Schaad self-produced and engineered her newest release, Dream Within a Dream mentored by sound engineer guru, Lynn Murphy, known for his work with Jean-Luc Ponty, Don Henley, and Roger Waters. Schaad’s three earlier releases, The Raven Project (1998), Songspell (1999) and The Journey (2001) focused on her immaculate, virtuosic violin and viola playing in a hybrid style that melded classical, Celtic, blues and world music. Dream Within a Dream, while still based in those traditions, takes Schaad’s music to a whole new level with the infusion of sound loops, samples, field recordings and various techno, synth and even hip-hop elements.
Each song on the album illustrates Schaad’s emotion-filled sensual landscape. “My music is influenced by the movement, tides, seasons of nature. This album is very tied into creating melodic soundscapes that flow, that curl around you, wash over you, brush past you like a breeze. I love how music and nature synchronize,” she says.
Equally important in defining the atmospheres projected throughout Dream Within a Dream was the source of Schaad’s inspiration. Two major life-shaping events combined to define the shape of the music: Schaad’s marriage to a Navy pilot, and the death from cancer of a close friend.
Dream Within a Dream presents an artist whose music responds to the environment and to the times. “I think of these songs as stories that are little worlds, little emotion-scapes, a mood,†concludes Schaad. “It’s relaxing and it’s got a lot of musical content, but it’s also got a lot of emotional content. The idea is that it will endure.â€
Anna is available for interview.
www.annaschaad.com