As I was going through camera footage from my solo sessions at Chalet Studio I found this wonderful little moment. This is me noodling on some melodies and themes from the score of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy (music composed by Howard Shore). I've long loved the music from these films and in this moment I'm using the simplicity and grandeur of the 'Hobbit' theme, the 'Gondorian' theme, and what my mother refers to as the 'overcoming adversity' theme to try and put me in the right headspace to record one of my originals called 'Circle of Influence' that will be appearing on the upcoming record. The tone of 'Circle of Influence' makes me think of scenic vistas and snow capped mountains (it reminds me of Banff). The gorgeous shots of New Zealand that are featured throughout the LOTR trilogy have in my mind become intrinsically linked with its music, so this seemed like a natural bridge to get me to the headspace I wanted to be in while keeping the freshness of the original tune I was about to record intact. (I did this same thing later in the session using Star Trek melodies to get me in the mood for another tune). This particular video wasn't recorded by the microphones (so it won't be appearing on the album), what you're hearing is the camera audio which is shockingly good all things considered (all credit goes to the beautiful piano I'm playing!). I hope you enjoy it!
