, with his brother Bryce doing many of the orchestrations. Most overdubs by other musicians were done remotely as well. Throughout, Low was keeping an overview of everything that was going on and mixing the material, so it was as presentable and inspiring as possible.

Mixing folklore

Although Dessner has called folklore an “anti‑pop album”, the world’s number‑one pop mixer Serban Ghenea was drafted in to mix seven tracks, while Low did the remainder.

“It was exciting to have Serban involved,” explains Low, “because he did things I’d never do or be able to do. The way the vocal sits always at the forefront, along with the clarity he gets in his mixes, is remarkable. A great example of this is on the song ‘epiphany’. There is so much beautiful space and the vocal feels effortlessly placed. It was really interesting to hear where he took things, because we were so close to the entire process in every way. Hearing a totally new perspective was eye‑opening and refreshing.

“Throughout the entire process we were trying to maintain the original feel. Sometimes this was hard, because that initial rawness would get lost in large arrangements and additional layering. With revisions of folklore in particular we sometimes were losing the emotional weight from earlier more casual mixes. Because I was always mixing, there was also always the danger of over‑mixing.

“We were trying to get the best of each mix version, and sometimes that meant stepping backwards, and grabbing a piano chain from an earlier mix, or going three versions back to before we added orchestration. There were definitely moments of thinking, ‘Is this going to compete sonically? Is this loud enough?’ We knew we loved the way the songs sounded as we were building them, so we stuck with what we knew. There were times where I tried to keep pushing a mix forward but it didn’t improve the song — ‘cardigan’ is an example of a song where we ended up choosing a very early mix.”

Onward & Upward

folklore was finished and released in July 2020. In a normal world everyone might have gone on to do other things, but without the option of touring, they simply continued writing songs, with Low holding the fort. In September, many of the musicians who played on the album gathered at Long Pond for the shooting of a making‑of documentary, folklore: the long pond studio sessions, which is streamed on Disney+.

The temporary presence of Swift at Long Pond changed the working methods somewhat, as she could work with Dessner in the room, and Low was able record her vocals. After Swift left again, sessions continued until December, when evermore was released, with Dessner producing or co‑producing all tracks, apart from ‘gold rush’ which was co‑written and co‑produced by Swift and Antonoff. Low recorded many of Swift’s vocals for evermore, and mixed the entire album. The lead single ‘willow’ became the biggest hit from the album, reaching number one in the US and number three in the UK.

“Before Taylor came to Long Pond,” remembers Low, “she had always recorded her vocals for folklore remotely in Los Angeles or Nashville. When I recorded, I used a modern Telefunken U47, which is our go‑to vocal mic — we record all the National stuff with that — going straight into the Siemens desk, and then into a Lisson Grove AR‑1 tube compressor, and via a Burl A‑D converter into Pro Tools. Taylor creates and lays down her vocal arrangements very quickly, and it sounds like a finished record in very few takes.”

Devils In The Detail

In his mixes, Low wanted listeners to share his own initial response to these vocal performances. “The element that draws me in is always Taylor’s vocals. The first time I received files with her properly recorded but premixed vocals I was just floored. They sounded great, even with minimal EQ and compression. They were not the way I’m used to hearing her voice in her pop songs, with the vocal soaring and sitting at the very front edge of the soundscape. In these raw performances, I heard so much more intimacy and interaction with the music. It was wonderful to hear her voice with tons of detail and nuances in place: her phrasing, her tonality, her pitch, all very deliberate. We wanted to maintain that. It’s more emotional, and it sounds so much more personal to me. Then there was the music...”

The arrangements on evermore are even more ‘chamber pop’ than on folklore, with instruments like glockenspiel, crotales, flute, French horn, celeste and harmonium in evidence. “As listeners of the National may know, Aaron’s and Bryce’s arrangements can be quite dense. They love lush orchestration, all sorts of percusion, synths and other electronic sounds. The challenge was trying to get them to speak, without getting in the way of the vocals. I want a casual listener to be drawn in by the vocal, but sense that something special is happening in the music as well. At the same time, someone who really is digging in can fully immerse themselves and take in all the beauty deeper in the details of the sound and arrangement. Finding the balance between presenting all the musical elements that were happening in the arrangement and this really beautiful, upfront, real‑sounding vocal was the ticket.

“A particular challenge is that a lot of the detail that Aaron gravitates towards happens in the low mids, which is a very warm part of our hearing spectrum that can quickly become too muddy or too woolly. A lot of the tonal and musical information lives in the low mids, and then the vocal sits more in the midrange and high mids. There’s not too much in the higher frequency range, except the top of the guitars, and some elements like a shaker and the higher buzzy parts of the synths. Maintaining clarity and separation in those often complex arrangements was a major challenge.”