Tag Archives: Piano music

Screen Shot 2023-04-26 at 6.46.04 pm

Fiona Joy Hawkins and Rebecca Daniel Release Album ‘To The Wind’

Fiona Joy Hawkins and Rebecca Daniel Present New Album
To The Wind

When Fiona and Rebecca flew to the USA from Australia, it was to tour and to record with producer Cookie Marenco. Fiona and Rebecca played to full houses in a series of iconic venues that would add a lustre to any artist resume: Carnegie Hall, Dizzys Jazz Club, The Moss Performing Arts Centre, The Hollywood Piano and topped by a live concert at Echoes for NPR.

With the tour done they moved to the studio. Producer, Cookie Marenco, known for her trademarked pristine recordings to DSD256, was ecstatic with the results. The now critically acclaimed “Heavenly Voices” is a testament to their virtuosity. The time on stage meant their skills were honed to a knife edge and “Heavenly Voices” became a heavenly recording.

‘Rather than stop recording, this duo decided to try something new – compose music on the spot and reimagine songs they had recorded in the past. They brought freshness to older pieces with piano, violin and voices. All recorded in one take, live in the studio,’ says Cookie.

“Heavenly Voices” was released globally in March 2021 with great success. With the world still shut down, Fiona, Rebecca and Cookie agreed that those stunning ‘one take’ sessions should be released. They have become the follow up – “To The Wind”.

Rebecca:
‘Personally, ‘The Void’ and ‘Blue Dream’ are two of my favourites to play. ‘My Hands Were Busy’ was initially going to be on the Lightness of Dark album, but we ran out of time. The song then became an integral part of the concerts, due to its moving and emotional connection with the audience. This collection brings a true “live” experience, presenting a concert performance with a studio quality sound. No tricks, just two musicians in a studio, recreating highlights from their concerts.’

About

Fiona Joy Hawkins is a classically trained pianist and singer inspired by Mendelssohn, Chopin and her Celtic heritage. Her song ‘Grace’ was on a GRAMMY ® winning album in 2014. In 2016, she won two categories of the Independent Music Awards. In Australia, she was an ARIA Finalist & MusicOZ Winner.

Rebecca Daniel studied violin and chamber music with Emanuel Hurwitz and the Amadeus String Quartet at The Royal Academy of Music. She was invited to move to Australia to join The Australian Chamber Orchestra, and was Orchestra Leader for Les Misérables, Phantom of the Opera, The Sound of Music & Beauty and the Beast. She has recorded and performed with John Denver, Bread, James Galway and the Chieftains, Will Ackerman, Shirley Bassey, Barbra Streisand, Men at Work and INXS.

Both virtuosos, together Hawkins and Daniel make for an incomparable team.

‘To The Wind’ is OUT NOW on Blue Coast Records
Available on SACD and Digital

Streaming

 Connect with Fiona and Rebecca:

linktreelogo

CoverWEBHeavenly Voices

Fiona Joy Hawkins and Rebecca Daniel Present Heavenly Voices

Australian musicians Fiona Joy Hawkins and Rebecca Daniel team up once again to create a remarkable acoustic new age album titled Heavenly Voices. Recorded and mixed by Grammy-nominated producer Cookie Marenco and released under Marenco’s own label Blue Coast Records, Heavenly Voices sounds close and present. The entirety of the album was performed live in Blue Coast’s Extended Sound Environment (E.S.E.) and recorded straight to DSD256 (1). Expert recording techniques combined with the high definition audio bring to life every rich keystroke and string vibration. Heavenly Voices is a testament to what great musicianship and audio engineering can accomplish.

2 Portrait LOD Rebecca and Fiona

Pianist Fiona Joy Hawkins has won several awards including Album of the Year by Zone Music Rewards, Best New Age Album by Independent Music Rewards, and her song “Grace” was featured on a Grammy Award winning album in 2014 (2). Violinist Rebecca Daniel has performed around the world. The Australian Chamber Orchestra in Sydney invited her to join their ranks where she held duties as the Orchestra Leader for several of their productions (3). Both virtuoso in their own right, together Hawkins and Daniel make for an incomparable team.

