Top > Podcasts by Piano Players - by Amyloo > Piano by Joel: Works in Progress -- Inspirational, improvisational piano music, suitable for contemplation, worship, relaxation, and meditation. Podcast

Londonderry Air (Danny Boy).

Here it is, Londonderry Air, a.k.a. Danny Boy. Enjoy it with a hot, steaming plate of corned beef and cabbage.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Snow and Ivory is on CD Baby.

Just in time for Christmas! Well, maybe a little early...

You can check out Snow and Ivory: Solo Piano Portraits for Christmas here:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/joelrosenberger2

I actually released this CD in December, but this is the first time it has been available online. If you click that link, you'll find a photo and description of the CD, as well as an extended preview of each track. I think you'll find that this project is more professionally done than my first CD, Fresh Hymns.

You can also see all of my CDs (all two of them) by clicking the link below.

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Piano by Joel Goes To Washington - Sunday, March 25.

The DaVinci Academy from Colorado Springs, CO will be using the Fresh Hymns arrangement of God Be With You Till We Meet Again in their March 25th performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Congratulations to this group for winning the 2006 Creative Ticket National School of Distinction. You can catch them live online on Sunday, March 25, at 6 PM Eastern at the Kennedy Center Site:
http://www.kennedy-center.org.

The arrangement was originally featured in February 2006. If you haven't heard it yet, click here to listen.

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot. Hello, friends and neighbors, both old and new. To those of you who celebrate Easter at this time of year, happy Easter! He is risen indeed!

This old spiritual probably needs no introduction. I invite you to take some time out today to listen to this delicate piano rendition of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Taps. Greetings to all piano fans, and a happy Memorial Day to my American listeners.

Today's piano rendition of the haunting bugle call, Taps, is dedicated to all those who have served in the past and present, and their families. There are no official lyrics, but here are the words to one of the traditional verses:

Day is done, gone the sun,
From the hills, from the lake,
From the sky.
All is well, safely rest,
God is nigh.

This reminds me of the scripture:

Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

James 4:8

Thank you for your service to your country.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Just a Closer Walk with Thee.

Greetings! I was improvising this morning on the old traditional gospel favorite, Just a Closer Walk with Thee, and I thought you might enjoy hearing it. When I think of this piece, I think of New Orleans jazz, so I was being a bit playful at the keys. Happy listening!

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

This is My Father's World (Terra Beata).

Hello everyone! It's been a while. I hope those of you in the northern hemisphere enjoyed your summer. If you'd like to hear a new recording, I've got one for you.

You may have sung this poem by Maltbie Babcock (1858-1901) set to the traditional tune that was originally adapted by by Franklin Sheppard (1852-1930.) This is my rendition of the melody, Terra Beata. Enjoy the music.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Snow and Ivory is on iTunes!.

I was hoping that Snow and Ivory: Solo Piano Portraits for Christmas would make it to iTunes before Christmas, and it looks like it has! If you have iTunes installed, you can take a look at the CD by clicking this link:

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=266446927&;s=143441

As always, thank you for listening.

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Just a Closer Walk with Thee, Rainy Day Jazz Version.

If you've been with me a while, you may have guessed my dirty little secret... You will usually hear me play solo, since I keep my own time. Or at least some semblance thereof. Today I'd like to treat you to something fun I put together, a light jazz rendition of Just a Closer Walk with Thee, along the lines of Norah Jones meets Ray Charles. Along with the piano, you'll hear the rotary organ (I really like that sound), and the world premier of "jazz guitar solo by Joel." Yes, folks, the guitar is the real thing, not some electronic facsimile. And I've been wanting to record it for a while.

I hope you enjoy "Joel Rosenberger and His Orchestra..."

Click Here to Listen

Also be sure to check out my Christmas CD, newly on iTunes. This CD includes a lot of music you haven't heard on the podcast. Thanks!

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

There's Power in the Blood.

Today's piece is the old late 1800's camp meeting tune, There's Power in the Blood, by Lewis E. Jones (1865-1936.) I was sitting at the keyboard one day, playing with some melodic ideas, and what resulted is this delicate arrangement. I hope you enjoy it.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Score: God Be With You Till We Meet Again.

Back in March, the DaVinci Academy from Colorado Springs, Colorado performed a vocal rendition of my piano arrangement of God Be With You Till We Meet Again in Washington, D.C. Today, I'm pleased to offer you the piano score to that arrangement. If you'd like to hear the original recording, check out this post.

