NEW EPISODES ARRIVING SPRING 2024
Season 2
S2 Episode 12: An Epic Journey with Ryan Muns
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Ryan Muns is the composer and operator of Eyes on the Moon Studios, specializing in custom music for TTRPGs and Fantasy settings. Ryan took the time this week to arrange a celtic tune, "The Parting Glass" into a full blown rocking orchestral arrangement. He takes the time to talk about orchestration, embellishments, modes, and most importantly, naming musical instruments.
find his music here: https://www.youtube.com/user/DarthRaith Eyes on the Moon Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/EyesOnTheMoonStudios |
S2 Episode 11: Celia Tewey Makes It Funky
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Celia Tewey is a multi-instrumentalist who practices "genre-flipping" classic songs, putting them in a new musical style. On this episode, she takes the Debussy's "Clair de Lune" and puts it in a funky, jazzier setting. We talk about rhythmic and harmonic changes, as well as the journey of going from classical to jazz piano playing.
find her music here: https://celiatewey.com/music |
S2 Episode 10: Lasya Soothes with the Bansuri
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Lasya is a Bansuri player and producer from New Delhi. She fuses eclectic music styles and draws influences from genres spanning classical, Indian folk, experimental, hip-hop and avant-garde. In this episode she arranges Louis Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World" for her instrument, talking about her vision for the arrangement and the steps taken to make that vision happen.
find her music here: https://lasya.bandcamp.com/album/monsoon |
S2 Episode 9: Phrygian Modes + UPDATES
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Let's use the Phrygian mode to make the new year song sound sinister (mmm. that alliteration though).
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S2 Episode 8: James Fernando Returns with Rhythmic Illusions
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Our guest from Season 1, James Fernando, sent me his arrangement of Hot Cross Buns, one day, and we need to talk about it, and before you get all "Pff...Hot Cross Buns? Really?" Trust me, you want to hear this. James joins me and a rambunctious baby at my favorite local haunt to talk shop again.
Check Out James's new album, Piano Poetry, out now! http://www.jamesfernando.com/ |
S2 Episode Episode 7 - Rob Talks Modes: Lydian
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In this episode, I dig into a topic that always eluded me learning music: modes. Focusing on the Dorian Mode, I rearrange a song and battle with chords in the process.
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November 18. 2022
S2 Episode 6:
Denis Viel talks Soul, Singing, and Stagecraft
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Denis Viel is a blues guitar player and singer from Quebec City, who has developed his sound into a strong, soulful performance that easily commands the room. On this episode, we talk about what makes an effective arrangement and performance of a song, and why a musician might want to "save the candies for later."
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November 4, 2022
S2 Episode 5:
DAMOYEE talks layers, voice, and reverb
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DAMOYEE is an award-winning multi-hyphenate music artist (composer, musician, singer, songwriter, producer, arranger and recording artist) from Dallas, Texas. In this episode she arranges one of her favorite songs: "Fair Chance" by Thundercat, talks about using her voice as an instrument, and describes how she makes a space-y song even space-y-er...spacier?
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October 21, 2022
S2 Episode Episode 4 - Rob Talks Modes: Lydian
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In this episode, I dig into a topic that always eluded me learning music: modes. Focusing on the Lydian Mode, I rearrange two songs into this mode.
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October 7th, 2022
S2 Episode 3 - Changing Sounds with Ari Voxx
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Ari Voxx is a 2022 Wammie finalist and DC-native who's been performing and writing music for years. Previously known for her jazz and neo-soul vocals, she now focuses on writing music that is authentically her, transcending genres, with influences like Cocteau Twins, The Cure, Soundgarden, and Imogen Heap. Now featuring her 4 piece band, The Sad Lads, Ari’s sound is dreamy, indie, and melancholic.