Checkout the video

HV Video

Hawkins’ pensive piano playing lays the foundation for Daniel’s expressive violin work. Listeners will become immersed in the evocative melodies and harmonies, where the piano and violin have their own emotions that they wish to convey. Tracks such as “Sugar Plum Ghost,” “The Lightness of Dark,” and the title song “Heavenly Voices” also feature Hawkins’ and Daniel’s voices, adding a greater ethereal element. Though every part was performed live, much of the album sounds other-worldly, as though Hawkins and Daniel are pulling back the curtain to reveal a glimpse into the afterlife. In a way, Heavenly Voices is a lament. It evokes feelings of grief and loss, though not without a ray of hope, as if the very impermanence that causes our mourning is also the source of beauty upon which we gaze.

Onstage DUO

Expertly crafted in composition, performance, and production, Heavenly Voices is an album that fans of contemporary classical music will not want to miss. We’re sure once you hear the music this will be a MUST HAVE!

This is how the piano and violin were meant to sound!

Listen

spotify_2015

Connect

https://www.facebook.com/TheMezcaltones/

Screen Shot 2020-07-13 at 4.56.34 pm

Fiona Joy Hawkins New Album Moving Through Worlds

Fiona Joy Hawkin’s Presents New Album and Video
Moving Through Worlds

As the Australian Bushfires crept toward her rural home, Fiona Joy Hawkins turned to her Stuart & Sons piano to do what has always bought her solace: writing music. After crafting 4 songs that she later marketed as fundraisers for firefighters and wildlife rescue – and which are included on this album – she began final preparations on Moving Through Worlds.

Although she began recording and conceptualizing the album three years ago, one could say it is an album 44-years in the making. One of the more classical-crossover pieces is “For the Roses” which a 12-year-old Fiona wrote for her Grandmother’s funeral.

Fiona says, “I believe music is a gift from another world, from ancestors of the past communicating to inspire and give us hope. Music is a universal language that connects us without prejudice, it speaks to us all equally, yet is received with great variation. My wish is to open a few more hearts to the power of music. Now more than ever we need the connection to our past to find the pathway to our future.”

The 14-track album was beautifully produced by Will Ackerman (Founder Windham Hill Records) and Tom Eaton. As per her usual style, Fiona defies genre by bringing Classical, Contemporary Piano, and New Age instrumentals together to create something uniquely her own, and reflective of all the worlds that she has moved through so elegantly while this powerful music gathered in her soul.

Fiona Joy Hawkins is an Australian Pianist, Composer and Singer who enjoys and regularly tours China and the USA and is also a member of the Contemporary instrumental group FLOW (Fiona Joy, Lawrence Blatt, Jeff Oster, Will Ackerman). Fiona Joy Hawkins is best known for her romantic, melodic songs and lush arrangements. A prolific composer, she has always been interested in creating music that evokes images, emotions and tells stories.

Fiona Joy is known for ‘Grace’, her song on a Grammy Winning album in 2014 and for her extensive catalogue produced by Will Ackerman (Founder Windham Hill Records). In 2016 she won two categories of the Independent Music Awards at the Lincoln Centre in New York and has been awarded Best Piano Album by International Radio (ZMR Awards) for several of her albums. Nominated alongside Pete Seeger for Best LIVE Performance Album in the Independent Music Awards,Fiona was an ARIA Finalist in Australia in 2008. Fiona works with Australian piano maker Stuart and Sons, and has several albums with Blue Coast Records (content partners with Sony Music for hi-resolution releases).

Watch the Video (Premiered on Scenstr) for Calling County Clare here

In the case of Fiona Joy Hawkins’ latest collection Moving Through Worlds, there are glorious exceptions where it’s not hyperbole in any sense and fits today, tomorrow and for all…let’s just say I can’t imagine there ever being a time in the future when listening to this deeply personal, socially conscious, stylistically expansive 14-track musical narrative would grip me any less than it does today, in the midst of world gone mad 2020. – Jonathan Widran, JWVibe

“Moving Through Worlds” is OUT NOW (July 7) via Little Hartley Music. 

