On January 8th, I self-published my new piano album, Serenity. This project was originally going to be an EP companion to Tranquility, which is why the names are similar. I ended up with more material than expected and it became a full album. 

Serenity was recorded entirely on my Yamaha P-255 using the Grand Piano 1 setting which is a concert grand piano that has simulated the sympathetic vibrations of an acoustic piano. I adore this VST and I will be sad when this digital piano declines. My brother says the P-515 is great though and his recordings are beautiful, so when it comes time, I'm sure I won't be too disappointed with the replacement. 

I used Logic Pro 11 to mix and master. It occurred to me that in the past, musicians had teams of people to take care of all the additional tasks. All they needed to do was show up and play their best. Recording takes a long time and is hard work, but then the engineers, publishers and distributors take it from there. 

Since I do all of it, if the tracks are not at the correct loudness or if they clip on some speakers, I apologize. I did my due diligence to the best of my ability to check meters and test on every speaker I could find. I simply don't know how to shape it for every possible speaker, so it sounds best on headphones, sound bars and monitors. It doesn't sound as great on my MacBook Air, iPhone, or car stereo. 

I do the artwork on Canva and use stock imagery. My drawing for my logo is hand-drawn by me using a stock image as a model. 

My hope is that you find calmness and peace while you listen to Serenity. If you play piano or are a piano teacher, I hope that the digital scores that I offer are fun and educational to play. I try to include leveling according to what my current students have been able to play or based on the level I was at when I wrote the piece. 

Since I developed many of these by playing them over and over again after improvising, I am still transcribing a number of these. I sometimes write notes as I go, so Minuet No. 1, Palmisano, and Cat in a Sunbeam were recorded from the finished scores. The Legendary Princess was recorded after I published the score, however I played it from memory on the recording. It is undergoing revisions to be closer to the recording. Romance, Willow Tree by the Brook, Peace Be Still, The Lord Is My Shepherd (Psalm 23), and We Follow You (Psalm 95) were recorded from memory. Kaitlyn and Monaghan were recorded from unfinished rough sketches. 

Therefore, it will take some time to transcribe the entire album. 

Thank you to everyone who has streamed this recording so far. I am excited to continue on this journey of releasing music! I know it has impacted my friends, family and community in a positive way. I am so happy to hear that it is calming and about favorite tracks. 

Sincerely, 

Jenny Laine

Labels: album release, serenity