danieleng.com

Though summer weather still lingers on well into this September here in Sweden, the summer sale for this year ended together with August. I am planning on having a Christmas sale, and I will publish dates for that in good time.

Other than that, work on the new composition ” Tic Tac Toe” is progressing. Even if it is supposed to be the mid part of a three piece suite featuring two guitarists, it can be performed as a stand-alone piece and it will be available in the web shop as soon as it is finished and edited.

Now in July is the time of sweet summer relaxation. Albeit work on a new composition – named “Tic Tac Toe” and a part of a three piece suite that will feature two guitarists – is started, it will have to wait until after vacation to be completed. If you browse by here on a free summers day: Don’t miss that there is a summer sale throughout August: 20% discount on all compositions and 15% discount on all arrangements!

Have a really, really nice summer!

My first plan was to have the latest composition edited and uploaded to the web shop in April, but many other things got in the way so it took until now to get everything completed. “The Shrouded Moon” is from today available for purchase in the web shop. It is a piece based on Japanese modes and tonality, and though I’m not approved of any Japanese traditional musicians I hope I can transfer the feeling and sound of traditional Japanese music in the Big Band setting.

Now in the time of spring, and Easter holidays, I decided to start composing a new piece on a theme I often come back to: Japanese ghost stories. I am since long fascinated by Japanese ghosts and supernatural creatures and because they most likely will appear – and I assume also will be most powerful – when the full moon is just slightly cloud covered, the new composition’s name is “The Shrouded Moon”. If I’m not mistaken: In Japanese that phenomenon is called “Oborozuki-yo”.

The piece will be written for the traditional Big Band setting 5-4-4-4, and a male vocalist. The reed setting will be two flutes, alto, tenor and baritone, and as it seems from the progression so far the trumpets will play Flügelhorns throughout the piece. The lyrics is written by me, and I hope I can bring the alluring, strangely scaring apperance of a shrouded full moon to a comprehensive allegory of love in vain of an overworldly detached and conceited person.

I expect this new chart to be finished, edited and published here sometime in April.

After the holidays and some digital sheet music administration, there is a new arrangement edited and uploaded in the web shop. It is the wonderful Curtis Mayfield-tune “People Get Ready” that I decided I wanted to arrange for vocalist and Big Band. It is also my first arrangement for a male vocalist.

My arrangement is maybe a little more restless and impatient than the original, but I think that the vision of Mayfield’s lyrics is so poorly heeded today, that I assume I put my own frustration with the state of things today into the musical shape I gave the song.

I put a lot of consideration into the musical solutions and choices in the arrangement, and I really hope that my version of this lovely tune does it right.