Here we are.
I have written, recorded and released the last song from my 2018 Living Room Sessions.
Can't believe I actually did it!
2018 has been incredibly busy and tiring but in a good way. I believe this challenge made me a better songwriter but I also learned so much in terms of music production. The journey is certainly not over and I still have a lot to learn ; but I proved myself I could actually do it on my own and I'm very happy about that :)
"Coeur d'Hiver".
I decided to write this song in french as it is something I am not so familiar with.
This is only my 2nd attempt to write in my native language.
French is a very beautiful, rich and complex language so it is definitely not an easy task to write something decent :) I used quite a lot of metaphors as I wanted to play on the subtleties of the french language and I think it worked out well for that song.
I also decided to play the piano. Another thing I am not familiar with!
I composed the song on the guitar, dowloaded the chord charts from the internet and taught myself how to play the chords on the piano and coordinate both hands. Needless to say that it took me a little while :)
To me, a winter heart (coeur d'hiver) is a divided heart.
Winter and the holiday season can be blissful but unfortunately it can also be a very difficult time for a lot of people. It's not always as joyful as it seems. And that's what the song is all about. All those mixed feelings about this beautiful and cruel season.
When I started to put words on paper, I didn't know which direction my writing would take.
I knew I wanted to write a winter song and I thought it would actually turn out to be sort of a typical, more joyful, winter song. But the words came out easily and naturally I found myself writing about this other side of the winter season and the sadness and nostalgia it can bring.
You can listen to the song here : http://djanagabrielle.bandcamp.com/track/coeur-dhiver
The artwork for the song is from my dear friend Essi Kimpimaki.
I cannot thank her enough, as well as my other talented friend Gosia Kepka, for lending me their talent all throughout the year to help me create beautiful artworks for each of my songs. Very grateful for that.
I really hope you enjoy this song which concludes my project for the year!
I'm hoping to bring all these new songs on the road next year and tour more steadily. That should be my new project for 2019...along with a few other new releases :)
A lot of work awaits me in the coming months!
But for now, time for a little break and retreat in France amongst my family!
And I hope that wherever you are, you also find comfort amongst family and/or friends during this season.
Thank you for reading this blog...and to anyone who has listened to, shared, bought, aired the songs on podcasts or radio shows, or sent me kind words of encouragement throughout the year.
See you in 2019!
xo
Djana
