BLACKTORN BLOSSOM
After some years of having my guitars just standing around to catch dust, I hit the road during the winter vacation of 2018. The first song "In a News World" went surprisingly well and was the start to get back into business again. One song followed the other and I was able to fill the album "All of a sudden" with eight great songs, touching different styles and beats. For some of the songs I was able to recruit some help from the great singer Susi Wagner and the guitarist Jürgen Rutschmann (Spoonhead). Other musicians followed - like metal singer Michael Matt and guitarist Stephan Kunz.
In June 2019 I decided to switch over to German lyrics - this worked very well at Ra Patera, where we did the same. Surprisingly my voice sounded somehow different and the German lyrics worked better than expected. So this is the way I am going to proceed for the next months - let's see, what happens along the way...
Choir music
Beginning of 2020 I tried something new. Loving singing in my Gospelchoir GetUp Berghausen since almost 30 years, I asked myself - why not trying to move over the ideas of Blackthorn Blossom into sheet music and write some songs for gospel choir. Soon the first title "Enter Jerusalem" was created, followed by a second piece. They will set the frame for a passion cycle, hopefully ready for Easter 2021. The first title was recorded with the choir in social distance, using smartphones and digital recorders.
Bring Hermann Hesse to sound
Another project with singer Michael Matt started is to bring the poems of German writer Hermann Hesse to sound. The dark and mysterious verses of Hesses' lyric suits well to my music, so I took the lines and merged them with my musical ideas, adding some words or verses.
Not standing still
After the phase with Michael getting quiet due to his own projects, I focussed again more on German lyrics and adding spice to a-capella choir and piano sound with electronic dance music. With my former Czaika Ranch singer Dirk Steinhilper - now Australian citizen - I recorded some songs.
2022 with a restart
With some new recording equipment I started into 2022 - this made quite a difference in my productions, brought up new ideas and Michael was also back on tracks. Love and thanks to my 35-year long friend Jörg Ehrler, who - though heavily suffering from Multiple Sclerosis - is giving great advise to improve my songs. After two years of Covid, the Russian invasion on Ukraine sends another shock waves around the world - and triggered some new ideas. Let's see, what the year will bring...
