Some writing about, and a link to, my debut musical work 'Over the Moon'
(2/10/23 - 6/10/23)
In 2020, I began a new creative practice. I was in the UK, living on the outskirts of a tiny village, the pandemic had hit and I had lost my work as a freelance theatre and acting facilitator. I applied for a recovery grant from Arts Council England to tide me over and help strengthen and build my cross-cultural practice. I also wanted to explore the possibilities of audio plays and performance, which I had recently become interested in whilst developing a radio play.
In this moment of deep absence, and nerve-wracking change, I felt the seeds of a new beginning. I was lucky to receive the grant and, around that same time, was invited by my dear friend Megan Bernard to be a part of ‘Song Club’; her brain-child with partner Kalju Tonuma, through their label ‘Of One Kind’. It was a place where a small group of musicians and artists came together online to encourage, support and prompt one another in the writing, recording and sharing of songs, music and performance.
I had a creative avenue! It was performative, collaborative and it used the medium I was newly inspired by! In England, working alongside artists in Australia, song club fulfilled my wish to strengthen my cross-cultural connections. Also, I was working with incredible artists, some of whom I’d listened to with rapt attention in my earlier years! It was a little frightening, it was a lot exciting, and it was, in many ways, my creative life-boat. I jumped on board!
For the next 2.5 years, as life happened, so did song club. Megan and Kalju (MEJU) were incredible with me; offering support through my first rocky beginnings in the medium. I wrote, recorded and arranged tonnes of tracks. Using garageband, my own voice and sometimes a little foley, I created a body of work that surprised and enlivened me. I also collaborated with other artists in the group. This was a massive learning curve; challenging my skills as I crossed disciplines and communicated online.
Back in Australia, I find myself (re) envisioning my creative practice and the delivery of my classes and workshops. I now have an Artist Facebook page on which to share my practice, as well as my services as a workshop facilitator and performer. To begin this together with the release of my music really feels like something special 😊
‘Over the Moon’ was arranged and first shared (with Song Club) three years ago to the week. This lovely timing is not intentional. I only realised last week, when I was looking for the original, that it was so beautifully synchronous. The song is typical of much of my work in that first year of writing and recording. It uses song and spoken word and it takes the wonderful words of by-gone artists, spliced and re-arranged, to express some of the childish wonder and awe I felt at the musical and performative journey I was undertaking. The texts I worked from are well-known children’s rhymes and novels. Can you identify which?
The version of ‘Over the Moon’ that you will hear here is a mix of the original sounds and vocals I recorded in my home on the outskirts of that tiny village, and new primary vocal recordings. The new vocals, recorded in MEJU’s recording studio at The B-Side, have been incredibly interspersed with some of the original; the whole thing engineered and mixed by Kalju within the first month of my return to Melbourne. Megan was a brilliant outside ear during the recording; allowing me the freedom and focus to simply be in the space, doing this new thing, without also holding the bigger picture in mind. She was a director; lightly ensuring the continuity of my delivery.
I am beyond grateful to MEJU and to the other incredible artists involved in the journey of this piece (Annette Hughes, Kate Jukes, Carl Pannuzzo, Dave Evans, Tamlyn Lee Magee and Geoffrey Datson)
Listen to the piece on Spotify
Or on Apple Music
I hope you will enjoy 😊
© 2023 Leone White. All rights reserved.
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