10. Under the Skyboat

Clouds whisk past in fluid tapestry, streamers in a parade of white. In their enthusiasm they often blot out your vision completely.

It’s a bit challenging to fill your lungs with air, but never-mind that: it’s exhilarating up here, and you’re still rising — bit-by-bit, as the platform fades into view — almost to the level of the skydock now.

[ Direct your jetpack towards the levitating boat, with a tap of your headset ] —

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Comfortably nestled into the sky gondola’s forward compartment, you witness a moment’s stillness as silver sails expand from your vessel in upward curves on both sides. They’re magnificent, and they sparkle in the sun as the boat pushes off, launched toward horizons unknown.

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// Side B //

Thank you for tuning in — that was “the skydock”, composed today exclusively for you. Dear listeners! Your presence here means the world to me: you are, zero exaggeration, accompanying me on a trip through many brand-new things — including making this LiveJournal™+ and speaking about “the work” (see issues #8 and #9).

In the spirit of learning in tandem with you, I tried a bit of multi-track production for today’s soundtrack. This was the ~7th-ever time I fired up an audio workstation, midi controller in tow, to peck out notes from among a mind-bogglingly limitless panoply of sound libraries . . . it’s daunting!

A group of us here in Berlin have started Minicollider, an event series where everyone’s welcome to show something they’re working on, or thinking about: art, music, their dissertation on meerkat aerodynamics, whatever! Basically show-and-tell for adults.

I’d love to open up the floor here also, to check out what you’re making too. Whether you’re a stranger, an old friend, and/or a fellow newsletter writer, kindly reply to this email (private between us) or leave a comment (visible to all visitors) with what you’re ruminating and manifesting — even if it’s just vibes 🪄

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Today’s soundtrack nods to a joyful discovery this week. Jake Silverman, a.k.a. _buttonmasher, arranged and performed a jazz-standards album using Super Nintendo game patches. Not sure if these tracks speak to anyone who didn’t play the titles referenced, because to me they’re catnip.

Here’s the album queued up to “My Favorite Things”, lovingly capturing the pathos of the original Secret of Mana (whose music is transcendental). I also love “Infant Eyes” arranged with Chrono Trigger’s haunting instrumentation. (The latter song is based on “Secret of the Forest”, a soundtrack that once prompted me, transfixed, to walk from game console to piano to try a transcription, my feet barely reaching the pedals.)

Hear “My Favorite Things” as sung by Julie Andrews, and Wayne Shorter’s original “Infant Eyes” off of Speak No Evil.

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Our walk along Japanese video-game music — and its indelible influence on my own composing — pit-stops us at Catedral Santa María, whence music postcard 04 is delivered.

Your turn . . . 💛🥁