Tag: video

All my music that includes a video.

Better Days
by Bill Hennessy, Paul Battersby

(New video added Oct 4, 2020)
The original track by Bill Hennessy was intended as a backing track for a vocalist who never did anything with it. I found the track, liked it and added an orchestra.

The original track only had the generic name of “Piano Ballad3”. Prompted by Bill to come up with a new name, I tried to think about what words might describe the feeling in the music. To me the song feels a little sad and wistful at times while also conveying a sense of hope. I came up with the name “Better Days”. The title could mean, longing for better days from the past and/or looking forward to better days in the future. For the video, I made it about childhood memories.

Bill Hennessy original composition, piano, bass guitar, drums
Paul Battersby orchestral arrangement, piccolo, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, string bass, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library), mixing
YouTube video
Audio only

 

Creative Commons Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

Mothers Day
by Gustavo Lopez, Paul Battersby

(New video added May 6. 2022)
A piano piece that Gustavo wrote for Mother’s Day. I had some orchestration ideas as soon as I heard it so thought I’d see what I could do.

Gustavo Lopezoriginal piano composition
Paul Battersbypiccolo, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, string bass, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, celesta, harp, percussion (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library), mixing, video
YouTube video
Audio only


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Creative Commons Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

Breaths Of Maidens
by Matt Kresling, Paul Battersby

(New video added Aug 29. 2021)
When I first heard this song, I really liked the lyrics. It was just vocals and ukulele originally so I decided to add guitar, bass and drums to finish the song and give it a more standard instrumentation.

Aug 29, 2021 update: I had the idea to use an old story from Greek mythology as the inspiration for the video since the theme of the story seemed to generally fit the music.

show / hide lyrics
Breaths of Maidens
Lyrics by: Matt Kresling

(Verse 1)
I’ll never grow old. That’s just somethin’ that I chose
and never to participate in

How do I maintain the appearance of youth
While my peer group resembles
a bunker you’d thrown a grenade in

(Chorus 1)
By breathing the vapor distilled from the breaths of maidens
By breathing the vapor distilled from the breaths of maidens

(Verse 2)
I don’t need stuff. Know employment enough
that I’m 30 years going on 80

My unwrinkled brow
be wrecked wondering how many years yet
will I pull the plow ’till I drop a Mercedes

(Chorus 2)
And I’m breathing direct from the mouths of maiden ladies
And I’m breathing direct from the mouths of maiden ladies

(Break)
And you would do well to recall
unless you’d like to age like the rest of them all
It isn’t the medicine, but how it’s administered
so find you a maiden if you’ve got the wherewithal

(Verse 3)
In-spite of the surgery she can’t afford
youthfulness means to escape her

It never was somethin’ that money can buy
in fact it often comes out the inverse of assets on paper

(Chorus 3)
So I’m breathing the young ladie’s distilled exhaled vapours
So I’m breathing the young ladie’s distilled exhaled vapours

Verse 4
Now I can’t pretend to have life figured out
but it pays back about what you paid in

The minute you worry about the amount
when your years will run out is about when you really start fading

(Chorus 4)
And you can’t even sweat about breathing the breaths of maidens
No you can’t even sweat about breathing the breaths of maidens

Most of all you can’t sweat about breathing the breaths of maidens

Matt Kreslingoriginal song writing, vocals, ukulele
Paul Battersbyguitar, bass, drums, mixing
YouTube video
Audio only

 

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license.

Cemetery For The Soul
by Scott Thomson, Paul Battersby

This started out with a couple of electric guitars, a couple of synths and a drum track. In the repeating chord progression of the original music I heard a few things that gave me a lot of ideas for a melody and orchestral accompaniment so I added all those original ideas and more to this instrumental. Except for the above mentioned instruments from the original version, all the orchestra sounds are from my Virtual Playing Orchestra sound library.

Scott Thomsonoriginal composition, guitar1, guitar2, synth, drums
Paul Battersbypiccolo, flute, oboe, clarinet, english horn, bassoon, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, synth harp, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, glockenspiel, misc percussion (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library), mixing
YouTube video
Audio only

 

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

When I Get Over You
by Neal Klassen, Paul Battersby

(New video added Nov 5. 2022)

From Neal:

My dad sang in Barbershop Quartets so, through him, I learned to appreciate the work of Irving Berlin and other great songwriters of that era.

