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MP3 David Izen - Ocean
7 MP3 Songs
CLASSICAL: New Age, CLASSICAL: Contemporary
Details:
I really hope you enjoy this album, the first of many. I believe in pushing the boundaries of composition but not at the expense of melody and form. I also believe in challenging the stereotype by always seeking originality in my work. So you might have to listen a couple of times to get tuned into what I am doing here, but I assure you that it will be an enriching experience for you. Join me on the journey, after all, without exploration there can be no discovery. Here is what others have to say:
Free spirit
by Sue Newgas, reproduced with permission from Herald Publishing Group.
There can''t be many things in life that would phase composer and pianist David Izen. He is relaxed, calm and collected, just like his music. He knows his own mind and speaks passionately about the piano. And there''s music in his blood, coming as he does from a musical family - his father worked as a professional musician on clarinet and his uncle played for the Birmingham Philharmonic. But the pedigree goes further, David is the great grandson of the artist Alfred Soord, famous for the painting ''The Lost Sheep'', who was a student of the Herkomer school of art at the turn of the 20th century. So, for a quiet, self contained kind of man, David is full of surprises...
In the 1980''s and 90''s David gigged with his own band, writing, singing and performing, in and around the London circuit. And now he has returned to the activity that he loves the most. Playing and composing for the piano.
His enthusiasm for piano started when he was fifteen. But even then he knew he didn''t want a "hit and miss career" as a concert pianist, he wanted to be a composer. Strongly influenced by Ravel, Erik Sati as well as Keith Jarrett and Phillip Glass, he found himself wondering how they managed to create such amazing music, and what motivated them to be composers rather than performers. " I realised that composing was much more interesting, exciting and challenging to me, so I decided to follow that route."
Before long David was creating his own piano solos and just before Christmas he released his first CD, called Ocean. "People say they find the music relaxing and peaceful and that''s great. I like to feel it is an antidote to the hectic modern world we live in." He calls his music "impressionist", like impressionist painting, people read different things into it and take different ideas from it. He sees the music as being uniquely personal to the listener - the listener makes up their own mind as to what it is about - in contrast to listening to a straightforward romantic or classical piece, when you know what the music is intending to be.
Creating impressionist music is freeing too, from an artistic standpoint. "If you follow a certain method there are limitations, but with this kind of music you can be far more expressive and realistic. The human mind is complex and goes off in all sorts of tangents, so it''s good to have a music that follows that style." He says that sometimes the writing is a slog, and he has to work and work to get it right. At other times, though, some magic happens, "I will be sitting at the piano and something will come completely by itself and that becomes a beautiful piece of music." He records everything, so he doesn''t miss those kinds of moments.
To my mind, ''Ocean'' is a fine debut album, and if you want to transport yourself away from the humdrum or hassles of the day it''s a peaceful and most enchanting place to go. ......
"Subtle use of harmony to create a certain tranquillity not found in traditional classical/jazz/contemporary pieces. Soft musical colours, which in some cases seem as if Izen has removed the notes and one is left with the impression, like a kind of subtle echo. Muted tones create the atmosphere although at times you can feel the heat and the passion, and at others the stillness and space. And above all there is the melody that draws you in. A great first album." Music for the World Magazine
"I think this is an inspired and deeply sensitive work and also very original indeed..." Jack Valentine
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