Fragments of a daydream
With his roots in the city of Belfast, a chilhood spent in the north of England and his home in Berlin, Aidan Bartley feels in his own words “half at home everywhere but not really at home, anywhere”.
Indeed, after graduating in theology and philosophy in 1988, he wandered from the ‘straight and narrow’ to spend several years performing on the streets and underground trains around Europe. Over the last decade he’s swapped the streets, strada and calles to perform in venues across Europe, USA and Australia producing 4 critically acclaimed CDs in the process.Fragments of a Daydream is the 5th CD by Aidan Bartley but the first composed entirely of instrumentals. The 14 pieces, or fragments, ranging from the minimalistic to the majestic, were written by Bartley and recorded with the help of a dozen other Berlin-based musicians. Guitar, piano and percussion are the main instrumental forces on the CD whose arrangements are subtly augmented by the use of strings, oboe, accordion, melodica, vibes, glockenspiel, mbira or harpsichord.
Whether evoking the melancholy of the rugged Irish coastline, the light and expanse of the Spanish interior, or a smoky Tango bar in Buenos Aires, Bartley’s own musical world is always recognisable and evident on the CD - a world that is alternatively playful, poignant, humorous and hypnotic.
The atmospheric and evocative quality of his music has been extensively employed for numerous film, television and radio productions. Additionally, Bartley has also been commisioned to compose music for theatre, dance and acrobatic performances.
‘Fragments of a Daydream’ was one of the last CDs to be recorded in the ‘legendary’ Beat Studios in Berlin before the Senate-run studio finally closed its door last year. Fragments of a Daydream was released in November 2008 via Phonector.