28. On Fields of Latesummer
Sun-glow flickers at your ankles every time you land in the ripples.
Your jumps press waves through wildergrass, scattering pollen up in spirals.
[ Brush a hand through air ] —
Each mote sparks like fireworks, before breezes send it aloft: a silent pop-pop-pop around you.
The air out here is diagonally columned — are rays of daybreak passing through venetian blinds somewhere past horizon, angled just wide enough for giants to peek through?
Also curious: the light lingers like a lover’s kiss, bestowing glowing haloes upon its gaze. Your skin’s soaked with sparkles as soil welcomes water.
Nearby — a tree stump, weathered clean and etched with wavy grooves.
You approach.
And notice . . .
Beams refracted from the field shimmying into the wood’s rivulets, egging them on to hum lilting ditties. Voices in a choir, activating one by one, pyramids of harmonies weightless.
// Side B //
Thanks for tuning in! You were listening to “The Latesummer Fields of Light”, composed on the road. Here’s the travel setup at a hostel in Naarm, a.k.a. Melbourne:
And a video tour of the 2-minute session:
I’m a newbie to multi-track composition/mixing, but if you’re curious about the creation process from earlier on, let me know in a comment or repost.
The photo’s from 2020, during a trip to Danish southcountry. My top-two lifelong touchstones evoking profound calm are wild rolling fields, and clothes drying on a line.
A song about that moment before a first kiss ~
released over the weekend. “Sans Rien Dire” is the latest single from Josephine Pia Wild — I was chuffed to write the English-lyric portion with her.
Here’s some of the process — final lyrics on the left with syllable guide for us to audition phrases post-translation, initial ideas on the right:
You can listen to “Sans Rien Dire” on streaming/youtube. Lovers of words might discover an easter egg embedded between French and English lines, possibly more easily found by ear.
A stunning one-shot music video is on its way too — follow JPW for updates.
End of Intermission
Next issue of Campfire Sparks lands in a week, commencing Act 2.
Act 1 lasted 11 years: post-uni life as a jazz pianist.
Issue 29’s Side B will give you a good idea of the story’s tonal shift, including:
How I flipped from “life-long avoider” of music work and writing, to dissolving those procrastinations. To my surprise, discipline + habits + “grit” were not the issue.
Music and piano discoveries I’ve held secret for 2+ years.
Why intense secrecy before / why radical transparency now?
Paying subscribers learned some of these plans in advance — and will continue to receive exclusive music, gifts, stories. Always more behind the curtain (more curtains) 🛀.
Silhouette of a Piano in the Far Distance
A shadowy piano journey called “mysteries of the horizon” coming up — for streaming and download.
Thank you for your visit and your discerning ear.
Here’s the music paired with words; I’m floored by how the poet David Whyte speaks about horizons: