Lunta ja Pasunoita

Some snow falling outside. It seems that the Winter is finally here. Snow reflects light better than the dark and bare ground of late Autumn. So there are brighter days ahead.

PasunaPelimannit had a rehearsal in Sumiainen. Some work ahead - gigs coming...

Juha H.

Frozen. (Juha H.) 

Hoikkaset ja Kagemusha

Ensemble Hoikkaset had a gig in Kannonkoski, Finland. Folk music with nicely relaxed feeling.

I watched a DVD-movie - Kagemusha The Shadow Warrior directed by Akira Kurosawa. I've seen it once before, some 25 years ago. I'm still impressed. Violence of war was not shown so explicitly as in today's movies but with postures and facial expressions of soldiers watching the killings. Though there was blood and other ugly things of military glory NOT everything was shown . Ellipses are sometimes a good way to go. And the beginning of the film, the first scene - some six minutes, camera not moving. Only three men talking politics...

Juha H.

Jah

Somehow there was no storm, merely a windy day. That's good and ok. It's fine and very well that the Weather Man/Woman was a bit wrong.

Anyways I stayed at home and worked feverishly with my music and some forthcoming gigs... Usva-aamun pienilaulu (= Little Song of a Foggy Morning) is readily mixed. And I wrote, recorded and mixed my composition Terhakka (=Vigorous)... Music for recorder, Yamaha Wx5&VL70 and Roland Handsonic...

Juha H.

Perrjantai

Storm's brewing in the Western sky. That's what the Weather Man said... So the night is going to be stormy.

Before the storm I had the time to record the rest of the instruments for my composition Usva-aamun pieni laulu (=Little song of a foggy morning). And what is best - Sini had the time to sing it. So nicely and wonderfully she did it! Thank you very much.

After a couple of days of listening to the forthcoming Machine Men CD The Shadow Gallery it sounds and feels better and better... What will happen, how is it going to sound after the Mastering Process? It must be awesome...

Juha H.

Ilta etenee

Sini is rigth now listening to Machine Men and their forthcoming CD The Shadow Gallery.

Life is hectic. And that's the way I like it.

Earlier today I began recording my composition Usva-aamun pieni laulu (= Little song of a foggy morning). Some tracks are ready, some more to come. I try to create peaceful music though life's so hectic...

Now it's my time for listening to Machine Men, too.

Juha H.

Machine Men and The Shadow Gallery

Early this morning Machine Men finished mixing their forthcoming CD The Shadow Gallery. It'll be released in January 2007 through Century Media Records. That's the official preamble...

Just listened First time as a whole the pre-mastered musical material of The Shadow Gallery . It sounds already very good - beautiful and awesome at the same time. The songs are quite fast and when compared to Elegies CD the music "feels" both heavier and more ballad like at the same time. ( Maybe it's the acoustic guitars and mandolin!?)

I myself mixed my composition V.H. and bounced it to Disk.

Juha H.

V.H.

All evening I mixed my composition V.H. Now it sounds quite ok. Some other evening I'll add the final sonic refinements. Tonight I have to let my ears rest. Fatigue - both physical and of hearing - has stepped in. When you're already very tired you may create lousy musical choices. And you have to back-step them the next day. Luckily all this - returning to an earlier stage of mixing process - is relatively easy with software like Pro Tools.

Added some photos here.

Juha H.

Sadetta

Rainy day. Though not yet snow. Cold and somber days ahead.

Kukkiva maa had a gig in Jyvaskyla. Everything went quite fine.

Now it's time for sauna.

Juha H.

This song I wrote today - for the wonder of poetry. ( Juha H.) 

Winter is getting near - frozen in the afternoon. (Juha H.) 

Touhu jatkuu

Maija P. visited. We rehearsed for the next performance of Kukkiva maa (=Blossoming Fields). Everything went fine - so we are quite ready for the real thing.

I've been preparing posters and media texts for the coming Folk Music Happening Eeroviisut. I believe that most of the paper work is done. Some nice work - music, music - ahead.

YLE (=Finish Broadcasting Company) is sending a German documentary about Bollywood. There a guy just said: "For a long time I wondered what keeps India together - is it poverty? Then I realised it's the Film Music." Bollywood is a VERY BIG phenomena and music within its perimeters is very important. - I've always liked Classical Indian music - both the more improvised Northern and the more structured and composed Southern "styles"... Modern Indian POP music is melodically so tempting.

Juha H.

After sunrise. (Juha H.) 

Touhua piisaa

Many small things happened.

Finally I had the time to mix and bounce to disk my composition Epaonnen soturin onnen paiva (= Unlucky Soldier's Lucky Day). All in all during the last few days it must have taken me some 14-15 hours to make it to come alive... Quite often it's hard to get the bass guitar to sound the way I like. But this time it was soo easy. I just played and recorded it. And that was that. So nice... But this time to create a good sounding flute was a bit hard to do . The playing and recording of it was easy and "naturel"... Maybe the miking was somehow wrong? Should I use another microphone next time...?

I got some MIDI-files. There is "brewing" a project of old time dance music. I'm going to record and mix some singing, some accordion etc.

Sini bought herself a new car - KIA from South-Korea. It's black like Heavy Metal.

Juha H.

Fallen. (Juha H.) 

Outside now. (Juha H.) 

Frank Zappa

Right now I'm listening to Frank Zappa and his LP-record Ship Arriving too Late to Save a Drowning Witch. One of his Master-Pieces. Actually all evening and into the night I've been listening and wondering about his music.