Click Here to Download Score (or right-click and choose "save as.")

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Ancient Sunrise, a really short duduk experiment.

This very short piece (30 seconds) features an electronically sampled Armenian duduk, which has a haunting sound with an almost human quality. I was playing around with the sound and some techniques one day, and I liked the result, so here it is for you to enjoy (or not...)

I think this is my first podcast episode with no recorded piano, whatsoever. Don't worry, I'm not giving up on the ivories, just exploring (always exploring) new ways to interpret old hymns.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Be Thou My Vision (MacDonald Family Mix).

If you need a break from holiday music for a few minutes, I hope you'll listen to this rendition of Be Thou My Vision from the new MacDonald Family Singers CD, Power in the Blood. It's an honor when others perform my arrangements, and Carol MacDonald does a phenomenal job on the vocals. You'll find the original arrangement and score in this post from 2005. Also, Kim and Judy Smith performed their unique take in this 2006 post.

Try to catch the MacDonald Family Singers in concert sometime. These guys travel the U.S. in their tour bus, performing their special brand of Christ-centered music, and giving away thousands of CDs. They also offer plenty of free music downloads on their web site at http://www.macdonaldfamilysingers.com.

Enjoy the piece! Again, it features Carol on the flute and vocals, and Laurie at the piano. Ahh, the piano.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Silent Night (Bamboo Flute Mix).

If you're new here, most of my postings really are piano arrangements, believe it or not. But since I've been experimenting with new sounds lately, some of the results are bound to spill over into my podcast.

This rendition of Silent Night, featuring the solo bamboo flute, is suitable for an evening on a Judean hillside, or at home with the lights out. Sit back and let it take you somewhere far away.

Till next time.

Click here to listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

O Come Emmanuel (Orchestral Mix).

First of all, let me wish a Merry Christmas and a warm season's greetings to everyone. Now, on to my Christmas gift for you.

This arrangement of O Come Emmanuel is more sophisticated than my usual offerings, with both symphonic and atmospheric qualities influenced by some of the great film score composers. This rendition features ancient instruments such as the filimbi, duduk, oud, cornu, kantele, ram's horn (suggestive of the shofar), and percussion, as well as a modern string section, choir and solo cello. There's a lot of variety, and things keep changing musically as the piece moves forward. For you gearheads, I mixed my music with Ableton Live 6 (it's not just for hip-hop and electronica anymore!) coupled with GigaStudio.

Download and Enjoy! Merry Christmas.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

BBN Airplay.

A little bird told me that I Wonder as I Wander from Snow and Ivory: Piano Portraits for Christmas was heard on said little bird's local radio station in the BBN network, which provides Christian radio programming worldwide. It's always nice for an artist when a song gets airplay! If you'd like to hear BBN, the easiest way is to navigate to http://www.bbnradio.org/ and listen online. And Merry Christmas! I'll also mention that... hey... what's that in the chimney?...

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Angels in the Snow.

Happy New Year! This original composition used to be titled Kids in the Leaves, but seeing that it's winter here in the northern hemisphere, I changed it to Angels in the Snow. As you listen, I think you'll find that either title is appropriate.

I'm currently working on an arrangement of The Day Thou Givest, Lord, Has Ended. I hope to have it ready soon, for your listening pleasure. In the meantime, enjoy Angels.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, is Ended.

Today's piece is the Clement Scholefield (1839-1904) melody, The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, is Ended. The melody is beautiful, and the lyrics (below), powerful.

A listener once requested this song, which I had not heard before, to my recollection. So I listened and learned. It's beautiful. The rendition you're about to hear (link below) begins with the choir, smoothly transitions to the piano, cello, and other strings, followed by a clarinet solo, then a majestic finish. This arrangement doesn't do the song justice, but I like to think of it as a step in that direction.

Here are the great lyrics, penned by John Ellerton (1826-1893.) Make sure you read all the way to the fourth stanza to get the full effect of the epic nature of this song.

The day Thou gavest, Lord, is ended,
The darkness falls at Thy behest;
To Thee our morning hymns ascended,
Thy praise shall sanctify our rest.

We thank Thee that Thy church, unsleeping,
While earth rolls onward into light,
Through all the world her watch is keeping,
And rests not now by day or night.

As o’er each continent and island
The dawn leads on another day,
The voice of prayer is never silent,
Nor dies the strain of praise away.