Streaming

ALL OTHER DSP’s Click Here

Connect with Fiona Joy:



For further information, Files,  CD and Interview Requests please contact:
Marshall Cullen at Foghorn Media
0416 143 030
marshall@foghornrecords.net

 

Fiona Joy Hawkins

Fiona Joy Hawkins’ New Single and Video

Fiona Joy Hawkin’s Presents New Single and Video
 Calling County Clare

Music for this moment… A piano journey that finds joy. Calling County Clare is the first track on Fiona Joy’s upcoming album Moving Through Worlds due out 7 July. Calling County Clare is a Celtic dance and joyful celebration featuring piano with Irish Whistle, guitars, accordion and rhythm. In the video Fiona is standing on the shores of Town Beach at Port Macquarie and calling to the shores of Ireland. There’s some really beautiful drone footage of the Irish coast throughout the video shot specifically for the clip.

Fiona Joy Hawkins is an Australian Pianist, Composer and Singer who enjoys and regularly tours China and the USA and is also a member of the Contemporary instrumental group FLOW (Fiona Joy, Lawrence Blatt, Jeff Oster, Will Ackerman). Fiona Joy Hawkins is best known for her romantic, melodic songs and lush arrangements. A prolific composer, she has always been interested in creating music that evokes images, emotions and tells stories.

Fiona Joy is known for ‘Grace’, her song on a Grammy Winning album in 2014 and for her extensive catalogue produced by Will Ackerman (Founder Windham Hill Records). In 2016 she won two categories of the Independent Music Awards at the Lincoln Centre in New York and has been awarded Best Piano Album by International Radio (ZMR Awards) for several of her albums. Nominated alongside Pete Seeger for Best LIVE Performance Album in the Independent Music Awards,Fiona was an ARIA Finalist in Australia in 2008. Fiona works with Australian piano maker Stuart and Sons, and has several albums with Blue Coast Records (content partners with Sony Music for hi-resolution releases).

Watch the Video (Premiered last week on Scenstr) for Calling County Clare here

Blue Coast owner/producer Cookie Marenco says, “Fiona’s melodic solo piano and masterful performances are the perfect music to debut the kind of clarity double DSD audio brings to the home listener,”

“One of the brightest lights in contemporary instrumental music, Fiona Joy is poised to move into stardom,” -Will Ackerman, Founder of Windham Hill Records

“Calling County Clare” is OUT NOW via FOGHORN/MGM. 

Streaming “Calling County Clare”
Stream on Spotify
Stream on Bandcamp
Stream on Apple Music

Connect with Fiona Joy:



For further information, Files, CD and Interview Requests please contact:
Marshall Cullen at Foghorn Media
0416 143 030
marshall@foghornrecords.net

Fiona Joy - Story of Ghosts - Cover

Fiona Joy (Hawkins) – New Album – Story of Ghosts

Fiona Joy (Hawkins) – New Album – Story of Ghosts

Having won many awards for her two previous solo piano albums, Fiona is destined to do the same with Story of Ghosts.

Fiona’s third solo piano album takes her fans on her journey of the past year of her life as she deals with a harrowing year in 2017 and makes no attempts to sugarcoat the emotional’s. The year included many friends and family members getting seriously sick, dying or going insane.!!

She bares it all over the course of these mostly grey-toned melancholy and vulnerable pieces, that draw on her classical background and impressionistic modern yet melodic composition.
‘There is a little madness in the music I write, it only pops out of the calmness momentarily, but enough to know that there is uncertainty in everything we hear, feel and experience. It’s much more classical and very connected to my roots” says Fiona .

