My wife is currently looking into a new venture to do with writing an audiobook. As there is a certain amount of crossover between recording music and recording an audiobook I thought I'd throw a few ideas her way to discuss/talk about and one was about our world around us and it got me thinking. Why have I never written a post about the places that inspire my music?! So today we will change that and add a new topic to the blog posts.
I didn't want to just talk about a one off place that inspires me but more about places that I go that always get me thinking. One of these places is a local beach to us. Brightlingsea is a small coastal town in East Anglia where my wife's family are from. Now I'm not really much of a beach person. I can do a few hours in the sun in summer but then I'm good. However, when it gets to the Autumn/Winter months I find the seaside or waterfronts in general to be very emotive.
These pieces tend to be quite melancholy in tone and generally reflect a cold, overcast day but I really enjoy our walks along the seafront in miserable British weather!
Of the pieces that I have released so far that were inspired by our beach walks as a couple and as a family, the two that spring to mind are Morning and Evening Tide. Both were written, one on a cold November Saturday morning and one in March the following year in early evening, down at the beach. I often come up with an idea and either hum it into my phone's voice memos or come home and head to the piano to improvise.
From my earlier albums you can find “Watching The World Go By” and “Stirring From Dormant Waters” which were also inspired from the coastlines close to home.
I know you shouldn't wish your life away but I do enjoy the autumnal months and taking in the cool, fresh sea air and then coming home for a nice cup of tea or hot chocolate. I'm interested to see what comes to mind from these walks.