We love featuring music made by students, teachers and community members! This time we've got a new album from Partha Roy, one of our awesome adult students. Check out the music here:

• Shades of Blue full album by Partha Roy on Spotify
• A Fistful of Quid
• Ebb and Flow
• Illusion
• Don't Surrender
• Echoes of the Past

It all started during the pandemic when our Sunburst band couldn’t jam in person. To be honest, I was (and still am) technologically very naïve and didn’t know anything about DAWs and Audio interfaces, etc. Thanks to tech-savvy band members Max Somerville and Chuck Cranor, who introduced me to those things, and when I bought a Focusrite (which came with Ableton), they were kind and patient enough to walk me through the initial steps. It was very overwhelming for me in the beginning but was fun to learn through trial and error, and I managed to record a demo song “Don’t Surrender” (my first composition ever) that thematically aligned with the dark and depressing phase of COVID. The rest of the tracks came about within a span of a year and a half or so through experimentation and editing.  

What were some of your main inspirations? 

I have always been a huge fan of Pink Floyd, in particular, David Gilmour – their style of music is and will always be my biggest inspiration. I used to dream that I am sitting on the doorstep of David Gilmour’s house waiting for him to magically appear and teach me how to play guitar. Some of the other bands/musicians I also really like are Alice in Chains, Deep Purple, Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Alanis Morrisette, Rush, etc.

What was your process from conception to release? 

In my case, the process often starts without a definitive direction. I would sit with my guitar and work through some chord progressions (since I had no classical training in music, I never know whether the chord sequences are acceptable in a strict musician’s dictionary – I stick to what pleases my ears). When it comes to composing a solo, I also follow an unorthodox method of composing a solo and then retrofitting backing chords. Writing lyrics is always challenging for me. It often starts with some gibberish random lines which I then try to morph into a message/story through several rounds of editing. Initially, I had no idea that I would actually release an album. One of my colleagues (George Stetten), who is also a great musician, gave me some useful tips.     

What’s next for you?

I am working on a few songs and hopefully, in the not too distant future, I would be able to compile a set of songs for another album (at least, that’s the goal!!).