In this episode, Ari talks to us about how she transformed her song "With Me", switching from acoustic instruments to an electronica setup with loop pedals and synth pads, and how the change reflects the song's message. Find Ari's website here |
September 23, 2022
Episode 2 - Jazz and Improv
with Andy Statler
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Andy Statler is the Pianist and bandleader for the Blue Dot Jazz Troupe, a piano trio that performs all over the DMV area. In this episode, Andy talks about two arrangements he made with two different songs, how he pulls influences from across genre's, and how to make a new song work in the middle of a gig.
Find the Blue Dot Jazz Troupe here. |
September 9th, 2022
Episode 1 - Flute and Guitar Pedals
with Anh Phung
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Anh Phung is an accomplished classical & jazz flautist, who for the past several years has been plugging her instrument into guitar pedals. The resulting sounds have been featured with performing groups such as Twisted Pine, and Tullstars, as well as on her popular social media pages. In this episode, Anh helps break down how the use of electronic effects plays into music composition, and exploring and getting used to technology drives her creative process.
Anh’s Groups: Tullstars Twisted Pine |
Season 1
April 8th, 2022
Ep 13, Season 1 Finale: Bellwether Bayou
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Bellwether Bayou is the solo folk project of Laura Schwartz, a classically-trained violinist who has been moving steadily in a more folksy direction since living in New Orleans, Ithaca, and Xi'an, China. Based in Washington, D.C., Bellwether Bayou brings looping violin and soulful vocals together to create a modern take on classic folk sensibilities. The sound of Bellwether Bayou mixes original tunes with unexpected covers and new spins on old traditionals.
In this episode we talk to Laura Schwartz about how she uses her voice, her violin, and two pedals to make rich, textured songs. In our second interview, and our first live recording, we'll see how she builds short loops to create a full arrangement of Auld Lang Syne. Find Laura at https://bellwetherbayou.weebly.com/ |
March 25th, 2022
Episode 12 - James Fernando
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Hailed as a “prodigiously gifted composer and virtuoso pianist,” James Fernando creates music that lies at the intersection of jazz, classical, and electronic music. He relies on his genre-expanding original compositions to deliver thought provoking and exciting performances. He has several releases to his name, including his most recent release: The Grind, a collaboration with saxophonist Matt Lagan.
On this episode, James talks with me about voice leading, musical expression, and how to find what sounds good to you, in my first in-person interview on the show. Find more about James at: www.jamesfernando.com/ |
March 11th, 2022
Episode 11 - Earl Cutter
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When one note vibrates, in gently vibrates adjacent tones as well. This is called the overtone series, or the harmonic series. How does this relate to songs and arrangements? How can we use this series to do something new?
Earl Cutter is a multi-instrumentalist and music educator in Maryland - and a good friend of mine. In this episode he talks about how the chords in Auld Lang Syne relate to one series of notes, and how he manipulates this series to make his arrangement. You can find more on Earl Cutter at: https://earlcuttermusiclessons.wordpress.com/about/ . For information on the harmonic series, I highly recommend this paper by Mark Petersen: https://amath.colorado.edu/pub/matlab/music/MathMusic.pdf |
February 25th, 2022
Episode 10 - Rob Talks Rhythm 2
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How can you trick the listener into hearing one thing, before revealing another? There are a few ways to do it, and today Rob reveals one of them: by starting with a solo instrument playing a certain rhythm, then introducing another that changes the feel entirely.
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February 11th, 2022
Episode 9 - The Golub Brothers
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The Golub Brothers are a 2 person horns section in New York City. Although only 2 brothers, they expertly play a multitude of instruments: trumpet, flugelhorn, saxophones, clarinets, flutes and more. While being able to use all these instruments has been helpful with performing, it has also informed them on the importance of timbre and its effect on arranging. This episode, the Golub brothers bring in a big arrangement set for multiple wind instruments, and talk about how they sequence each instrument to inform the feel of the arrangement.
You can find their YouTube channel here. |
February 4th, 2022
Episode 8
8-Bit Music Theory
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Video game music has a rich history of intelligent, ground-breaking writing.
