Writing the Trovaire album at Riverrun

08/01/24·2 min read

Over the last few weeks that I've been working out of the Summerhouse writing (and music) studio on the Riverrun ranch here in rural Tenterfield, Australia, the main focus has been the research for my book on quantum algorithms (edit: which has now been released). But in the downtime, I've also enjoyed writing music with friend and long-time creative collaborator Dennis Gascoigne. And it looks like we've created an album of new music in the process.

We've given the project the working title of "Trovaire", and had the idea of giving a couple of tracks to our friends that run the local bar and restaurant called Stonefruit. It's where we spend many mornings over coffee before the working day kicks off, and many evenings over drinks talking about art, life, and everything. Somehow a "couple of tracks" turned into a pile of them, and there could be a good album's worth there.

I'm heading back to the USA and Canada in a few days, to kick off research into the next project (namely the evolving standards and patterns in the quantum software stack) but it looks like there might be a decent little album in this music that we wrote predominantly if not entirely for ourselves. A mixture of deep crate diving in eclectic old music, and sampling little parts or ideas to inspire us to then play a range of live instrumentation over the top (including Rhodes piano, jazz guitar, bass guitar, drums, and all our old synths here).

It's been a really fun process, as much a focal point to think and talk about and ultimately act on our nostalgia for the era of vinyl and the excitement of labels like Ninja Tune or Warp or Stones Throw. A time where all these interesting jazz and rare groove and funk and world music sounds were being reinterpreted and reworked by a new generation.

To follow in that tradition, but to continually push it back into live instrumentation and musicianship has been rewarding. There might be an interesting album in what we've done here, and were we to put it out as such, it would have to be vinyl. In the meantime, time to head to the northern hemisphere again.

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