This is my attempt to write that kind of song: simple words, soaring melody, unabashedly sentimental… with lots of open vowels for the singer to play with.

As I was working on the orchestration for this song, I tried to imagine the singer on the stage, singing this as part of a popular Broadway show, with the musicians in the orchestra pit. I saw a few musicals as a kid, so working on this song takes me back in time. It would be a dream come true if I could compose musical accompaniment for something that would appear in a musical.

NOTE: this was originally published on Apr 5, 2015 but reworked to use the new Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library.

show / hide lyrics
When I Get Over You
Lyrics by: Neal Klassen

You’ll see me dance, you’ll hear me laugh
You’ll know that I’ve torn up your photograph
These are the things I’m going to do
When I get over you
When I get over you

I’ll stand up tall, I’ll smile again
I’ll tell myself to stop remembering when
The love we shared was all I knew
When I get over you
When I get over you

So many plans I’ve got to make
So many chances I’ve got to take
I don’t know if I’ll have the time to cry
So much more love I’ve got to give
So much more life I’ve got to live
I don’t know if I can but I will try

You’ll be surprised, I’ll be so strong
I’ll show the world that I can carry on
And then I’ll find somebody new
When I get over you
When I get over you
When I get over you

Neal Klassensongwriting, piano
Barbara Samuel vocals
Paul Battersbyflute, oboe, clarinet, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, glockenspiel (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library), mixing, video
YouTube video
Audio onlyHear the original version on SoundClick


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A Color Of The Sky
by Mantecon, Singh, Noble, Battersby

(New Video Added Mar 4, 2022)
A high energy song with a slight hint of country rock, about never giving up because you never know what’s around the next corner.

The parts I added to this song actually came together very quickly for me. I had a clear idea about the strings and the drums right from the beginning. There were a few adjustments along the way but I was mostly able to take what I heard in my head and directly record it. I didn’t need to spend much time experimenting with this one.

March 4, 2022 update: 6 years after working on this (I did the drums, strings, bass) when I went to publish the video, I discovered to my disappointment that the main theme of the music is identical to the song “Think Brave” by Dixie Station, however according to YouTube, they grant permission to use their music provided I don’t try to make money from it so apparently it’s still O.K. to publish this song and publish the video.

show / hide lyrics
A Color Of The Sky
Lyrics by: Mike Matecon, Shiv Signh

When I thought all was lost
And I’d never smile again
I found a new beginning
Waiting near the end

When I thought all was gone
And hope had fled my grasp
I found a shiny future
Lurking in the past

What I thought was an end
Turned out to be a middle
And what I thought was a brick wall
Turned out to be a tunnel

(chorus)
What I thought was an injustice
Turned out to be a color
A color of the sky
A color of the sky

When I lost all my faith
And just threw it all away
I found a second chance
To live another day

And when I thought I was doomed
And cursed my life and luck
I found my soul was yet to soar
A diamond in the rough

What I thought was an end
Turned out to be a middle
What I thought was a brick wall
Turned out to be a tunnel

(chorus) x 2

Mike Mateconlyrics
Kim Noble lead vocals, backing vocals
Shiv Signh lyrics, electric guitar (x2), slide guitar, acoustic guitar
Paul Battersbydrums, bass, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, 12 string guitar
Bruce Valeriani mixing, mastering
Original Version “Think Brave” by Dixie Station
YouTube video
Audio only

Birthday Party
by Steven Fink, Paul Battersby

(New Video Added Dec 17, 2021)
An upbeat happy tune that started out as a digital keyboard + vocals song until I added more.

You’re like a birthday party; you make me shine

This song interested me because of the rhythm and sound of the digital keyboard that introduces the song.

Dec 17, 2021 update: Loosely guided by the lyrics of the song, I added a video about a birthday party that starts out well but doesn’t go as expected.

