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Between The Sky and the Moon

by Alec Stern

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about

I made this piece of music for someone close to me who has been struggling.

As someone formerly diagnosed myself, Depression is an elusive thing; difficult to explain or understand, but so much more challenging to live with. Much of what we tend to take for granted becomes unbearable. The draining of energy, dark thought loops, and deeply felt pain seemingly always make their way to the front of the line. It can be a struggle unlike anything else.

This person close to me has also had great difficulty listening to music as of late. Songs, even if only heard once, will get stuck in his head on a loop that borders on maddening. Because of this, music has become a genuinely scary thing for him, which as a musician and music lover, breaks my heart. I wanted to make something for him that might feel a little more tolerable; a piece of ambient music, long and formless enough that there is very little to get "stuck" in the way more traditional songs do. Something loose, wordless, and based fully on improvisation and feel that just might slip past some of the darkness toward a place more calming, nurturing, and safe. I felt real purpose in making it, and as soon as it was done, I felt it was worth sharing more broadly.

Today marks the one-year mark since most of us went into lockdown. I remember those early days; the mixture of boredom, uncertainty, and in many moments gratitude on all that this newly-stopped world was providing. More time with family. More stillness. But the idyllic "this will be a fun two weeks and then everything will go back to normal" quickly faded into something much more...permanent. This is, and continues to be, the defining event of our lifetimes. And so, even with hope on the horizon, there is a lot to reflect on today.

On this one-year anniversary, I wanted to share this piece of music with the hope that it provides a space to feel whatever you need to feel as you reflect back on all that has happened, and most importantly, the hope that is to come. The piece is thirty-six minutes and fifty seconds long, meant to signify the 365 days we have been in this floating place; between where we were and where we were planning on going, between normal and abnormal, between hope and uncertainty, between rest and unease. Between everything.

Be well.

credits

released March 12, 2021
Artwork by Laura Carrillo

www.instagram.com/lauracarrilloart/

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Alec Stern Chicago, Illinois

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