Composer: Denny Schneidemesser
Album: The First Five Years
Occasionally I find an amazing treasure hidden within the depths of the internet. One day I was rummaging around on a popular art site looking for some new and wondrous visual art to admire when I came across a music file. Not used to finding musicians on this particular site, I investigated further and discovered an amazing composer. The music file that he had shared was an amazing masterpiece, the like that I rarely come across. Absolutely stunned that I had found such magnificent music buried away, I quickly tracked down the composer’s site and found that he had released an album on iTunes last year. I only had to listen to the album once to immediately know that I wanted to share it with all of you, dear readers.
The First Five Years was released last year on iTunes by German composer Denny Schneidemesser. Denny composes film and soundtrack music that is used in movies, advertisements, video games, and short films. Inspired by composers like John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Alan Silvestri, Denny began in 2008 creating music as more of a hobby and is self-taught. In 2009, much to his surprise, Denny was offered his first professional film music composition job and since then has written many soundtracks and was even nominated for an Annie award two years ago for “Tiny Nomad”, which is on the album The First Five Years. In July 2014, Denny compiled 21 of his compositions into The First Five Years and shared his music on iTunes.
The most notable aspect of Denny’s music is the grandeur and elaborate sounds. The tracks on The First Five Years inspire touching moments, deep thoughts, and epic adventures. Amazingly, Denny creates all of his music using keyboards, software like Samplitude Pro, and high-end instruments libraries from Eastwest. The resulting sound is similar to that of a vast orchestra. Given that Denny is self-taught and composing started as a hobby, his talent as a composer and musician is instantly obvious.
Although it is hard to pick a favourite track from so many fabulous ones, “Sea of Crystal” is magnificently unique. As epic and as grand as the other tracks on the album, what I love is how Denny was able to capture the imagery of a fantastical sea of crystal and translate that image into sound. Apart from the mystical and elaborate music that transcends from adventurous to intriguing, the occasional ding that brings to mind images of light hitting massive crystals is an unusual and inspiring effect. It is obvious that Denny takes great care to create music that, although intended to accompany a visual media, can stand on its own and create spectacular mental images.
Music like Denny’s is perfect for students, writers, and creators. Whether you are studying, reading, writing, or just staring at the wall thinking (like I occasionally do), this album is perfect to listen to if you are like me and love having music playing while reading and writing. The tracks are uplifting, emotional, and, with over an hour of music on The First Five Years, you will have lots to choose from. The tracks range from a mere 55 seconds for the intro to a startling 21 minutes.
If you would like to sample some of Denny’s music, many of his tracks are available to stream on his website.
Samantha Stevens is an aspiring writer who loves combining her love for literature with photography, painting, music, and all creative pursuits.
