Tag : electronica

Collaborative project by ToTarTu featuring Street Musician, Nicka Kristian Donn.
ToTarTu is on a collaborative project to record the street musicians he finds in the city of Berlin.
Introducing Nicka Kristian Donn – what a performer!
Hermannplatz in Berlin is a busy port for shoppers and commuters with the U-Bahn running underneath.
And as the weather was getting colder late last year, with street performers somewhat thinning, Berlin was still lucky to have the sounds of Nicka ‘softly’ hammering away at his Dulcimer.
This instrument produces sounds much the same way as a piano with a (padded) hammer against the string.
I explained ToTarTu’s Berlin Project to Nicka and fortunately for ToTarTu, he was very happy to participate.
My recording of Nicka was made on the backdrop of a very busy intersection; it was quite intense.
ToTarTu’s electronic input into the musical piece picks up on this mood, as well as enhancing the hypnotising and cool performance by Nicka…another Champion Street Musician!
Unfortunately Nicka has no website nor contact details.
However, if we are lucky, we will see him and his fancy Dulcimer in Hermannplatz again this year!!
* Disclaimer – all work produced and posted is done so on an artistic basis and is there for the promotion of artists and musicians alike.

Collaborative project by ToTarTu featuring Street Musician Helmut, alias Klavier Helmut.
ToTarTu is on a collaborative project to record the street musicians he finds in the city of Berlin.
Alas, a piano in the street…was this a trick or a figment of the imagination or was there really a pianist playing in Kottbusser Damm near the canal?
Meet Helmut.
And his piano on wheels that he moves around the streets of Berlin during summer when “the birds are singing and the living is easy”, as written by George Gershwin in the aria “Summertime”.
After approaching Helmut and discussing ToTarTu’s music project, we recorded.
The recording went for five minutes and could of continued as Helmut was improvising and was moving to and back from certain songs and melodies.
As such, ToTarTu edited the version to be just over 2 minutes.
Some strings and new sounds were added.
Towards the end of the recording a pull between the sounds of the ivories and the electronic manifests. The introduction of the electronic in the piece is an attempt to show the old manifesting into the new.
Unfortunately, Helmut does not have a website.
However, he has had many recordings and interviews done and his story can be found when searching for Klavier Helmut on the Internet.
We look forward to seeing and hearing this Legend again this Summer!!
* Disclaimer – all work produced and posted is done so on an artistic basis and is there for the promotion of artists and musicians alike.

ToTarTu is on a collaborative project to record the street musicians he finds in the city of Berlin.
One late evening ToTarTu heard some melodies being played by a saxophone and jumped on his bike to find out exactly where the sound was emanating from.
He was lucky to find the Saxophonist, Roman Liva, as he had already stopped playing about three minutes before ToTarTu arrived; he was making his way up Bürknerstrasse in Neukölln to another venue.
This collaborative project by ToTarTu is short and simple, with instruments added around the saxophone.
After introducing ToTarTu and the project Roman unleashed this little toe tapping number and the recording was made.
ToTarTu imagined that the Saxophone piece could be like a short simple concert performed by a couple of musicians and that being the case, and keeping the Saxophone central, accompanied only with percussion like instruments and drums.
Roman was happy and upbeat so the electronic sound and percussion was added being mindful of the saxophone phrasing and used to enhance the mystery song and give it a little drama and swing.
Unfortunately, Roman does not have a website nor contact details. However, he will certainly be playing out the front of some bar or restaurant somewhere in Berlin when the weather is warm!
* Disclaimer – all work produced and posted is done so on an artistic basis and is there for the promotion of artists and musicians alike.

Collaborative project by ToTarTu featuring musician Vladimir Frank:
ToTarTu is on a Berlin project to record the street musicians he finds in the city of Berlin.
However, on the way to Berlin, he stopped in the oldest city of Northern Europe (as noted by Wikipedia), Tallinn, Estonia, and came across a very charismatic character who was making music out the front of Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, located on the hilltop of Tallinn Old Town in Lossi Plats.
The hill is known in Estonian mythology as Toompea and is said to be the grave of Kalev, erected in loving memory by his wife Linda, as written in the national epic Kalevipoeg (Estonian folklore about a giant hero named Kalevipoeg):
“Linda mourned for Kalev for one month after another till three months had passed, and the fourth was far advanced. She heaped a cairn of stones over his tomb, which formed the hill…” (English Translation by W.F.Kirby, 1895).
The Cathedral was built during the period of late 19th century Russification and is not typical of the churches of this city, being a Lutheran country. The church for example was built on a site that formerly housed a statue of Martin Luther.
That noted, it was indeed a very special place for a street musician by the name of Vladimir Frank to play.
Furthermore, the number of tourists to the area is significant. Tallinn’s old Town, for example, is on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Perhaps Vladimir could also be on UNESCO’s list.
Vladimir’s performance was absolutely awesome and ToTarTu didn’t expect to get such a lengthy music rendition from him, done with great passion…but very happy nonetheless!
The music incorporates “Hound Dog” song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller and originally recorded by Willie Mac “Big Mama” Thornton in 1952. However, the best know version of “Hound Dog” is the July 1956 recording by Elvis Presley. His recording is listed as one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll”.
Plus, “Tuttie Frutti” song co-written by Little Richard which was recorded in 1955 and went on to become his first major hit record. The song has been credited as “the sound of the birth of rock and roll” by Mojo’s The Top 100 Records That Changed The World.
And finally, “Blue Suede Shoes” written and first recorded by Carl Perkins in 1955. Elvis Presley performed his version of the song plus it was also recorded by Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran, among many others.
Vladimir’s performance in August 2013 has taken longer to remix than expected.
For example, there are many varied interpretations of the music pieces he plays allowing for such an infinite list of possibilities that the project took awhile to find its own rhythm.
However, ToTarTu’s first collaborative project has been a lot of fun.
Creative interpretation is to have the listener believe he/she is listening to someone tuning into a radio station. Or perhaps a person tuning into two radio stations on the same frequency.
Subsequently, Vladimir’s music works in unison with the electronica side creating a totally different medium.
Please visit Vladimir in Tallinn, Estonia, and make sure you walk around Tallinn Old Town especially the Hill of Toompea.
If you are lucky enough, you will hear Vladimir playing and you can buy one of his CDs for yourself, as well as watch and listen to this talented musician.
* Disclaimer – all work produced and posted is done so on an artistic basis and is there for the promotion of artists and musicians alike.