Suddenly jumped up - the Valley girl! It's like pop music.

Earlier this evening I listened to Zappa's LPs (!!) The Man from Utopia and Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention. (The latter is the European version which differs from the American one in that there are more instrumental compositions...) I already knew that The prevention... was/is musically very meaningful and remarkable. But my memory failed on the Utopia.... I was quite surprised to find it so musically wonderful. Dangerous Kitchen sounds so much like Improvisages.

Zappa's Ship arriving too Late to Save a Drowning Witch is stil one of my favourites. Utterly and extremely interesting Music. Thank you very much.

Juha H.

Tavallista

Now it's enough - for today I've worked enough, some twelve hours. That's not too much yet and you can safely say that something has quite likely been done within so many hours. In the beginning I wrote a composition. That's how it starts ordinarily. Then I recorded most percussions, keyboards and some wx5s according to the written and pre-meditated plan. Epaonnen soturin onnen paiva (= Unlucky Soldier's Lucky Day) began taking its form and shape. Hopefully tomorrow I can record the rest of my thougths that I imagined today... And some things may chance. That's the way it goes - some chances come and occur. That's inevitable. When you write and imagine something very fast it really is possible that when you consider the whole for a longer period of time you may get some better ideas... And of course there is going to be some improvisations. That's the essence of life, of being alive - for to improvise it is to live!

Improvisation is for me the way life is, the way life is all about - the essence and the most interesting part of it... Very much of what happens every day and through the years can be in some extend planned and quessed in advance. But every day there are some major or minor things that reform the pre-meditated plan of your life. It can be good - it can be bad...

Juha H.

Kalassa

Just a few minutes ago Jopo visited to get his wellingtons and fishing equipment. He was planning to go for some night-fishing...

All evening I just sat in my studio and mixed - and mixed. Music creation is a very time consuming habit.

Juha H.

Ilta etenee

Sini is listening to Dream Theater. Wonderful and so skilfully executed music.

I've worked with my own music - recorded a composition of mine. Roland Handsonic is an excelent instrument.

J-V sent a text-message from the recording studio. Machine Men have worked 18 hours a day for the whole week. According to the message everything's gone fine. After a couple of weeks I'll be able to hear the music - the version that is then not yet mastered. Though it'll of course sound quite finished.

Juha H.

Machine Men studiossa

Machine Men are back in studio. They had a few week's break in their recording schedule because they were supposed to go for a European tour. But unfortunately the tour got canceled. Now they continue their recording of The Shadow Gallery CD. For a couple of weeks they are going to work long, long days. J-V is going to do much of the engineering. He's good with the Pro Tools.

Juha H.

Autumn in the little harbour. (Juha H.) 

Kuutamo

Full Moon - though most of the time clouds hide it.

Added some photos here.

Juha H.

Lauantai

Already in the morning PasunaPelimannit had a gig. We played Finish Folk Music for the most - much of it was composed by local mucisians, like Eero Lahti, Veikko Liimatainen and Matti Hintikka. But we also played music of Konsta Jylha. There were some 400 people in attendance.

I finally had the time to mix and bounce to disk my musical creation Kaunis koukku (=Nice Hook).

Yesterday Jopo moved away. Hanna-Maaria wanted as soon as possible to move in his former room. So for the most of the day we've been working on it. Now the room is quite ok. Tomorrow Hanna-Maaria can move her things and all into the new room.

Ari Liimatainen visited. We talked of future things to come... What kind of crazy and odd things are we going to create later this Autumn? Time will tell.

Juha H.

While trekkin' today. (Juha H.) 

Torstai

Rainy day. But it's kinda nice. I like the sound of rain on the roof.

Recorded flute and some more wx5s to my composition Kaunis koukku (=Nice Hook). So exciting it is to try to invent musically meaningful statements while the Hard Disks are just whirring away. Quite often I improvise two or three solos on top of each other. Maybe this kind of concept is sort of reminiscence of the Swing Era. Now the whole is almost ready - mixed and all...

Juha H.

Keskiviikko

Some rain all day long. Soon the leaves are going to fall in larger quantities.

Recorded a couple of lines of wx5s to my composition Kaunis koukku (=Nice Hook). And I also rough-mixed the whole. Tomorrow I'll add flute and some improvising...

Juha H.

Tiistai

Days go by so fast. Every morning turns into evening so quickly. And within those evading moments in between I try to do something more or less reasonable - at least something meaningful for me...

I recorded some tracks for my composition Kaunis koukku (= Nice Hook) - Strat, bass guitar and a couple of lines of Handsonic. Tomorrow, hopefully, I can add some woodwinds...

Now it's time to read some pages written by Charles Stross. I'm going Accelerando.

Juha H.

Maanantai

These are some of the news agencies I read pretty much on the daily basis - CNN, BBC, Helsingin sanomat, Al-Jazeera, Haaretz, Guardian, The Times , Fox News ... Maybe I should read something from Sout America and Far East, too.

Music today - I played some 3-4 hours flute, wrote some notes plus fooled around with guitar and piano. So nothing much.

Autumn is here - drizzle all day long.

Juha H.

Sunnuntai

Peaceful Sunday. So it was a good day to mix some music. Now Rauhaisa varjo (= Peaceful Shadow) is ready and bounced to disk. Roland Handsonic is still a really wonderful instrument.

Pirates of the Caribbean on TV. I've seen it once. Maybe I'll watch it this time, too.

Juha H.