“There’s a lot of emotion in it, that part was challenging. But when I get feedback from my fans that I’m touching their lives, and in some way making a difference, that makes it worthwhile.”
She uses the piano to weave interconnected tales with similar motifs – She opens the album with the uplifting and just whimsical enough “Song for Dunnie,” which she wrote for the funeral of Annette (Dunnie) Crossley, one of her best friends and business partner in her company Little Hartley Music. The lushly flowing piece represents a life full of vibrant brightness, good humour and joy.
“Story of Angels” moody hypnosis that leads to attempts to dance and then sudden dream-dashing stops into “Story of Ghosts” the deepest tale is told by the third story song. The contemplative “Story of Insanity” which alternates shards of light and night in a romp of anger tempered by gentle understanding. “Contemplating (Solo) which find Fiona deep in thought, seeking answers in the high notes as tension builds. “Blue Dream” whose high and low dynamics indicate mood swings that shift on a dime during crises. “The White Light” perhaps a place between worlds where high and low notes battle it out for our mortal hearts.
Fiona ‘s  choice to work with producer Cookie Marenco reflects Fiona’s appreciation for high quality audio. “Even CD quality is unsatisfying when you’ve heard DSD or SACD, especially when played on a high-end system” says Fiona.
Fans of FLOW, the recently launched hit new age group featuring Fiona, Will Ackerman, Lawrence Blatt and Jeff Oster, will recognise the closing track “Before the Light” as the beautifully rendered foundation of “Arrival,” the opening track on FLOW’s self-titled debut. In the FLOW version, the darker edges of the piece get subsumed into a lighter hearted grooving vibe. Here it’s allowed to flourish in the shadows, exploring the heavy mysteries of life’s pain that occur before the healing – and wondering along the way if it will ever come.

Fiona recalls asking Ackerman once “What would happen if I ever got happy? Would the creativity dry up?” – since she’s built her artistry and fan base on her incredible musical embrace of sadness.
“No, Fiona, you will just start writing happier music.” He said, surprised at the answer “Maybe down the road, I’ll make a few happy songs”.

But for now, especially on Story of Ghosts we can enjoy the musical beauty and grace that she shares while working through the obstacles to make peace with the sorrow life has thrown her.

 

Connect with :

Website

Facebook

Rachel LaFond

Rachel LaFond – New Album – Encounters of the Beautiful Kind

Rachel LaFond – New Album – Encounters of the Beautiful Kind

 

Come along on a powerful musical journey inspired by Rachel LaFond’s experience, of being a stranger in a new country. New Zealand to be precise where she now calls home.

This beautiful solo Piano Album was recorded in high resolution audio at her home and mastered by the golden ears of Mike Bloemendahl.

The music explores universal human experiences: feelings of loneliness, worries about not being good enough, and the evolution we undergo as existing friendships change or fade while new connections spring to life.

This journey culminates in the realisation that as we bear each other up and connect with one another, we make the world a more beautiful place for all of us.

Rachel LaFond

About Rachel LaFond:

Rachel LaFond is an American composer and pianist now residing in New Zealand who has been steeped in musicality her entire life. Her appreciation of the piano began when she was a toddler as her mother (a piano teacher) played with a young Rachel on her lap. She began formal lessons at age five, and by the time Rachel was eleven, she began teaching lessons herself. She lived in Vienna and studied piano performance there as a teenager, then returned home to major in piano at the University of Washington. After university, she continued to teach and perform professionally, but for years Rachel didn’t realise she had a talent for writing music hidden inside herself until David.

David she had met just weeks ago. Rachel couldn’t stop thinking about him on one rainy autumn afternoon, everything changed. Gazing out the window of her teaching studio, Distraction transformed into inspiration, and by the end of that evening she had finished her first original piece, Loving in the Rain. This first piece stood alone for a while as Rachel got swept up in life’s adventures: Rachel and David got married, quit their jobs, and embarked on a year of long-term travel around the world.

Rachel’s music is inspired by, and engages with, the full depth of human experience. Whether she’s capturing the heady wooziness of falling in love or responding to the chest-cracking pain of Barcelonans who suffered in the terror attack of summer 2017, her pieces are unflinching and compel the listener to lean into the feeling of the song for just a moment more. Rachel’s drive to bring beauty, light, and kindness to dark places through her music lends a striking sense of purpose to her creative work. And she’s just getting started.

Park photo 2

All recorded in Auckland, New Zealand in Rachel’s home.

Mastering by Mike Bloemendahl

Connect with Rachel LaFond

Website1_Fotor_Fotor

facebook-f-logo-transparent-facebook-f-22

spotify_2015

Loren Evarts (USA)

Loren Evarts- Newest album Home Again

Loren Evarts newest album Home Again

Loren Evarts-031_preview

Home Again is the 6th original album, of this amazing contemporary pianist. It revisits several pieces previously recorded by Loren in the 1980’s, and eight new ones. It was produced by Grammy award winner Will Ackerman (Windham Hill Records) at his Imaginary Road studio in West River valley, Windham County, Vermont and was engineered by Tom Eaton.

