Exclusive audio taken from the upcoming album ‘The Age Of Oddities’…
Dutch composer Rutger Hoedemaekers today releases ‘Goodbye, Donald’, a third single from his debut solo album, ‘The Age Of Oddities’. The album marks the culmination of a decade spent in the hyper-creative studio environment he co-founded in Berlin, including four years working closely alongside Jóhann Jóhannsson. Sonically rich, emotionally deep, and immaculately handled, ‘The Age Of Oddities’ showcases a brilliant new talent, its cinematic eloquence bearing witness to Rutger’s experiences composing for film alongside Oscar-winner Hildur Guðnadóttir and Jóhannsson, for whom the album is partly a eulogy.
Of the single, Rutger writes: “Although the recent reshuffling of world power has a few people chuckling at the track’s title (and some others grunting, as I like to imagine), it actually refers to the British amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst. The title was taken from a piece of music I helped Jóhann score for the closing scene of The Mercy (the James Marsh film and life story of Crowhurst), which was ultimately never used in the final cut. Considering this is an entirely different piece of music, as a little tip of the hat I chose to work with the Budapest Art Orchestra, the very same we used on that score, but in a slightly smaller formation. Alongside their performance my friend Morris Kliphuis delivers a beautiful-but-impossible-to-play horn solo.”
‘The Age Of Oddities’ is a bold and forward-thinking record, with a rich, hybrid sound seeing vocals processed and blurred alongside brass parts and a wall of strings shadowed by Rutger’s understated, textural electronics. Beautifully scored, immaculately performed and recorded, the album utilises the power of Budapest Art Orchestra’s 23-piece string ensemble conducted and co-orchestrated by Viktor Orri Árnason, alongside vocals (Kira Kira, Theatre of Voices’ Else Torp and Laura Jansen), horn (Morris Kliphuis), trombone (Hilary Jeffery) and violin (Una Sveinbjarnardóttir and Viktor Orri Árnason), with Hoedemaekers contributing trumpet, piano, keyboard and electronics.
A powerful and emotive work that closes a deeply productive yet also dark and heavy period for its creator, it sees Hoedemaekers finally stepping out into the spotlight after many years working behind the scenes, revealing a hugely talented new composer who is surely one to watch in coming years.