Toby Hay
https://soundcloud.com/miranda-whall/toby-hay-sheep-song
Toby Hay is a guitarist and composer from near Rhayader in Mid Wales, he makes instrumental music inspired by the landscape, people and history of the area.
With influences from all over the world, he makes music to capture the atmosphere of the special and under represented part of Wales where he lives, adding to the long tradition of Welsh string music.
I asked Toby:
What aspect of the landscape inspired your composition
How did you approach writing the composition
How did you approach playing the composition
How did you approach recording the composition
What technical, structural, formal aspects of the composition are specifically interesting
He replied:
The mid Wales landscape is my home and is also my biggest inspiration. Working on this
project came very naturally to me, and was very similar to the creative process I use on my own
music.
The piece is entirely improvised. I performed it in one take. Trying to capture the ‘sense’ of a the place.
I put the 12 string guitar into a tuning I had never used before, in order to prevent me falling back on
tried and tested patterns on the instrument. This way, I was able to let the music dictate the flow of the piece, rather
than muscle memory causing me to repeat myself.
I recorded the piece at Giant Wafer studios in mid Wales. I spent four days there in November recording my new album.
I decided to take advantage of the great space and great gear, and record this piece their also.
I suppose it is free in form, I wasn’t really sure where it would end up as I begun, and so in someways,
represents a journey through a space.