Click on each title to hear the MP3 sound bite
download individual tracks or the complete album from iTunes
The Making of... "The Birds of Selenia"
Originally released in 1988, "The Birds of Selenia" was, at the time, a musical hybrid. The combination of several musical genres gives it that "just produced last week" quality of timelessness that belies its true age.
I can't have any discussion about the making of "The Birds of Selenia" without mentioning how I was honored by the Helena Film Society's Grant to Artist Program with a grant to produce the album. Having an organization willing to "write a check" for thecreation of my first album was a profound endorsement that had a powerfully positive effect on my career as a composer and a performer.
When we decided to reissue "The Birds of Selenia" there were two big questions that had to be answered. Was the quality of the music and production values equal to something I might produce today? And was the album dated stylistically? We were very surprised to hear a timelessness that belies the actual age of the album and a sonic and musical style relevant to today. After we reviewed the original master tapes, we decided not to include two songs (for technical reasons) from the original release. We added three recently composed pieces:
(Transacid Express, Irish Spring and Summer's End) that underscored the original "Birds feel" and insured the over-all musical integrity of this new version of the album.
I really appreciate the work Gwen did on the new cover. The birds flying over the "Isle of Selenia" all in abstract just the way I always envisioned it.
Of Technical Interest...
"Birds" was a product of the times. Utilizing what was then "the cutting edge" Emulator 2+ digital sampling keyboard for most of the instrumental sounds. (I became an E-MU dealer in 1986.) The real-time keyboard performances (no midi) were recorded directly to analog (2 inch tape) multi track recorder running at 30 inches per second from a Neotek Series One console. Then mixed to a Nachamichi pcm digital/beta recorder and finally transferred to two analog master tapes.
Of course the soprano and alto saxophones are real. The flute on Irish Spring is also real. To underscore how far music technology has come since "Birds" was first released in 1988, the trumpet on Transacid Express and the lead guitar on Summer's End were performed using a Yamaha WX5 "wind controller."
If you have any other questions about the making of "The Birds of Selenia" please feel free to email me at: bobbaran@gatheringwave.com.
download from iTunes