About this project
Thirty years just flew by – thirty incredible years.
In 1993, the band started playing Monday nights at Visiones in Greenwich Village, a moment that publicly launched the Maria Schneider Orchestra.
In 1994, only one year later, our first album, Evanescence, would be released. That launched another beginning to a long and beautiful recording career that has brought the band eight albums, multiple Grammy Awards, oodles more awards and many beautiful collaborations.
While I deeply treasure our many accolades, what has always most motivated me is human connection: firstly, connections made with my musicians, who despite the countless solitary hours spent honing their individual artistry, always open themselves to be completely vulnerable to one another in every performance as they await the unexpected. That unexpected magic is largely found because of you. You are the deep motivator, and your presence has been key to us developing our music over the years.
An image was just recently brought to my attention by potter, Jack Troy. Many of you will recall that Jack's work inspired "Stone Song" and his pottery is even "played" on the recording by Johnathan Blake. Anyway, Jack's email described the effect of robins singing at sunrise in a long succession of song, traveling from the east coast to the west coast as the sun slowly rises along a moving horizon. It got me thinking about recording and how unique it is. When a recording resonates with listeners around the world, it has the potential to form a continuous stream of resonance, perhaps even vibrating continuously around the whole planet. It made me wonder if it's possible that our recordings have at any time over the years rung continuously for a magically vibrating 24-hour orbit around our whole earth? It's certainly a wonderful thing to imagine.
Those of us who thrive on vibrational sound, audiophiles and casual listeners alike, generally agree that no recorded sound magically vibrates like vinyl. If I were to wish for my music to make that 24-hour trip around the globe, I'd want those vibrations to start with a phonograph needle moving along the grooves of vinyl. Just one problem: none of my albums have ever been on vinyl.
So, in contemplating how to celebrate these past thirty years in the most special way I can imagine, I’ve decided to release three LPs, each representing some of my favorite music from each respective decade. I've been searching my heart for music especially meaningful to me; whether it's a piece that I feel represents an experience of mine particularly well, or whether it’s a piece that simply makes me look back with satisfaction and say, "Damn, that’s good!"
My next thought was this: I want that these 3 LPs to be beautifully packaged. I knew who to call. Beauty is assured with the artistry of Cheri Dorr who designed The Thompson Fields and Data Lords.
The remastered LPs will come from the following recordings:
Decade I: Evanescence, Coming About and Allégresse
Decade II: Concert in the Garden and Sky Blue
Decade III: The Thompson Fields and Data Lords
For me personally, I've found there has been deep value in me looking back on these decades in a way that I’ve not done before. So, I’ll want to share a lot about those newfound perspectives through ArtistShare. And, I will of course include interviews with many of the masterful musicians that have played this music.
I couldn’t be more excited. I sincerely hope you’ll want to be a part of this project as we mark nearly a third of a century and forge ahead into the next unknown.
