Neoclassical Suite is a column that will present 7 recent, distinctive tracks of the neoclassical-modern classical-contemporary -and beyond!- music field. 

Note: All Bio/about sections provided/written by the artists.

The Players

Cabin Fever Orchestra

(neoclassical, cinematic)

A breathtaking, cinematic, neoclassical composition by the always evolving, led by award-winning composer Graeme Cornies’ Cabin Fever Orchestra, this time collaborating with Drew Jurecka (Dua Lipa, Bahamas, Ron Sexsmith) and Joshua Van Tassel (Great Lake Swimmers, Sarah Slean, Rose Cousins)…

“Cabin Fever Orchestra isn’t trying to preserve the tradition of classical music whatsoever – but rather, it is a project that has an eye toward breathing new life into music with a similar instrumentation. Led by award-winning composer Graeme Cornies, who over the past 15 years has worked on more than 40 television shows, scored documentary features on BBC and National Geographic, and contributed to Triple AAA games.” (Cabin Fever Orchestra)

Joel Bille

(neoclassical, contemporary music)

A reflective neoclassical composition from Swedish composer and pianist Joel Bille’s conceptual album ‘Huset’, ideal for fans of Nils Frahm and Ólafur Arnalds!

“Joel Bille is a composer and sound designer from Gothenburg, Sweden. Joel has been active in the video game music scene since 2013 composing music in a diverse field of genres, tied together by holding melody, playfulness and authenticity in centre.“ (Joel Bille)

Gianluca Piacenza

(neoclassical, solo piano)

A melancholic solo piano piece, by the always emotive, Italian composer, pianist and sound designer. Gianluca Piacenza, inspired “by the finding of an old tape cassette of Gianluca improvising at the piano when he was only 15 years old recorded secretly by his mother…”. A pure treasure!

“Gianluca Piacenza is an italian composer, pianist and sound designer.

After 2 year of private piano lessons when he was 6 years old, he began studying music at his hometown conservatory graduating with full marks in Classical Piano and Composition.

Today he works as music producer at Red Couch Studio, an inspirational space in which analog and digital equipment, acoustic and electronic instruments are equally important to develop a unique sonic signature. Alongside his academic path he attended piano courses and masterclasses with Sergio Fiorentino, Bruno Canino, Michele Marvulli, Alexander Lonquich, François-Joël Thiollier and Konstantin Scherbakov, constantly growing as classical pianist and expanding an already large repertoire ranging from Bach and Scarlatti to Cage, Ligeti, Pärt and many other contemporary composers.

Winner and finalist in national and international competitions, he appears in concerts both as soloist and as chamber music partner. Influenced by both the great tradition of classical music and the electronica/ambient scene, in 2014 began working on his first album “Dream”, an emotional and cinematic work in which he experiments with acoustic piano and live electronics interaction.

His sonic world could be described as a blend of acoustic textures, recorded and processed live in many different ways, and electronic soundscapes, created manipulating natural sounds and programming synthesizers and samplers.” (Gianluca Piacenza)

Wataru Sato

(modern classical, new age, electronica)

Japanese Based composer and Pianist Wataru Sato’s ‘Undercurrent’ is a flawless, almost “fluid-ish”, new age, modern classical blend with electronica touches, This gem is taken from the just released album ‘Fading Spaces’ on the always eclectic 1magine Label….

“Born in 1990.

Japanese Based composer and Pianist. In 2010, he began working as a solo project , initially creating piano-based electronica and modern-classical works.

He is currently active as a New Age and Minimalist,modern-classical musician, creating piano pieces with a melancholic worldview.

In order to improve his piano skill and gain more inspiration, he has been studying under the pianist Lubomyr Melnyk, whose works have been released on Erased Tapes, a prestigious modern-classical label that has unearthed artists such as Ólafur Arnalds and Nils Frahm. Lubomyr’s influence on Wataru has been reflected on his works.

In July 2018, he released his second piano solo album “Innocence” nationwide, and in September of the same year, he started a chamber music project consisting of piano and strings, and it is sublimated into strings album “After World” in April 2021. His band”Gecko&Tokage Parade” , which he leads, released their second full album “Nomadic Flow” on his own label “Tokage Records”, and it debuted at #4 on the Tower Records Jazz Chart. In December 2019, the band moved to modern jazz label “Playwright” which includes fox capture plan, where they have successfully performed solo in venues such as Motion Blue Yokohama,Cotton Club Japan run by Blue Note. As a supporting musician, he has participated in the solo project österreich of Kunimitsu Takahashi(ex.the cabs) who was in charge of the theme song for the anime “Tokyo Ghoul” and new generation of songwriters Nakimushi☔︎ which has gained overwhelming support from junior high, high school, and university students and has become a hot topic on social media.