Steven Finksongwriting, vocals, digital keyboard
Paul Battersbypiano, brass, bass guitar, drums, mixing
YouTube video
Audio only

 

Creative Commons Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

Seven Ages
by Dave Semple, Paul Battersby

(New video added Feb 4, 2024)

A folk song with orchestral accompaniment, about the seven ages of life.

Dave’s idea for this song came from the “All The World’s A Stage” monologue in Shakespeare’s play “As You Like It“

Feb 4, 2024 update: I wanted to make a video for this song for years but only recently, thanks to artificial intelligence, has it been possible to make the images that I needed. All images were created using Playground

show / hide lyrics
Seven Ages
Lyrics by: Dave Semple

When you were seven, so colour blind,
So undefined. Your song: unsung.

From seventeen to twenty-four,
You play at love and tell your lies: the heart’s disguise.

At thirty-one a brand new son
A daughter’s cry a lullaby. The years rush by.

We walk the path. The path we call life.
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the day we all drift into dreams.

Soon forty-five, you realize,
Your jaded eyes make you the fool. The world’s so cruel.

Then sixty-four, another door,
Awaiting you to soon pass through. Will life renew?

We walk the path. The path we call life.
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the war, we all bleed the same shade.

Another turn at seventy-two
The friends that you knew have begun to head home.

At ninety years as memories fade,
The setting sun will soon set for you.

We walk the path. The path we call life.
We are born o’er the tomb, there’s a flash, then there’s night.
The candle burns brief, just an hour in the light.
Will you offer a verse will the song in your heart,
Cross over unsung?

Did you savour each rung?
All the world is our stage, and we all play our parts.
At the end of the game, the king, queen and pawns,
All share the same box.
At the end of the road…

We all fade away.

© Dave Semple – 16 February 2015

Dave Semplesongwriting, vocals, 6 string guitar, 12 string guitar, bodhran
Paul Battersbydrums, bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, string bass, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, (all from Virtual Playing Orchestra sample library) mixing
YouTube video
Audio onlyVisit Dave Semple at Reverb Nation


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Orange And Bronze Colored Waltz
by Tom Gibson, Paul Battersby

I was initially drawn to this song by the name alone. I had to hear what an orange and bronze colored waltz was. I wasn’t disappointed. Very poetic and symbolic lyrics in this one.

From Tom:

It’s a vision piece lyrically, because that’s how we experience a sunset.

show / hide lyrics
Orange And Bronze Colored Waltz
Lyrics by Tom Gibson

The most beautiful girl in the village
Was taking the sun for a walk
The day turned into evening
In an orange and bronze colored waltz
They strolled thru the sand weathered mountains
Silhouette cactus and palms
But the blues watch deserved its relieving
By the orange and bronze colored waltz

(chorus)
Hi dee dee Hi
and it rises
Hi dee dee hi
and it falls
The earth and the moon turned in circles
‘Round an orange and bronze colored waltz

With vision as true as gun barrels
Sighting down worn desert walls
Bloody but still faintly breathing
The orange and bronze colored waltz
The ring the sun gave her turned moonlight
She feared his promise was false
But the love in her heart kept beating
An orange and bronze colored pulse

(chorus)

She went home and dreamt of her lover
As the Sun and Mimosa, Chagall
She held his embrace for the healing
Of his orange and bronze colored fall
The earth is the girl in the village
She’s dressed for the sun in chiffons
The moon’s only there for the dreaming
As they waltz thru the orange and bronze

(chorus)
(chorus)

Tom Gibsonsong writing, guitar, vocals
Paul Battersbydrums, bass guitar, 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello, string bass, flute, piccolo, mixing, video
YouTube video
Audio only

Emmanuel
by Tim Smith, Paul Battersby

(New video added Nov 13, 2020)
This instrumental was composed by Tim Smith but he was looking for new ideas to finish it. Guided by what he already had, I provided new strings, pan flute and choir.

Nov 13, 2020 update: I had an idea for a space themed video to go along with the music so I gathered together some 3D animations and stitched them together in the video below.

Tim Smithoriginal composition, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, synth, electric drums
Paul Battersbystrings, pan flute, choir, drums, tubular bells, mixing, video
YouTube video
Audio only


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