Author: Astrakan Project

Musicians' Diary

What is left behind during the creative process

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When we released last month our “Within The Circle” tracks, I had done a front cover (>here<) with original art work, but didn’t get into editing something more visual with short descriptions from the songs – but it is done now!

I would never pretend to compete with any professional designer, but the more I get to work on the visual I want to add to our music, the more I enjoy the process. It is still a challenge for me to try to find something clear and easy to read, but also different from what I have already done. Here it is, it will now automatically download with the songs:

Within the Circle - astrakan project

 

The little philosophical story relates to the colour circle-like that are from a picture I took from the process of painting the full cover, which means… it no longer exists. It is somewhere, somewhere under this painting. It is part of it, it was necessary to make the face emerge from a flow of colour. But it only exists as part of Her now.

Tethys - Within the Circle
What is left behind the creative process…

Maybe every creative process is about this sacrifice, about choosing one version over another one. When we choose to play a formally a-capella version of a song on stage using loops and oriental instruments, we also kind of leave the old version we heard and learned from the elders behind. But it is still there, part of something new that would have never existed without it.

We so far don’t know if we’ll ever release it as “physical” edition, or maybe as a bonus? In the meantime anyway you can enjoy the music here (and download it for free by just entering your e-mail address) : 

§ Simone

Musicians' Diary

Bringing music to Life

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A new album is emerging within us. We know the process will take some time, months at least. But we are now opened to the possibility of creating a new album.

Another aspect of our music. Another us. The first album was like an “emergency” call. We needed to release it, we needed to bring something to the real world. We needed it because it was blocking us from creating new sounds & songs, from imagining new ambiances for live shows. Then we made a lot of choices, shortened some improvisation parts, to make it fit (obviously just a little bit 🙂 ) into some standard formats & length. It is thus very tense, full, packed maybe too…

Home music studio - Astrakan Project - diy album again
The Music studio is already working at full potential!

We knew moving to Greece would bring that sense of “emergency to create” again, because, well… because being in a totally new environment is very powerful, everything is new, everything requests attention, and probably stimulates unknown parts of our musician brains… We just didn’t expect to be already digging into it!

We already have a feeling about how our next album will be… More of us. More freedom. More wildness. More fearless creativity… And it’s really joyful to be back into that feeling again!

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Musicians' Diary

How to fit a music studio and an art studio in a car? Final part

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Hi all… here is a quick up-date about how we are doing… We arrived Wednesday night at our destination in Northern Greece, near Kavala, our last days in Istanbul were quite busy, and the biggest part of our challenge “how to fit a music studio and an art studio in a car” is achieved, although, we have to confess, we had to leave some album boxes at some friends in Istanbul…

how to fit a music studio and an art studio in a car
Ok… IN and ON a car…

Because, well, there was no way we could fit everything INSIDE… and even so, we were lucky all the officials we meet on our way, including the ones at the border were really nice and did not ask to unload everything to get it checked!

Thank you all for your lovely support, for sharing and for ordering our album last week, it still decreased the volume we had to carry!

And now? Well, we are excited about finishing to settle and get back to real stuff, well, to music!

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Musicians' Diary, Sound & Video

(afternoon) Breton music in Istanbul

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[youtube http://youtu.be/sBEr41uL6s8]

Breton 100% fest-noz music with an Hanter-dro by Yann with Richard Laniepce, a musician from Istanbul with some origins in Brittany too (you might check his band Kolektif Istanbul)

Hanter-dro is a dance from Vannes area, similar to our “7 Hills” although our version isn’t meant to be danced.

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Musicians' Diary

3 Reasons to get our album *now*!

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[ Advertising & promo section starts now! ]

  1. You can get it now for 10€ or 13.50$ or £8.35 Price will increase once we get to Greece, mainly because of international shipping costs being much higher there. You know it now!
  2. Isn’t it Christmas time already? Avoid the last minute rush, get this perfect gift now, we can send it to any person you would like to treat, and add a special note from your behalf, just specify it when you order. Bonus: it will be wrapped in a nice colour paper!
  3. You’ll be part of our challenge “how to fit a music studio + an art studio in a car” (see pictures here!)

Only one link to buy & share: 

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Please help us and share around within your own community using the network little links bellow, the deadline is next Monday, December the 2nd 2013 !  

Musicians' Diary

How to fit a music studio AND an art studio in a car?

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Dear followers, if you’re used to read our diary between the lines, we have given a couple of clues already about our next destination.

