Author: macha

Singer and pianist Katrina Gupalo has just released a new album of music by Latvia’s legendary composer Imants Kalnins “7 skumjas zvaigznes” (7 Sad Stars). It offers 15 popular songs, including three songs featuring English-language lyrics by Ojars Eriks Kalnins. Along with the album, Gupalo is also releasing a new video filmed in the United States based on the single “Take It or Leave It”.

“This album is very unique because it’s a concentration of energy and love that expresses itself through its musical and visual presentation. Presently all live concerts are cancelled for the time being and in order to produce this album, I sold my childhood home in Dikli, Latvia. And I don’t regret it for a moment because I am convinced this music will bring joy, inspiration, and love during this difficult pandemic period,” Katrina Gupalo revealed. “We created the album together with people who are very close and loved by me. For example, the cover illustration was done by my mother Vera Pauksa. The music video was created by my best friend, choreographer Gabija Birina, despite the fact that we live on different continents. Ojars Eriks Kalnins adds a totally new dimension to the album since he not only introduced me to Imants Kalnins’ songs in English, but managed to produce a new lyric for one song with great inspiration and lightning speed (“Butterfly’s Satiny Scent”). I am so grateful to everyone on my very talented team who helped bring this little wonder to life in such a short time!”

The album features a new single and music video based on the song “Take It or Leave It”, which was written 15 years ago but now appears in a totally new musical arrangement. The music video was filmed in Naples Roller Hockey, Veterans Community Park, Florida, USA. It is the joint effort of choreographer and dancer Gabija Birina and dancer Daniel White and tells a tale of unsettled human nature and the complex choices we must make in our lives. In their expressive performance, the dancers reveal a story about love and intimate relations, which are woven through by tenderness, hatred, pain and hope. The video was created by artists Akorede Amole (USA) and Vadim Glushkov (Latvia.)

“It’s been extremely gratifying to work with such a gifted artist as Katrina. She has breathed new life into Imants Kalnins’ legendary songs. She not only speaks to a new generation of fans, but is bringing Imants’ music to a broader international audience. “Take It or Leave It” is song about life choices we all face in a time of change. We may look to others for help, but ultimately we must each decide for ourselves,” said lyricist Ojars Eriks Kalnins.

Katrina Gupalo’s album “7 skumjas zvaigznes” was recorded live, with voice and piano as they would be heard in concert, without any post-production technical corrections.

The album includes both popular and lesser known – or even forgotten – Imants Kalnins’ compositions. For example, “Let’s Sing of the Rivers” is here with its original English lyrics, although most Latvians will recognize it from its popular Latvian-language translation “Ar straumēm uz jūru”.

Katrina Gupalo performs all the compositions with her own voice and piano arrangements, but with great respect for the composers’ original versions. The album was recorded with Super HD quality and was produced by Aleksandr Volk using his unique “Wolk Recording Technologies” microphones, which are sensitive enough to pick up the most subtle electro-magnetic vibrations. The recordings were made on a Yamaha C6 concert piano at the Music and drama space “OratoriO” and piano salon @152 in Riga. The album design was rendered by Anastasija Prola and Ilya Kolesnik, printed by “Skaistāk” and includes photos by Aleksandra Volk.

The annual Christmas project “Snowman Express” featuring singers Ralfs Eilands and Kristīne Prauliņa will not take place this year, but Very Cool People have decided not to leave the audience without their beloved “Snowman Express” and offer a new Christmas single – “The Little Drummer Boy”.

The song, recorded in both Latvian and English, is based on the story of a little poor drummer, whose only gift for Christmas is a drum solo, which the group’s “little drummer”, Andris Buikis, delivers to all listeners at the end of the song. Elvijs Grafcovs together with Māris Jēkabsons has created new arrangements for the old holiday song, dressing “The Little Drummer Boy” in a very nice drum’n’bass stylistic suit. The new single was recorded in several studios in Latvia. The song was mixed at the “Ciemupe Productions” and mastered by Erls Holders in the studio “HDQTRZ” in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

The recording was made by: Kristīne Prauliņa – vocal; Ralfs Eilands – vocal; Elvijs Grafcovs – guitar;  Māris Jēkabsons – tenor sax;  Kristaps Lubovs – bariton sax;  Laura Rozenberga – trombone;  Oskars Ozoliņš – Trumpet;  Māris Vitkus – keyboards;  Jānis Olekšs – bass;  Andris Buiķis – drums.

The video of the new single was filmed in several very colorful places in Latvia, from a small family shop in Stende to the city center of Riga and even the Pinki sleeping area. The music video was directed by Rimants Iržikevičs, who has made his debut in this genre.

Artwork made by Mārtiņš Legzdiņš and the music can be heard in all the streaming services and the best radio stations.

