Some time ago I was home alone and grabbed the 1/2 size guitar that’s been lurking in the corner. I mean, I really do not play strings – but guitar and piano are great tools for composing!
So this happened. đ
My second ever own song!
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Lockdown and what followed…
A Video!
Hei there! I made a video couple a weeks ago, the very first one of mine, ever!
It all started from a PĂ€ivĂ€n Keitto main chef’s and his wife’s jam, of which the composers themselves weren’t even sure if it’s gonna be an actual song when they sent it to us other musicians to listen to. But I had had the idea of the lyrics brewing quite some time already, so when the template was introduced it didn’t take long for me to add the lyrics, vocals, and some funky horns. Voila! But then things got interesting; I was chatting with our main chef Miikkali and mentioned that actually I had done all the recordings dressed in a bathrobe (those who know me know that I can and, when possible, am happy to spend days in a row in a bathrobe), and since the first line of the song goes, freely translated: “War and panic first thing in the morning even before I’ve gotten coffee in my mug”… and somehow the idea of the video of me walking around San Francisco was pulled out.
Idea was so crazy that I thought it must work. I had few days off, a husband who has taken a few classes in movie making (once again: thank you!), a bathrobe and a City where it’s insanely easy to take interesting shots.
I think it came out pretty fine. What do You think?
New teacher, sax-gym and PÀivÀn Keitto still going strong
Time for an update. It makes two posts this year, what an over-achiever I’ve become!
So the year has gone pretty much by working, practicing and living life. A little traveling, lot of good times with friends and family and most importantly, LOT of good music has been published. As I’m writing this I counted 42 songs published in Youtube. 42! You might wanna check some of them out, too, playlist HERE.
I also got together with a new teacher. He’s good. He gave me so much homework that I wouldn’t necessary need another lesson before next summer or so, but I’ll try to get back together again soon. So one of the things he made me do, something which I have been neglecting all this time, is to play scales, throughout the whole range of the horn, fast. I’ve replaced my earlier scale warmup with this practice, and good gods, after pulling the full on practice I feel like I’ve been doing full workout in the gym! I tried to add the practice to tenor playing too, but my hands started to ache so much that I decided to do it with alto alone for now. No need to break myself.
So yeah, life and music is still good, hopefully next year will see me finally climbing over some barriers in my playing and some development. Keep practicing!
Trans-Atlantic collaboration: PÀivÀn Keitto!
2017 and already February, time for an update!
2016 – I’m happy it’s over. Enough said.
This year have started with some interesting collaborations with my beloved musician friends from country of origin. The first collaboration PĂ€ivĂ€n Keitto – translates Soup Of The Day – is based on the musician, composer, lyricist and sound engineer Miikkali Leppihalme’s songs. All the work takes place online: each of the partaking musicians have recording ability at home, so everyone has quite free hands and are pretty much in charge of their own instrument, while Miikkali has the final say-so about the final cut and mixup of each song. I’ve been including all my little curiosity instruments as well as put my tenor in work! Files are sent back and forth and discussion about the songs takes place online, often in real time and in those little windows in time when our waken realities collide. And boy are we productive! Already several songs are published online, and collaboration has been very enjoyable and shit-ton of fun!
Nuff said. Let the music do rest of the talking! đ
Flute coming along
Yeah, well… what did I say about bringing work home?
Just kidding! Didn’t buy myself a piccolo (yet), but my coworker loaned me his backup flute so I can get my embouchure built. And playing this little cutie really throws my chops in place like nobody’s business! On top of that, I am having SO much fun with it – or what would you say it is, playing Iron Man and Smoke On The Water with piccolo flute? đ
Where did 2015 go?
Hei! Wow, it’s been a long time since I last posted! Maybe time to update a little?
Since 2014 I’ve gotten myself couple new instruments. Tenor sax was long yearned and awaited addition to my collection of axes! First, in last autumn, I rented one for a while, but when I was informed about a lightly used but very well kept Cannonball, stone series, I just couldn’t let it slip from my hands. Big boy for sure, both in weight and sound, and I am still kind of on my way to finding the best possible ergonomics with it. Regardless, we already have so much fun together!
Then I went and got myself a flute. Mm, yes, a flute! Truth be told I’ve really enjoyed the sound of flute ever since I was a kid, and after mentioning that and few other excuses to get into flute my co-worker was more than happy to hook me up with one. Couple of months into practice and after some serious frustration as well as feeling myself dumb and dumber, now I’ve finally gotten a little hunch of the embouchure… and maybe one of these days I’m able to play some music with that, too!
The good side of practicing all these new instruments is that my dear ol’ alto sax feels comfortingly familiar, almost easy in times.
Yeah, working in a music store specialized in wind instruments and orchestra string instruments can be a bit… well, don’t we all know how hard it sometimes can be NOT to bring work home? đ
After session some Red Clay
I was doing little recording for my friend’s piece, and after we got that done I asked him if he could record me playing with couple of Hal Leonard’s play-along tracks. We ended recording Nardis and Red Clay, and even if I do hear vacation taken a toll from my embouchure and tone I think this is not too bad for one take recording. Hope you like it, too! đ
Stolen Moments in March
Recorded in Café International early March. Clicketi click!
LIfe and Music is good đ
New horn and Jordu
After few months going around test playing horns – and upgrading my mouthpiece in the process – I bumped into Yanagisawa horn at the sessions. Now Yanagisawa is a manufacturer I had known about, but for some reason I had kind of overlooked it, thinking that like Selmer’s more professional models these also are out of my range. And there aren’t so many of them around, really, so I never got to try one. But things lead to other things and “Yani” travelled home yesterday… end of search, so far.
I broke it in a little today but am planning taking the horn to Eric’s place so he can check it out before I get really serious with it. I love the horn already, it has a nice touch and rich, warm sound.
Practice-wise Duke Jordan’s Jordu has given me some serious trouble lately. I love it!
Happy Valentine’s day! đ
Kat's Meow 