The Wimshurst's Machine
The Wimshurst's Machine is an award-winning 8-members italian chillout orchestra who play warm, environmental music. The Wimshurst's Machine seamlessly cross from chillout to rock and can leap world borders landing in the Airport at runway progressive electronica. Their music is ideal for big-screen productions.
"Listening to the TWM you'd travel into a relaxing world of good music. TWM plays a mix of acoustic and electronic music, sometimes inspired by ancient or traditional tunes (Irish, indian or spanish), mixed with modern sounds, from chill-out to jazz, with a mix of acoustic and electronic instruments. The music of TWM is something that will make you dream. A dream you won't forget." (published TWM review)
The Wimshurst's Machine is a steampunk-inspired project born by the music passion of each component and a mad idea, developed between friends and colleagues with little time to play together "in person". Thanks to modern softwares and computers (as Propellerhead Reason, Apple Garage Band, Symphonic Orchestra, Sound Studio Pro and Apple Soundtrack), it has become possible to play together even when living apart, recording each track separated from the other bandmembers with modern "home made studios", without loose also the more "common" way to make music: live jamming.
Awards: the band won several awards, but between the more important ones we like to remind that The Wimshurst's Machine was nominated as Best Ambient/New Age at the Hollywood Music in Media Awards in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. In 2006 won the Independent Online Music Awards, in 2007 Music Aid Awards. And there are more.
This Wimshurst's Machine's first album (A traveller who didn't ask for glory) is based on the notion that ancient explorers lived most of their lives through violent but incredible adventures. In this album you may read (and listen to) a story that tells about an ancient traveler that obtained glory while he was searching for himself across the world.
This album reached #2 Top downloaded Electronic album and #26 Overall on the iTunes italian online store on January 12 and 13, 2005!
In The Alchemist (TWM's second album) the storytelling is about an Alchemist, during the spanish late middle age. Also in this other album you may listen to more than 1 hour of music, ideally the soundtrack of the story the CD itself is telling (that you may also read from the CD website), flowing as in a movie.
The 3rd album, Time Traveller (2007), a great project made of 37 tracks in a double CD edition which includes also an 18 pages full-colors booklet with a complete story narrated by Duilio Chiarle and the great illustrations of Daniele Scerra (spectrum artist 2006). As the original 2CD version will be discontinued (as physical album, no problems with the digital version) the band, in 2013, released a single-CD version destinated to be sold via Amazon.com with a remastered content and a brand new cover art.
Out in 2007 also the collection Freedom Lights published by the british label Astranova (only in digital version), remastered selection of tracks from the first two albums and two singles from the 3rd one. See http://www.ambientworlds.co.uk
Out in 2009, Secret Gardens is as always an ambitious album (starting from the cover art, who is a painting of Monica Jsler): together with the "usual" chillout atmospheres there are two "suites", thematic projects inside the album itself. The first one is called "Moonshadows" (Ambient suite in 5 parts), the second collects all the classical-styled works the band composed/rearranged (specially for soundtracks)in a single, 7-tracks suite called "Secret Garden".
Presented in 2009 also Aquarius (the best of TWM), the ideal album to start with if you do not know yet their music (together with Tales (10 years of TWM), that is not a copy of the previous collection but features music also from the 4 years missing in Aquarius, and all the tracks are in a different versions in the two albums.
The band's 5th studio album called Thunder and Lightning was released in 2010, narrating a short sci-fi story with the help of the voice actress Evita Bonino (in italian) in a 4-parts "audio-booklet".
In 2011 the band released a collaboration album with the friend and Hollywood Music in Media Award winner Corrado Rossi, published by the british label Astranova/Ambient Worlds: Tokyo Rain from many judged one of the very best album the band ever published.
As someone was asking for a live album, in 2012 the band decided to release Breathe (Live), a collection of previously unreleased tracks and live jams recorded live between 2010 and 2012.
In 2013 the band announced the release of Clockwork Life, that is running late (probably release date 2014) but published a collection to celebrate the 10 years of activity, named Tales (10 years of TWM), an album that contains all the award-winning music, the most-wanted ones, some new version of their classical successes and two previously unreleased tracks and the amazing cover art of Daniele Scerra.
All the albums are available for sale on iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, CDbaby and most digital (and physical) music retailers.
Why this name? Because there is nothing as fascinating as an old technology, so we chose this old precursor that made possible even the use of electricity in modern times. The choice happened by chance, talking in a brewery, while looking for an original band name that would show the world how complicated but fascinating our project is.
Influences: Very difficult to tell them all. TWM just plays what's going on in their heads and hearts and each one of them likes different kinds of music, but the union of the 8 of us created something that looks like Cafe Del Mar or Buddha Bar as a 1st impression. We like the idea to set a mood for the complete album, that has to be an experience in itself and not "just" a collection of songs.
Similar Artists: The Alan Parsons Project, Mike Oldfield, Clannad, Art of Noise, David Arkenstone, Loreena McKennitt, Moby, Robert Miles, Kitaro, Saint Germain, Mario Biondi, Cirque Du Soleil.
Equipment used: TWM do have plenty of acoustic instruments from Saxophones (soprano, alto, tenor and baritone), clarinet, flutes (specially ethnic, from all over the world), guitars (classic and spanish), trumpets, dulcimer, bagpipes, mandolin, drums and lots of others... but TWM have also plenty of electric guitars, many different MIDI keyboards/controllers and so on. At the same time they also use powerful softwares, to record their music professionally but at same time at low cost (the main rule to can keep totally independent).
Before let you go... While several TWM bandmembers do support a non-profit organization for distance adoption of Madacascar's children (with personal donations), the band (as band) also decided to give the money raised with the CD sales for Charity (and precisely 50% of the money raised out of expenses), precisely, and support the Partners in Health project. The PIH Vision: At its root, their mission is both medical and moral. It is based on solidarity, rather than charity alone. When a person in Peru, or Siberia, or rural Haiti falls ill, PIH uses all of the means at their disposal to make them well from pressuring drug manufacturers, to lobbying policy makers, to providing medical care and social services. Whatever it takes. On internet: http://www.pih.org
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