Hey gang! Here's another track for you to check out! It was also commissioned by my church for our countdown video. I've enjoyed it much creating these tracks. And starting with this one, they're becoming less EDM, and more theatrical/cinematic. I hope you all enjoy it.
This is also my first track that I'm making available for purchase as a royalty-free download. You can find it at http://www.pond5.com/stock-music/30368789/embrace-invisible.html?ref=osmosis_music...or if it reaches 250 listens on Soundcloud, then I'll make it available for FREE DOWNLOAD.
Thank you for your continued support.
52 in 52
Bobby Stephens: Bassist. Composer. Enthusiast.
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Breaking the silence
Here's the new track I promised a couple of weeks ago.
At my church, we use a countdown(video and backing track) to segue attenders from conversing in the lobby area into the worship service. This track was created to serve as the backing track for this sermon series' countdown video.
I hope you all enjoy it. Also, visit www.cstone.tv to follow our sermons online.
G-d bless, and thank you for your continued support. Please share with everyone you know.
At my church, we use a countdown(video and backing track) to segue attenders from conversing in the lobby area into the worship service. This track was created to serve as the backing track for this sermon series' countdown video.
I hope you all enjoy it. Also, visit www.cstone.tv to follow our sermons online.
G-d bless, and thank you for your continued support. Please share with everyone you know.
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
New Stuffs
Here's what's new in the life of Osmosis: Today I had a conversation with the worship pastor of my church about creating a musical theme to our next sermon series. It will serve as a countdown video prior to the start of our worship services throughout the duration of this series.
It's cool being commissioned to create works. It does a few things for me:
Today, I also jammed out in a band setting for the first time in a really long time. We ran over a few songs that they've previously written. I came up with bass lines to compliment the guitar parts. The drummer arrived about an hour before I left, but he and I instantly synced. It felt so great. Don't get me wrong, I love sitting at my desk, and being the architect and builder of my songs. But it'll never beat the raw organic chemistry of a group of dudes sitting in a room, making a beautiful noise, and forging friendships. To say the least, I had fun.
So those are my recent events. Soon you'll get to hear something fresh coming from my way. I'm excited about what the future holds.
Thank you for your continued support. G-d bless!
Osmosis Music
It's cool being commissioned to create works. It does a few things for me:
- It gives me a solid deadline that I can't fudge on...which sometimes happens if things just aren't flowing the way I like.
- It is a natural ignition for creativity. I can't really explain why, but being asked to do something gets my creative juices flowing in a fresh way.
- It sets the parameters in which I'll work. Some folks feel as if parameters/boundaries are constricting. I see them as freeing.
"Fewer options fosters creativity"
Today, I also jammed out in a band setting for the first time in a really long time. We ran over a few songs that they've previously written. I came up with bass lines to compliment the guitar parts. The drummer arrived about an hour before I left, but he and I instantly synced. It felt so great. Don't get me wrong, I love sitting at my desk, and being the architect and builder of my songs. But it'll never beat the raw organic chemistry of a group of dudes sitting in a room, making a beautiful noise, and forging friendships. To say the least, I had fun.
So those are my recent events. Soon you'll get to hear something fresh coming from my way. I'm excited about what the future holds.
Thank you for your continued support. G-d bless!
Osmosis Music
Monday, July 8, 2013
Temporary Hiatus
I'm taking a temporary break from the posting a new song every week commitment. I've overloaded myself and it's become very tiring. I'm still going to be active, just not as active as I set out to be at the outset of this blog.
I'm about to go do some yoga to wake myself up, and work on a song I started a couple weeks ago. And I'll be back in full force soon. I'm just waiting for my strength to be renewed.
Vaya con Dios, hermanos y hermanas.
I'm about to go do some yoga to wake myself up, and work on a song I started a couple weeks ago. And I'll be back in full force soon. I'm just waiting for my strength to be renewed.
"Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.
Vaya con Dios, hermanos y hermanas.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Current into this week
As you may be able to realize from my last post, I'm seeking to add more richness to my overall melodic/harmonic sound. I'm seeking to make my music darker. That's unnatural for me...I'm a joyful optimist. My type doesn't naturally produce melancholic, dissonant music. I can twist a diminished key into sounding like bubble-gum pop music. It frustrates me because I want that sound of when I hear a song so dark that it makes my soul cringe.
So I've been researching atonal and polytonal music as of late. I've also run across composers who write using tonal centers but employ chromatic harmony to enhance the dramatic effect. I'm not sure in which direction I will trek. I definitely don't want to write Romantic Period sounding pieces...that's just not my niche. However, I do want to use their philosophies to execute the music I long to create.
I'm currently studying Moussorgsky's "Tableaux d'une exposition." I enjoy breaking apart chord by bloody chord of a score. Learning what the greats do and have done to achieve the sound of brilliance. To me, it's like having a posthumous conversation. I ask questions and the ink and paper respond. I wish I took the time to study scores more often.
So...do I know what I'm doing? Not quite. Could this week's track turn out to be a complete disaster? The future of that is likely. Does that bother or worry me? Not at all. So Bobby, how can expecting to poorly write a song, and fulfilling that prophecy not cause any anxiety? In the words of Arnold Schoenberg:
Let's go explore uncharted territories.