The sun that bids us rest is waking
Our brethren ’neath the western sky,
And hour by hour fresh lips are making
Thy wondrous doings heard on high.

So be it, Lord; Thy throne shall never,
Like earth’s proud empires, pass away:
Thy kingdom stands, and grows forever,
Till all Thy creatures own Thy sway.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Be Thou My Vision (Solo Piano with Cello) a.k.a. Slane.

Some of you who have been with Piano by Joel since the beginning will recall that I've previously recorded Be Thou My Vision, to the tune of the old Irish folk tune, Slane. But since I am always trying to improve the quality, musicality, and expressiveness of my work, I wanted to bring you something new. (Fresh?) This version features the solo piano, of course, giving the arrangement a contemporary feel; but I think you'll also find that the playing style, and the accompanying cello, lend a certain ancient quality to the piece.

Here are the lyrics, translated into English by Eleanor Hull around the turn of the century:

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art

High King of Heaven, my victory won
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all

Until next time.

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

For the Beauty of the Earth (By Request).

A young listener (more and more people are "young") and piano music aficionado requested that I play For the Beauty of the Earth, the old hymn with music by conrad Kocher (1786-1872) and words by Fol­li­ot S. Pier­point (1835-1917.) An appropriate tune for springtime, as I'm waiting for my front lawn to grow.

For the beauty of the earth
For the glory of the skies
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies

Lord of all to Thee we raise
This our hymn of grateful praise

Click Here to Listen

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

A Piano Haiku.

Eighty-eight keys wait
Black and white poised for action
The fingers descend.

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

"Hope" by Leo Loredo. Yes, I know I specialize in introspective piano music, and don't usually recommend CCM. But I heard an upbeat, uplifting song by the independent Christian vocalist Leo Loredo today, so if you happen to be surfing for new music as you're reading this, I recommend that you head over to his page for a listen:

http://www.indieheaven.com/artist_main.php?id=48226

Click on the song, Hope. It's based on Jeremiah 29:11, For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. If you like it, head to the charts, choose "Contemporary," and give it 5 stars:

http://www.indieheaven.com/fanfaves.php

Of course, when you're done, you're welcome to come back here and download more mp3s.

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Fresh Piano in the Top 100 on the ReverbNation.com Folk Chart. I noticed it this morning... your Fresh Pianist is in the top 100 on the ReverbNation.com folk chart, out of over 4000 artists. Since these things tend to be fleeting, I wanted to share it and enjoy it while I can:

The ReverbNation.com charts are based on the "relative value of [the artist's] aggregate fan relationships at any given point in time." So in one sense, it's a measure of how great my listeners are, and I appreciate your support since 2005. You can continue to help by listening and sharing the music.

ReverbNation is not a Christian site. They provide management and promotional tools to all kinds of bands, playing all kinds of music. Admittedly, yes, moving up a chart feels good, kind of like winning at a game of Scrabble. But it's also nice to see quiet, instrumental piano hymns up there, shining like a lighthouse. Score one for sleepy music. At least while it lasts.

You can see my ReverbNation.com profile here:
http://www.reverbnation.com/freshpiano

I'll end this post the same way I end my e-mails. All glory to God, -Joel

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Neil Patton.

I met Neil Patton yesterday, virtually, the same way I meet most other musicians. He's a Christian pianist that has recorded some original works that I'm sure you'll enjoy:

http://www.indieheaven.com/artist_main.php?id=10234

I recommend four songs to get a fuller picture of the kind of music this guy makes:

  • Toccata
  • First Steps
  • Water of Life
  • Jig

If you're just surfing around the web for music, just launch the above link and hit the play button. If you like him, be sure to click the 5-star rating at the top of his page, then leave him a comment! Tell him Joel sent you.

Don't forget to come back here when you're done to download more piano hymn mp3s!

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

Face to Face with Christ My Savior (By Request).

Here's a new one for you... a gentle improvisation on the old 1898 hymn melody from by Grant Tullar (1869-1950) with words by Carrie Breck (1855-1934.)

Face to face I shall behold Him
Far beyond the starry sky
Face to face in all His glory
I shall see Him by and by

Thanks for listening! And if you have a moment, please pray for continued creativity as I improvise and arrange music. Enjoy the piece.

Click Here to Listen/Download

For lots of free, original music, check out http://www.freshpiano.com.
By noreply@blogger.com (Joel Rosenberger).

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7/19/2008; 2:49:48 PM Eastern.
Refresh.