In 2020, he started the unit paw with Mio Sasaki , who is active in the chorus of Gesu no Kiwami Otome , indigo la end etc. He is also a highly acclaimed composer and arranger, and served as sound producer for “transparent project” a joint project with Karen Aoki, one of Japan’s leading jazz singers. He is a unique pianist who composes, produces and performs with a wide range of sounds that cross ambient, electronica, pop and jazz.” (Wataru Sato)

Luis Paul

(neoclassical, solo piano)

German composer Luis Paul, doesn’t need more than 136 seconds to unfold his solo piano beauty ‘A Vanished Dream’,  “about dreams we once had that didn’t come true – about relationships we would have liked to continue but no longer exist; about moments we would like to travel to again, but which fade mercilessly”. Immediate and music from the heart destined for our souls!

“Every person has his or her own stories –

and all too often they could just as easily come from a movie. The only thing missing is the music. Ludwig Paul Karsch aka Luis Paul wants to capture exactly such moments, stories and associated feelings with his compositions and give them what they deserve in retrospect – The film music of life.

Thus, the Berliner tells with his album “Rebirth” about a whole series of different moments – from the great love, a dancing farewell, resistance and struggles to acceptance and finally rebirth. The song “Transience” musically addresses the transience of life, and “Fading Memories” tells of blurring memories of people who were once close to you. It is music with a lot of depth, which frees imagination, fantasy and memories from their twilight sleep in every listener and gives them room to unfold. With a lot of love, the studied music producer and composer creates touching sound worlds that would have felt just as comfortable in one or the other film genre and can be classified somewhere between well-known film scores by John Williams, Hans Zimmer and the more reduced soulful songs by Ludovico Einaudi or Yann Tiersen.” (Luis Paul)

John Mitchell & Benda Quartet

(crossover classical, epic music)

Taken from John Mitchell’s ‘Seasons’ (out on Navona Records) & incomparably performed by the award winning Benda Quartet, ‘Autumn’ is very much possibly the most intriguing composition; An absolute stand-out epic, crossover classical composition!

“Born in Hollywood CA on April 26, 1941, American classical composer John Mitchell has written works for solo piano and organ, choral music, chamber music, operas, and more than 400 art songs over the course of his life. Mitchell comes from an artistic family, his father being pianist John Stewart Mitchell, and Canadian novelist W. O. Mitchell and Hungarian-born singer Teresa Hideg Mitchell, his cousins.

Mitchell studied composition under the guidance of Dr. John Vincent, the successor of Arnold Schoenberg as professor of composition at the University of California,

Los Angeles until 1965. From there, he went on to work as a church music director, organist, opera coach, and composer, all of which he continues.

A member of the American Guild of Organists, the American Music Center, and the Center for Promotion of Contemporary Composers, Mitchell currently resides

in Los Angeles CA with his wife, artist Vicky Brago-Mitchell, and three cats, Bella, Arthur, and James.” (John Mitchell)

Sam Miller

(neoclassical, solo piano)

The 3rd single from Sam Miller’s upcoming album, ‘Lilies’, is a like candy solo piano ear-candy, glowing with quality, balance and optimism!

“Sam Miller is a man of unique talents. An American multi-instrumentalist singer/songwriter, composer and producer, he has released two full-length lyrical albums, You Need To Hear It (2014) and In One Place at a Time (2019), along with several instrumental albums including, Bach, Human Arpeggiatior (2020), Phonometrographer (2020), and Piano Works (2020).

A rare musical soul who thrives in our modern day of synthesizers and microchips, but who would be equally content playing Bach fugues in a cathedral filled with orangutans. His musical output is driven by curiosity and exploration, noticeably lacking the self-aggrandizing spirit of so much pop music.

From the mysterious deserts of New Mexico, Miller is at once a songwriter, composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is a master storyteller, who walks a tightrope pitched between the beauty of life’s complexities and the abyss of the subconscious. His lyrics grow more dynamic and intriguing with each listen. An elegant love song is simultaneously a riddle that would tickle the ghost of Lewis Carroll.

One of the most impressive measures of Miller’s writing is how the melodic content of the songs carry the weight of his lyrics. His attention to detail in arrangement and production creates fully realized songs that arrive at a clear destination. There is a confidence and thoughtfulness that is applied to each composition. Clever melodic hooks manage to echo in your head for days, allowing the depth of the lyrics to slowly unfurl in your thoughts. Miller’s deep and resonant voice evokes Scott Walker, Nick Cave, and even Johnny Cash. At its climax In One Place at a Time is soaring chamber pop akin to Devotchka, at its most introspective it is indie pop held together by synths and drum machines. With a close listen, there are hints of Americana, traditional country, psychedelia, and even exotica.” (Sam Miller)

The Music

Christos Doukakis