mister ebby

Inspiration: Michael Nyman – “The Piano”

mister ebby — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:32:35 +0000

I started playing piano quite young, and went through the RIAM classical piano grades. I started to lose interest somewhat at about the age of 15, when I was coming to the end of my grades, and wasn’t really interested in doing a Diploma. But something that reignited my love for playing was the movie “The Piano”, and particularly the beautiful score by Michael Nyman. I saw it on VHS when I was about 13, if I recall correctly, and I remember my parents making a special exception to allow me to watch a movie that was rated 15.

But I was really taken by the soundtrack, and I love the fact that Holly Hunter played the piano parts seen in the movie. Initially, it was the piece “Big My Secret” that I loved and played a lot, but I was won over to all the pieces over time, and they became some of my favourite pieces of music for piano. I spent the rest of my teenage years without going to piano lessons, and discovering pieces of music that I wanted to play, as opposed to just having to learn them for an exam. It’s something that I think was very important in continuing my love for the instrument. That, and discovering artists like Tori Amos and Kate Bush, who used piano in their music in ways that I hadn’t heard before.

The main theme from the piano, “The Heart Asks Pleasure First”, also called “The Sacrifice”, has become one of those standard pieces that piano students all love and learn:

It is a beautiful piece of music, but my favourite is still “Big My Secret”. Some people feel that it’s played too fast in the movie, as the recording by Nyman is much gentler and slower, but I like the flexibility of the piece, and it’s appropriate in the scene, I think:

Holly Hunter in the movie:

(Nyman’s version and some other bits after the cut)

Nyman’s version:

I loved the visuals of the piano on the beach used in the promo shots, and also scenes of the movie itself. Pianos are such beautiful instruments, and they really command your attention in a room. Having one standing proudly on a beach as the waves were coming in was an image that really called to me. You might psychoanalyse it and wonder whether it was about my own waning interest in the instrument at the time, being reignited by a desire to save the piano from the beach and the rising water. Or you might just think that it’s a striking image

happy birthday to me!

mister ebby — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 23:53:29 +0000

It was my birthday today. This is how I looked.

Free Download: Rebel (demo)

mister ebby — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 16:19:20 +0000

I’m never sure about titles. In fact, I often hate titling songs, and sometimes have short nicknames for songs which is how I refer to them in set lists or whatever. That’s definitely the case with this one. It was nearly called “Running For Miles”, but I’m not too sure about that either. I guess I’ll see what I think when the time comes that it is released properly recorded. This song is another really old lyric (one from when I was a teenager) that decided to become a song in the last year.

There’s a section in the demo where I think it’s clear that there’ll be a fuller instrumentation in the song from that point. This is one of those songs where the melody and piano part just came together at the same time. It’s a simple little song and I’ve grown rather fond of it. It’s about someone I know, sort of. But I guess it’s true that any song I write about someone I know, or something I’ve experience, is fictionalised in some way. Most of the elements remain, but altered just enough that I feel more comfortable with them.

Download audio file (rebel.mp3)
Rebel (demo)

Lyrics

Outside the door
she sits and waits
Not wanting to go in at all.

Cropped hair
Leather
Screaming for you

She put your head
under the blade
too many times, too many times

They say she ran away from herself
Too often
But I know,
I know that she’s in training

Running for miles,
She could run
For miles, for her.

Free Download: The Bliss Returns (demo)

mister ebby — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:11:56 +0000

The lyrics for this song were actually written back in 2000 or so – a good decade old at least. I never even thought about putting them to music until maybe the last year or so. I was going through old notebooks and sheets of paper, searching for something I wanted to add into another song.

But even still, no music ever jumped out at me for it, and then the original idea I had for the song is completely different to what it actually has become. I remember sketching out a vague idea for the lyrics, and having this clear idea of how I wanted the subsequent section to sound – which was going to be completely instrumental.

However, this little piano riff snuck onto the keys one day, and I got completely addicted to it. Any time I’d sit down at the piano it was the first thing I’d play. It’s only a simple little riff, but I loved it. And then the lyrics one day just fitted over it – I could hear how they should go. The song has ended up something completely different from what I thought it was going to be, even after I’d previously thought it would never be an actual song.

This demo version may yet change and develop as I add more instruments to the song. I have a few ideas of what I want to add on – but at this stage, who knows what way it’ll change before I have a final proper recording of it that I like.

Download audio file (blissjandemo.mp3)
The Bliss Returns (demo) (right click and save to download)

Lyrics

devoid of anything
nearing regret
my senses blunted
and out of reach

sprawled over, white cotton
caresses softly remind me

of the world
surrounding

whispers of the cityside
sing to the morning sun

as he, inches
across cotton folds
beauty blinding
as I catch the sight

smiling playfully
the warmth arousing
the smile arrives
the cotton moves
the bliss returns

Free Download: Water Phoenix (demo)

mister ebby — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 18:00:26 +0000

I knew what I wanted from this song as I wrote it. I knew what I was writing about, and how the song would be structured, more or less. But I was still surprised by the melody that came from the lyrics. Sometimes I can sit and just hear the melody that is meant to be there when I read the lyrics, other times I have to work on it quite a bit to get something that works. But for this, there were melody ideas there as I was writing the lyrics, so when I sat at the piano, the whole song was waiting for me to find the piano part.