2020 was not only a year of the pandemic, but also a year of jubilee of two Masters of classical music – Frederic Chopin and Ludwig van Beethoven. Even though this year has been very difficult for classical music and it was not possible to hold many concerts dedicated to the jubilee of Chopin and Beethoven, musicians all over the world, including Andrejs Osokins, are looking for creative ways to reach their audience and let the music survive. The project dedicated to the jubilee of Frederic Chopin came to life in cooperation with the Embassy of Poland in Latvia. It is a musical greeting that, by traveling virtually around the world, will reach the music lovers of the outstanding Polish composer and remind them of unchanging values.

“It is especially important that in a virtual environment, where there are so many pieces of frightful and tragic news, we also give people beauty, spirituality and harmony through art and music. This project will share the hope that we will endure. Music and art are the values that will give us strength. Chopin’s music contains everything I consider so crucial – the unrestrained temperament, subtlety, spirituality, spontaneity and tenderness, wit, danceability and elegance. One can listen to his melodies for evermore! So much time has passed, but human nature and soul remain unchanged,” says pianist Andrejs Osokins.

“The past 2020 has been a difficult one for all of us. We have to face many challenges and we are denied so many opportunities. However, in spite of everything, I would like to emphasize that this year has once again revealed the depths of creativity that are lying dormant inside of us. Thanks to the project “Musical Greeting”, which has been prepared in collaboration with the outstanding Latvian pianist Andrejs Osokins, we, despite the pandemic, are able to reach you with the help of Frederic Chopin’s music. May it bring you a ray of hope! Today, just as many years ago, when this music raised the spirits of Poles longing for freedom, let it inspire and herald a better future, even if we have to wait a while for it,” chargé d’affaires of the Republic of Poland, Consul Małgorzata Hejduk-Gromek.

The musical greeting includes two masterpieces by Frederic Chopin – “Nocturne op.9 No.2” and “Etude op. 25 No.12”. The video was created by Kaspars Kambars and Ainars Krauklis, recorded by sound director Aleksandrs Volks. It was recorded on Yamaha concert piano at the Piano salon @152 in Riga.

On December 21, when many gurus and spiritual leaders predict the beginning of the new world, Taurud comes out with a new song ‘I’m Changing’. Listen to it on Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, and other platforms.

The title ‘I’m Changing’ undoubtedly sets the expectation of what the song is about. Taurud describes: So here we are at the end of 2020. What’s ahead of us is still unknown. However, one thing we all feel and know for sure is that things are changing rapidly. Universal energy and information always have been flowing through me, and I feel it so vividly that we are approaching something incredible no matter how hard it might be to believe it right at this moment. It’s time to get rid of everything that no longer serves us, it’s time to take the wheel and steer towards the light with confidence. This song is a mantra that will help us along the way.

Every one of us goes through many different experiences and we always look back and reflect on them by the end of the year. It’s a special moment. You can feel a bit of that festive vibe in the song. It’s a collaboration with Tom Stott from Manchester band LUX. (Listen to their latest single here) Tom Stott plays keyboards on all Taurud’s tracks and they are going to continue working on records together.

We can expect more inspiring music from Taurud next year as he promises some surprises as well. His journey began in August with the song ‘I Keep Loving You’ was followed by ‘I’ve Been Carrying My Past Lives With Me’ in November and, ‘I’m Changing’ is the one to wrap this year up. The song is about what I feel is the most important right now – our growth – says the artist himself.

From home to home: this could be a motto of a project, created in 2020 by a Latvian composer and pianist Edgars Cīrulis, which resulted in an altruistic collaboration of many people and a composition called «silence». The composition for voice and orchestra, composed by Edgars last spring upon his return to his Latvian home, is based on a poem by Aleksandra Line. The music is recorded by 19 professional musicians from Latvia, Romania, Slovenia, Sweden and Denmark, sound production done by Toms Lisments, video art — by Patrīcija Vilsone. This way the composer has united different worlds which couldn’t have normally met, especially in 2020.

«Last spring I returned to the safety of my childhood home, and I had time. I’ve finished this new piece for voice and orchestra and was very excited to premiere it, but then last year changed things and I had no idea when I’d be able to hear it played by real people instead of my notation software. So I reached out to my friends and colleagues and invited them to lend their voice to this piece — to my great surprise, so many of them decided to participate in the project. This way, we could unite different parts of the world in one place», — says Edgars Cīrulis about his composition.

This piece was specially composed for a Latvian singer Beāte Zviedre — as Edgars says, the voice that speaks volumes. Cīrulis has collaborated with Beāte many times and greatly appreciates her musical potential. This also isn’t the first collaboration with Patrīcija Vilsone, a young Latvian artist and student of Latvian Academy of Art, which has dedicated many months to original illustrations which evolved into the music video.

The lyrics are written by a poet Aleksandra Line who explains her choice of the topic: ««silence» isn’t necessarily the time after everything has ended — quite often that’s a moment before. Last year has been too silent for all of us, especially the music industry, but it’s really important to remember that silence isn’t boring or empty at all — it can contain lots of colorful things. For example, a precious word or sound can be born in silence».

