New release of songs “Quilted”
It all started with a teacher who introduced me to the music of Roger Quilter. I fell in love with his music and the lyrics that I find so dramatic, passionate, full of energy, unstructured but still on the verge of making sense as straight Pop songs. The direct melodies and the Shakespeare lyrics create such a strong tension and dynamic.
The classical singing technique and interpretation of his songs is the way they were written and how we know his music. However my instinct told me there is another way to interpret these songs. The melodies and phrases are longer and different than to what we are normally used to In modern pop and the chord progress much more complex, but with a slight twist and modification I thought it might work to turn the songs into pop and hopefully present this music treasure for a new audience.
I originally choose 10 songs that I intended to remake and got started. This was back in 1997 where I first attempted to produce and remake his music. About 10 years later back in Stockholm I reopened the Quilter project and I laid the foundation (vocals and keys) of the songs and production. I reached out to the world renowned soprano saxophone player Anders Paulsson to join. His brilliant playing brings a classic soulfulness to the productions and helps with structure and the release and creation of tension.
The project once again fell asleep and woke up a couple of years ago when I remodeled the sounds tweaked the productions again. I felt that I hit the right button and that there’s still something unique about this music maybe worth sharing. A friend of mine Peter Moore who is an audio engineer encouraged and convinced me to release the songs and offered his help with the mix. In the mixing process he has added his touch with synths and sounds and tons of his favorite reverbs to the arrangements and his wife Erika lend her voice to the project and made some beautiful choirs.
The name “Quilted” seemed suitable since it in a playful manner incorporates “Quilters “family name while explaining the process. Considering that some lyrics are over 400 years old and the music 100 years old and my productions have been ongoing for over 20years the result is finally quilted together, hence the name “Quilted”.
I have a hard time explaining what kind of genre this music really is. For me that’s not important, but I find that the music don’t wear you out, which is unusual for me. There’s a quality of the compositions that there’s always something happening musically and if not, well then there’s a dynamic tension being created or released making you listen.
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