The demo is just an idea of what it’ll be like – I think this is going to be a very richly arranged song when it is finished, and I hope that the person it is about likes the song. It’s quickly become one of my own personal favourites to sing.

Download audio file (phoenix.mp3)
Water Phoenix (demo) (right click and save to download)

Children’s Stories For Adults, Part 5: A Story For Amanda: Greta The Grinder

mister ebby — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:46:52 +0000

Amanda’ coffee grinder is often a cause for concern. So, recently I was in her café one one of those afternoons when the grinder stopped working, and she had to get another. It inspired this addition to my silly children’s stories for adults, which as you are aware, is ~amazing art~

________________________________

Greta the grinder moaned and groaned
For she was far too fond of complaining.
Some days she just stopped,
As some form of silent protesting.

Eventually, however, her protests grew too many
And the people began to grumble,
in need of some fresh coffee,
As their stomachs began to rumble.

So it happened that Greta the grinder
found herself sitting unused
As Garbo the Grinder sat right beside her
Munching and purring all afternoon.

And Greta no longer mumbled and grumbled,
But sat silently on the counter,
And watched the people be re-caffeinated,
Until the garbage man took her.

The end.
______________________________

Part 5 of an irregular series.

Part 1: A Story For Pa

Part 2: A Story For No-One: Frank The Caterpillar

Part 3: A Story For Declan: Wilma The Worm

Part 4: A Story For Lorcan: Lorcan the Chameleon.

Free Download: Is This What They Call Romance? (demo)

mister ebby — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:57:41 +0000

This song grew from wanting to write a really upbeat little pop song. The chorus of it is something that would run around my head after I went swimming. No idea why, but the lyrics were basically sketched out while sitting in a sauna.

The verses were bits and pieces from various places. Little ideas or leftovers from other songs, so in a way the song itself is a bit of a composite of a few different things.

The piano riff sticks in my head, and was the first part of the song to be written, in terms of the music. Once I’d sat with that for a while the rest of the song just fell into place and I had this little boppy little piano pop song that is great fun for me to play.

Download audio file (romance.mp3)
Is This What They Call Romance? (demo) (right-click and save to download)

Little mention in the Drogheda Independent.

mister ebby — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 10:18:25 +0000

Nice little blurb in the local Drogheda paper promoting the gig tonight.

Sessions get under way in Punt Bar

FANTASTIC LINE-UP OF ACTS
Wednesday January 20 2010

THE Purple Sessions kick off 2010 with a great lineup this coming Friday, January 22nd, upstairs in the Punt Bar, Drogheda.

This month the sessions are bringing to Drogheda a fine selection of artists to entertain the purple sessions audience the line up includes

[...]

Mister Ebby is a piano playing songwriter from Galway who writes quirky indie pop songs. He grew up in a very musical household – two of his brothers are musicians too: Kevin Brett, and Izzy Plastic and The Manicans. He has also played together with Anna Lee under the name Husband/Wife, as well as with The Molls and with Jazz singer Alex Hahn.

via Sessions get under way in Punt Bar – News, frontpage – Drogheda-Independent.ie.

Upcoming gig: Drogheda, Jan 22nd

mister ebby — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 22:26:01 +0000

I’ll be playing the Purple Sessions in Drogheda’s The Punt Bar on January 22nd along with Hugh Patrick, Stephen J Smith, Heirs To Nothing and Bobby Noonan. Have a whole bunch of new songs that I’ve not had a chance to play live yet, so when the offer came through my MySpace I thought why not? Where better to try out a few new songs than at nice acoustic sessions night somewhere I don’t live?

If you’re in the general area, it’s a free admissions gig, and sounds like a wonderful monthly showcase of Irish songwriting talent.

An evening with Bach

mister ebby — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:55:23 +0000

I’ve been having an evening of classical music tonight, swopping youtube links with a friend via IM. He’s thrown some wonderful suggestions my way, from this movement from Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 21, Movement III, to this beautiful alto aria from J.S. Bach’s St. John Passion:

Both are very different and well worth a listen.

For my part, I suggested this astonishing piece of music from Bach’s B minor Mass: [Gloria] Cum Sancto Spiritu, which is one of my favourite pieces of music ever. We started on a Bach binge, so my other two favourites are both from the St Matthew Passion, which I was lucky enough to sing as part of a choir when I was in university. These are two of my favourite parts of that work: Wir setzen uns & Erbarme dich.