Featuring Grammy-winning artists and Grammy-nominated Artists Eugene Friesen on cello (Paul Winter, Trio  Globo), Rhonda Larson on many types of flutes (Paul Winter, Ventus) and Jeff Haynes on percussion (Pat Metheny, Pete Seeger), bassist Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel and King Crimson).

Besides Piano, Loren Evarts has been known to perform by singing, trombone, hammered dulcimer and organ.

Loren has performed professionally in the Connecticut area of USA in a variety of musical situations for over 40 years. He has been grateful to have been involved in performances with artists such as Dave Weckl (Chick Corea), Gerry Neiwood (Chuck  Mangione), Everett Silver (Chuck Mangione), Mike Davis (Rolling Stones), Danny Stiles (Bill Watrous), Fred Vigdor (Average White Band), Rhonda Larson (Paul Winter Consort).

Loren Evarts-028_preview

About Loren Evarts:

I was in first grade when I heard a fellow classmate play the piano, and I said, “Hey, I want to do that, too.” Of course, I had no idea that you had to practice, which made me think twice about my choice. But due to frequent beatings from my mom, I persisted, Partially kidding!

I started playing classical piano at age 7, but like a lot of kids, I started listening to pop radio in middle school. Fortunately, I was allowed to stick in a few popular tunes in my lessons along with the serious music. In high school I started to get influenced by jazz. My biggest influences were bands like Chicago and Tower of Power, Elton John, James  Taylor, Carole King, Jazz singer Al  Jarreau, and jazz pianists like Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Liz Story.

What can a crowd expect at a live show? 

My music is probably best described as a mix of new age, jazz, classical and world. It’s piano-based but sometimes I will add a percussionist, bassist or woodwind player for concerts.

What are your future plans for 2018/2019?

Well, I am an American so, like many of my fellow citizens, I am looking to survive until 2020(enough on politics). But otherwise, At my stage of the game, I just want to put out a good product, and I hope to write some new material now that my newest album has been released. And that means I have to sit down at the piano and start! I am always gratified when people enjoy my music. I no longer crave being a big star. It’s nice being in this place.

Spotify Link:

spotify_2015

Facebook Link:

facebook-f-logo-transparent-facebook-f-22

Website Link:

Website1_Fotor_Fotor

Joel Leffler (AUS)

Joel Leffler – New EP – Strip Me Bare

Joel Leffler – New EP – Strip Me Bare

Following on from his ‘Run With The Wolves’  EP and tour Joel Leffler has released a stunning new EP “Strip Me Bare”, produced by long-time collaborator and  ARIA  winning Producer  Peter  Holz  (Peking  Duk, Gang of Youths).

Screen Shot 2018-05-02 at 3.10.28 PM (2)

The first single  “In  My  Sights” from the new EP is the song which features a guest vocal from  Melissa  Jane. Joel and Melissa shared a house together and have worked together on numerous recordings.  This poppy anthemic tune hits home and you can’t help but sing and dance along to this great party song. 

30653092_1696975857048154_7435371014021709824_n

Melissa:  ‘Joel  and  I have always written and played together. Our voices blend  & complement each other really well. I think this track is just one of those feel-good anthems. The  chorus  is  super  catchy,  you’ve been warned.’

Joel:  ‘I had this melody stuck in my head for weeks. I would wake up, drive to work  & go to sleep all with the chorus sitting on the tip of my tongue. I have never been so haunted by a melodic idea as much as  I have on “In  My  Sights”. 

Pete  Holz:  ‘We’ve taken off from where the  1st  EP left off and gone a little more into the synth and drum machine world  - but still kept a lot of guitar and groove in there!  A  pleasure  having  Melissa  Jade  feature  too  -  such  a  great  singer  and  really  bought  another  higher  level of the  track.’

Joel will be performing live at The  Brass Monkey and other Sydney venues for the new release of Strip Me Bare.

‘Strip Me Bare’ EP Launch! 10 of May 7pm @ Brass Monkey, Cronulla Joel Leffler [Band] With Special Guest ‘Tyler Joseph’2.1

Spotify Link

spotify_2015

Facebook Link

facebook-f-logo-transparent-facebook-f-22

Website Link

Website1_Fotor_Fotor