Since 2016, the 8-Bit Music Theory channel on Youtube has been analyzing the ideas and techniques that make that music so great. In this episode, 8-Bit shows us, among other things, how thinking critically on the bass notes can lead to more harmonic ideas. You can find 8-Bit's YouTube channel here. |
January 28th, 2022
Episode 7 - Rob Talks Rhythm
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The picture above depicts a hemiola: a 3:2 polyrhythm. In this week's episode, I discuss how we can change the rhythm of a tune to a different time signature, and how that plus a polyrhythm gives a very different feel to the song. Using some jazz chords on the vibraphone, I attempt my own arrangement of Auld Lang Syne.
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January 21st, 2022
Episode 6 - Andrew Breiner
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Andrew Breiner is a guitarist for the band Bacchae in Washington D.C., as well as an independent artist. Bacchae released the album Pleasure Vision in 2020, and are preparing for a tour in 2022. In this episode, Andrew gives us a lesson in Doom Metal: where it comes from, what it sounds like, and how to adapt an old Scottish ballad to the style.
You can hear more from his band Bacchae at bacchae.bandcamp.com/ |
January 14th, 2022
Episode 5 - Priyanka Akhilan
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Priyanka Akhilan is an Indian Carnatic Singer living in Canada. She has garnered a large following on TikTok for her videos demonstrating and analyzing Indian Carnatic music. Because Carnatic music uses a different methodology than Euro-Centric music, we wanted to see how Auld Lang Syne, a Scottish tune, could be interpreted in an Indian Carnatic style. Can the dignity and essence of Carnatic style, and the origins of Auld Lang Syne, coexist authentically?
You can find Priyanka on TikTok at @priakhil |
January 7th, 2022
Episode 4 - Joint Venture Percussion Duo
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Laurent Warnier and Rachel Xi Zhang make up Joint Venture Percussion Duo, an award-winning international percussion team. They are constantly fusing different genres and techniques together to create a unique sound that constantly adds to the contemporary music repertoire. On marimba and vibraphone, they take our melody and drop it low - meaning, to the bass line - and see what they can build on top of it.
You can find more about Joint Venture Percussion Duo at www.jointventurepercussionduo.com/ |
December 24th, 2021
Episode 3 - Fabiola Mendez
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Fabiola Mendez is a vocalist and cuatrist/guitarist from Puerto Rico. An award winning cuatro player, she has produced a number of tracks and collaborated with artists such as Danny Rivera, Edwin Colón Zayas, The Puerto Rican Symphony Orchestra, and more. In this episode, Fabiola shows us how to use jazz chords to change the harmony of a tune, and introduces guaracha rhythms to bring a festive liveliness to Auld Lang Syne.
You can learn more about Fabiola at https://www.fabiolamendezmusic.com/ |
December 17th, 2021
Episode 2 - Kim Chin-Gibbons
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Kim Chin-Gibbons is a singer, songwriter and guitarist from Western Massachusetts. In addition to writing her own solo music, sher performs in a multitude of acts: the prog-rock group Black Water Flood, folk group Zoki, and her newest group, eight-piece prog rock band Sunset Mission. In this episode, she plays and instrumental rendition of Auld Lang Syne that focuses in on the melody: how can we twist, pull, and push one melody line to make a song feel unique?
You can learn more about Kim at www.kim-chin-gibbons.com/ |
December 17th, 2021
Episode 1 - Mike Lachance
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Mike Lachance is a singer and songwriter from Massachusetts. In addition to writing his own solo music, he performs as bassist and vocalist for the Boston-based folk/rock group The Great Molasses Flood. Inspired by acts like Guster and Joe Pugg, Mike writes acoustic songs with heartfelt lyrics, exploring love, loss. and everything in between. For our first installment of A Strange Arrangement, I asked Mike how he would he would prepare Auld Lang Syne if asked to perform it. In this episode, Mike takes the basic arrangement of the song to a more mournful place that beckons the question: What does this farewell song mean in the time of COVID-19?
You can find more about Mike's band, The Great Molasses Flood, at https://greatmolassesflood.com/home |