«silence» was created by:

Composition — Edgars Cīrulis

Lyrics — Aleksandra Line

Art and video — Patrīcija Vilsone

Mix and master — Toms Lisments

And recorded by:

Voice — Beāte Zviedre (Latvia)
Piano — Edgars Cīrulis (Latvia)
Violins — Dita Celitāne (Latvia), Ivars Brīnums (Latvia)

Viola — Marius Ungureanu (Romania), Ivars Brīnums (Latvia)

Cello — Sarma Gabrēna (Latvia)

Double bass — Jānis Rubiks (Latvia)

Flute — Alise Golovacka (Latvia), Rūta Sīpola (Latvia)

Oboe — Eva Vrtacnik (Slovenia)

Clarinets — Anna Gāgane (Latvia), Ciprian Dancu (Romania)

Bassoon — Katrīne Kuģe (Latvia)

Bass clarinet — Kristaps Lubovs (Latvia)

Trumpet — Dāvis Sedols (Latvia)

French horn — Erik Sandberg (Sweden)

Trombones — Krists Liepa (Latvia), Jonas Lindh (Denmark)

Percussion — Ēriks Miezis (Latvia)

 

In celebration of their song’s Find My Way 50k streaming mark on Spotify within a less than a month, DJ’s and music producers [Ex] da Bass and REZarin are inviting all interesents to participate in a Find My Way remix contest. The highest rated remix, as well as 5 other best remixes will be released by the Day Dose Of House label.

“Find My Way is dedicated to the “challenging times”, in other words – the life stage period in 2020 when the world has lost it’s control and we’re all on our own. For the representatives of the entertainment and music industries, this year will always be remembered as very tough, when every person had to “find his way”. We found our way by creating a joint song which we’re submitting for your evaluation. While our mouths and noses are blocked, listen to our track. Our ears are still free and they’re what the song was made for. Besides, if you’ll also dance, then it will be a great combination, because physical activities strenghten health and eases the mind”, as been said by [Ex] da Bass and REZarin.

On Friday, 15th of January, Latvian indie-pop band Blue Jean Serenade release their newest song Your Heart.

The single is the very first song published after the debut album that was presented back in March 2020, just before the pandemic hit Latvia. The new single marks a new chapter in the band’s musical life.

The song Your Heart is about the feelings each of us hold inside. The feelings of love. The lead singer Jānis Niedra explains: “We are scared of revealing our love in fear of getting hurt and not receiving it back. We are afraid to ruin the relationships we already have, so we don’t go all in. Then we play out the confession of the other person and how it would feel. How wonderful it would be. This idea warms the heart, even if it is not meant to be. In the end, we mostly regret the things we haven’t done.”

The song first came to be in a song-writing camp held in Riga. It was further developed in the creative camp Blue Jean Serenade had in the July 2020 in the countryside of Latvia. The record is made together with the Latvian producer and musician Aleksis Luriņš. Mix and master is made by Andis Ansons.

Blue Jean Serenade dates back to 2016 when the lead singer Janis and the drummer Tomass started playing together. The team has changed over the years, and now they play and write as a five-person band. In 2016 the band released an EP in English called All My Friends Care About Celebrities, Well, I Don’t and then turned to writing in their native language as well. The band has held concerts all around the country and participated in Reeperbahn Festival 2018 in Hamburg. In March 2020 Blue Jean Serenade released their debut album Prieks, no kura neizaug. Laiks, kuru neaizmirst. (Latvian for for Happiness that can’t be outgrown. Time that can’t be forgotten.)

After three weeks in Radio SWH competition for new artists called “Priekšnams” “Taurud” is the 3rd best.

“I’ve Been Carrying My Past Lives With Me” is about becoming free from our past. “Taurud” said: The only thing ever messing with our heads is either our memories we are collecting like souvenirs or projections of the future. One is programming how we react and deal with things, and the other causes discomfort, cos we’re afraid of all the unknown. The song is about breaking free, being in the moment. It’s like a friendly tap on the shoulder saying You got this, it’s all in our head, and I am convinced that anyone can overcome anything. Be inspired.

This year has started with new aspirations. The musician is hoping to be in Latvia for spring to present his double single – Latvian and English version. Like many artists, I am not making any income during this time, but I am still looking forward to getting ready for April to go home and bring everyone present – new music. My birthday is in April. This time around I’d want to offer a song in Latvian as well, to get closer to my Latvian listeners. Fingers crossed, we will see each other soon, and I will be able to play live. We’re working on some live streams right now: says “Taurud”.

“Taurud” and his team would love to release the album this year, but there is no chance to continue the recording process because the situation is the way it is in the UK. The songwriter is ready to get back to work as soon as he will be allowed. The song for the spring release was recorded early last year and finished remotely. “Taurud” says: Nothing will stop me, man. I’m pushing forward!