SKU: FP.FBS03

ISBN 9790570500192.

Sarah Baker is Vocal Composer in Residence at Education Music Services, an ABRSM examiner and a well known composer of songs and musicals for primary schools and massed-choral events.

All this experience has come together in the creation of this album of piano pieces, inspired by growing up in the Chiltern Hills. Suitable for players of around grade 4-5 standard, her evocative sound pieces describe a crash-landing hot air balloon, garden invading cows and a even a snake in a pond!

Air Balloon!: One vivid memory I have as a child is of the day that a hot air balloon passed over our house and made an emergency landing on the road in front! The sound of the gas being blown into the balloon to try to keep it high enough to pass the house sounded so loud and intimidating, and then there was the bustle of the neighbours as we all went out into the street to watch. It was both terrifying and exhilarating to watch the balloon float past and then land so near by.

Buzzards Circling: There is something so calming and restful about watching birds of prey circling in the thermal currents of a summer sky. Growing up in the Chilterns gave me plenty of opportunity to watch buzzards and red kites. This piano solo captures the beauty of their flight as they glide so effortlessly through the air.

There’s A Cow In The Garden Eating The Flowers: Inspired by the memory of seeing an unexpected cow in the garden! This surreal image is captured in a quirky waltz, as I portray both the absurdity of the moment and the sense of wonder I felt as a child, looking out of the window and seeing the cow walking round and eating the flowers. The final phrase articulates my longing: ‘I wish it would come again’.

Watching The World Go By: A short, reflective piece, remembering what it was like to have time to just sit and watch the world go by from my bedroom window.

Autumn Skies: A miniature about the beauty of Autumn skies and the poignant sense of loss for a summer gone. Friends I was fortunate to have several children of my own age living close by. We seemed to be forever making dens, playing out in the street and generally enjoying each other’s company. This piece reflects that sense of well-being.

Snake In The Pond: One hot summer I was astonished and scared to see a grass snake cooling off in our garden pond! I watched, both horrified and fascinated, as it rose up from the depths and then disappeared again. Here I portray the sense of the hazy summer afternoon as I peacefully watched the tiny movements of fish in the pond, contrasted with the fear and excitement of seeing the snake appear.

Morning Commute: I recollect many mornings stuck in traffic as my Dad took me to school on his way to work. There is one main road out of the village where I grew up, and that got more and more congested the closer we got to the town. We may not have chatted a lot, but it was always good to be together with my Dad, lost in our own thoughts.

The Witch’s Cottage: My siblings and I had a fascination with a small cottage nearby. It was set back from the road in a dark part of the woods and we called it 'the witch's cottage’. Every time we passed, I imagined I heard the distant cackle of the witch and wished I could catch a glimpse of her.

These pieces are written to complement my other collection, Night Time Impressions, which also draw on childhood recollections, particularly of the woods behind the house where I grew up. - Sarah Baker 2023.

SKU: BT.BOE7935

ISBN 9783954562008. German.

Known professionally as Hauschka, composer Volker Bertelmann has catapulted himself into the top tier of instrumental composers. This is proven, not least, by the Oscar nomination which he received for his soundtrack to the2016 film Lion.

In his latest album A Different Forest, released on 8 February 2019 at Sony Classical, Hauschka takes the forest as a contrast to the urban life. The names of the pieces, such as 'Talking To My Father',testify equally that those natural experiences are metaphorical of the important things in life.

For this album Hauschka renounces entirely his prepared Piano. The existential questions which he musically poses, however,donot lose their intensity, but rather, without the alienation by electronic elements, gain urgency.

In addition to the 13 LP tracks, this songbook for Piano also contains three exclusive arrangements of previouslyunreleased songs: 'Collecting Stones', 'Loosing Directions' and 'Misty Day'.

Titels zoals Talking To My Father tonen dat deze ervaringen in de natuur metaforen zijn voor belangrijke gebeurtenissen in het leven. Dit songbook voor piano bevat, naast de 13 nummers van de LP, eneneens 3 exclusieve bewerkingen van tot nu onuitgebrachte nummers: Collecting Stones, Losing Directions and Misty Day.

Volker Bertelmann alias Hauschka hat sich mittlerweile in die oberste Riege der Instrumentalkomponisten katapultiert. Dies beweist nicht zuletzt die Oscar-Nominierung, die er für seinen Soundtrack zum Film Lion“ erhielt. In seinem neusten Album A Different Forest“ am 08. Februar 2019 bei Sony Classical erschienen nimmt er sich dem Wald als Kontrastraum zum städtischen Leben an. Titelnamen wie Talking To My Father bezeugen gleichermaßen, dass jene Naturerfahrungen metaphorisch für die wichtigen Dinge des Lebens stehen.
Für dieses Album verzichtet Hauschka gänzlich auf sein präpariertes Klavier. Die existentiellen Fragen, denen er sich musikalisch stellt, verlieren hierdurch aber nicht an Intensität, sondern gewinnen ohne die Verfremdung durch elektronische Elemente vielmehr an Dringlichkeit.
Dieses Songbook für Klavier enthält neben den 13 Titeln der LP drei exklusive Arrangements bisher unveröffentlichter Songs: Collecting Stones, Losing Directions und Misty Day.

Volker Bertelmann, également connu sous le nom de Hauschka, s'est retrouvé au premier rang des compositieurs instrumentaux : ceci a été confirmé par sa nomination aux Oscars pour la bande-originale du film Lion. Dans son dernier album « A Different Forest », sorti le 8 février 2019, la forêt fait usage de contaste avec la vie urbaine.

Des titres tels que Talking to My Father déclarent de la même façon que ces expériences au contact de la nature sont des métaphores de moments importants dans la vie. En plus des 13 pistes du vinyl 33 trous, ce recueil de chansons pour piano comprend en exclusivité trois arrangements de titres inédits : Collecting Stones, Losing Directions et Misty Day.

Volker Bertelmann aka Hauschka si è portato a un livello superiore dei compositori strumentali. Questo non è subito evidente nella colonna sonora del film Lion, per cui ha ricevuto una candidatura all' Oscar, ma nel suo ultimo album A Different Forest - uscito l'8 febbraio 2019 - in cui utilizza l'immagine della foresta come contrasto con la vita urbana.

Titoli come Talking to My Father testimoniano allo stesso modo che tutte quelle esperienze della natura sono metafore di eventi importanti della vita. Questo canzoniere per pianoforte contiene, oltre ai 13 brani dell'LP, tre arrangiamenti esculisivi di canzoni inedite: Collecting Stones, Losing Directions e Misty Day.