It’s official! [first breaking new will start here]

We are moving very soon to Northern Greece, next to Kavala. This is the amazing place we are moving to :

Aegean see, inspiring place, Athrion, Nea Peramos, Greece
Athrion, Nea Peramos, Greece

This is one of the view that will inspire our upcoming projects and sounds, and actually we already composed/discussed/wrote many things from that particular place (if you want to share the feeling with us, you can check here on Google maps). Expect loads of pictures from Greece in next months!

So, how do we fit an art studio + a music studio above the usual staff in a car? Well… we don’t really know yet!

art and music studio in a car - special discound on astrakan project album
How to fit an art studio and a music studio in a car?

Because yes, we are moving with our car, Kavala is only about 450 km from Istanbul.

But for sure, it will help if we can sell some extra albums before we leave, it would kind of help…

Astrakan Project - celtic fusion world music - albums
Yes, we still have some of them…

So, [2nd breaking new starts here] we’ll offer until next Monday (December the 2nd, 2013) a special & ridiculously cheap price for our album, shipping included: 10.00€ which is about 13.50$ – just a little click on the link bellow and you’ll land on our on-line shop…

Help us with this campaign, share around with your friends and family, within your communities, by any way you prefer (over-use the social links bellow!) ! Only valid for one week! Then, we’ll come back to that later, we’ll have anyway to raise prices anyway, international shipping is much more expensive from Greece than from Turkey.

Musicians' Diary

What if music was important?

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We take it for granted sometimes that “music is everywhere”, and therefore, music would be something that “doesn’t really matter”.
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This is the message we received yesterday from Menachem Vinegrad, Radio Upper Galilee in Israel, together with his playlist for his  world music program:
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“Our radio station can certainly be heard over the border in Lebanon, and possibly on a clear day in Western Syria. The Syrian civil war drags on, and one exiled Syrian musician has said that there is no more music in Syria. What a dreadful shame. Meanwhile, Israel is treating hundreds of Syrian wounded, in it’s northern hospitals. I hope they hear our radio station.
Our motto is “Peace Through Good Music”
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It brought tears to my eyes and still does. Can we step back for a short moment and realise how lucky we are? How lucky we are to just be able to reach any kind of music we want, for free in most of cases, just with a quick click on a link? Do we realise what it means to have the right and the freedom to basically play and compose any kind of music we want and share it around? Let’s not be in need to be missing it to realise about how much it is part of our lives.
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I wish, I wish with all my heart that very soon music could be heard again in Syria, if music is back then maybe, yes maybe it would be  little sign of some peace coming back to the region.
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Menachem in Radio Upper Galilee
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§ Simone
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Musicians' Diary

What is so special about World Music?

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Where sometimes investigating for new venues could seem boring, it isn’t… it always leads to nice discoveries, we musicians realise that venues owners may share the same love and deep respect for music.

Since we’ll play in Belgium next June, I was investigating in Northern Germany and Denmark for venues specialized in world music when I found out about this amazing place: http://www.klaverfabrikkenlive.dk/en/. And I’m so glad there’s an English version!

First, I discovered that Klaver Fabrikken is the first Co2-neutral venue in the world! Can you imagine? The process of turning the place into an environmental friendly place is roughly explained on their website, and it is fascinating.

solar panel roof system co2 free venue
The solar roof panel system… 

And this is what they tell us about their feeling regarding world music:

 ” A world concert is something special. It opens our eyes for new cultures and the music is the language that makes it easier to understand other cultures. The joy of music is universal, and world music is a living proof.”

 

Deep respect for music, deep respect for environment… It is said in a wonderful way, and of course we totally share this vision of music & culture. 

Of course I did send them a proposal, I don’t know if we will have a chance to play there, but knowing that such wonderful projects exist already made our day!

§ Simone

Astrakan world music album on band camp

Musicians' Diary

How to survive as a musician in the 21th century visual world?

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This is the time we realise music isn’t enough. Whatever a musician’s music quality, in our visual era, it isn’t enough. Music, and even good music, is everywhere. But either it has to get really loud either wrapped in great colours before it catches ones ear.

[youtube http://youtu.be/W8r-tXRLazs]

This is the time we realise to get our music heard, we first need to work and be highly creative on the visual side, either on video making, either on press pics, or on album covers. We knew it somehow.

How to get the right image for our music? A big question we’re trying to answer our way. Any ideas or comment on the way we are doing?

§ Simone

 

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