seeds — a collection of songs I love to sing
This is about a collection of songs I love to sing and why I'm publishing them online. Also feel free to skip right to the music.
The story
Although I was trained professionally in music, I never pursued it as a career—partly because of not feeling able to compete in a crowded 'market', and partly because I'm content to explore my other interests.
My focus was piano, which I had studied for about 12 years before university. After coming to the guitar later in life, first noodling (one note at a time), then singing a bit (with some chords), then in front of other people (unimaginable in the past), I feel like I've come full circle and am on the cusp of once again relating to music in a way that fills me with vitality and curiosity, and as my performance instincts relax and open up more, I feel compelled to share them, with you.
Similar to Tiny concert for a friend, the following set of songs are published with imperfections to reduce stress around 'mistakes', as it's more about capturing the process in performing them. I tried to record casually, which to me means: minimal preparation, not much editing, mostly do a few takes and choose the strongest one, maybe add a layer of harmony, perhaps some percussion by playing the chair I'm sitting on… It was a documenting process, mostly for myself, but I learned a lot about dealing with nerves, and stabilizing the self while playing. I'm surprised to feel comfortable with certain guitar chords that were previously indecipherable, and also to be able to project my voice more; it feels like being in a space of enjoying the sound my body produces, and creating with what's abundantly around me.
Sharing these songs online takes the place of a concert I would have liked to organize, as it wasn't possible before leaving Berlin. They're mostly in Brazilian Portuguese with a bit of German, Egyptian Arabic, and English somewhere in there. I hope at least one of them brings light to your heart and provides a glimpse of why music is so meaningful to me.
The music
- Caetano Veloso: O Leãozinho
- Joana Queiroz: Partida
- Paulinho Da Viola: Samba Do Amor
- Ingo Armbruster: Der Wald
- Amr Diab: Bayen Habeit
- Joyce Moreno: Tardes Cariocas / See You In Rio
- Paulo Borges: Cabecinha No Ombro
- Djavan: Correnteza
- Caetano Veloso: Trem Das Cores
- Joyce Moreno: Juparanã
- some seeds take a while
Get the audio version for free on Bandcamp.