Vaya con Dios.
So I've been researching atonal and polytonal music as of late. I've also run across composers who write using tonal centers but employ chromatic harmony to enhance the dramatic effect. I'm not sure in which direction I will trek. I definitely don't want to write Romantic Period sounding pieces...that's just not my niche. However, I do want to use their philosophies to execute the music I long to create.
I'm currently studying Moussorgsky's "Tableaux d'une exposition." I enjoy breaking apart chord by bloody chord of a score. Learning what the greats do and have done to achieve the sound of brilliance. To me, it's like having a posthumous conversation. I ask questions and the ink and paper respond. I wish I took the time to study scores more often.
So...do I know what I'm doing? Not quite. Could this week's track turn out to be a complete disaster? The future of that is likely. Does that bother or worry me? Not at all. So Bobby, how can expecting to poorly write a song, and fulfilling that prophecy not cause any anxiety? In the words of Arnold Schoenberg:
"My music is not modern, it is merely badly played."
Let's go explore uncharted territories.
Vaya con Dios.
Friday, June 21, 2013
Work Harder, Write Smarter
My awesome wife, with whom I just celebrated our first anniversary, bought me a small chalkboard that I keep at my workstation. I started writing a phrases on it to keep the creative momentum during times of distraction or discouragement. The previous phrase was "Write on Purpose." I felt at that time that my musical efforts were sort of all over the place. Even individual compositions didn't have a natural flow or structure that made sense. That personal maxim has served its purpose, and now I've updated it to meet a more immediate need.
I feel like this track, "Completely Confused And Euphoric," is the product of my new maxim, "Work Harder, Write Smarter." I changed my workflow it two simple manners, but they had a profound impact on how I approached the production of this song.
First, I chose the title before writing the first note. This particular title was inspired by a story I heard...a tale of love, heroism, and heartbreak. Typically I struggle fit a title to a finished song, by describing the emotion I feel it exudes, or as a description of the writing process. This time around I knew ahead of time the function of my tune, and it gave a more precise target to aim for.
Secondly, I wrote my chord progression down on paper from start to finish before ever choosing a sound in my DAW. I then blocked out the progression on a simple piano sample before adding the flesh to the bones. In the past, I chose all of my sounds, and wrote to the sounds. This time around, and here forward, I will compose my songs and intellectually choose the sounds that will best suit it.
These methods gave me a sense of freedom and empowerment over my craft. I have been experiencing a staleness in the writing process, and this week's track breathed a breath of fresh air into my dream.
Week after week, I have a new favorite of the songs I've written. I hope you also increasingly enjoy my creations as I build upon my strengths and learn to minimize my weaknesses.
I hope this song stirs your insides, tugs at your heart strings, and leaves you feeling "completely confused and euphoric in equal measure."
SUPPORT INDEPENDENT MUSIC. SHARE WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW!
I feel like this track, "Completely Confused And Euphoric," is the product of my new maxim, "Work Harder, Write Smarter." I changed my workflow it two simple manners, but they had a profound impact on how I approached the production of this song.
First, I chose the title before writing the first note. This particular title was inspired by a story I heard...a tale of love, heroism, and heartbreak. Typically I struggle fit a title to a finished song, by describing the emotion I feel it exudes, or as a description of the writing process. This time around I knew ahead of time the function of my tune, and it gave a more precise target to aim for.
Secondly, I wrote my chord progression down on paper from start to finish before ever choosing a sound in my DAW. I then blocked out the progression on a simple piano sample before adding the flesh to the bones. In the past, I chose all of my sounds, and wrote to the sounds. This time around, and here forward, I will compose my songs and intellectually choose the sounds that will best suit it.
These methods gave me a sense of freedom and empowerment over my craft. I have been experiencing a staleness in the writing process, and this week's track breathed a breath of fresh air into my dream.
Week after week, I have a new favorite of the songs I've written. I hope you also increasingly enjoy my creations as I build upon my strengths and learn to minimize my weaknesses.
I hope this song stirs your insides, tugs at your heart strings, and leaves you feeling "completely confused and euphoric in equal measure."
SUPPORT INDEPENDENT MUSIC. SHARE WITH EVERYONE YOU KNOW!
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
My Luminescence
My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends—
It gives a lovely light.
-Edna St. Vincent Millay
I sincerely apologize for the delay in my postings recently. I have been quite the activity glutton with adding more to my plate than I can sometimes manage. But I'm loving life, living passionately, doing the things I enjoy to do and have to do! And I will take this moment to empathize with Ms. Millay. I know I can't accomplish all I want to all the time. I know that burning my candle at both ends will inevitably lead to burnouts, stops, and restarts. But I'd like to believe it's for some greater good. To share my art, myself, with all who will take notice. And to you, my readers and listeners, it gives a lovely light.
May this post give you some light throughout your week and for weeks to come. "The Quiet Rain" is available for free download at www.soundcloud.com/osmosis_music.
Enjoy and share with everyone you know!
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