Swiss by soil, German by passport - marcus loeber entered the world of musical chairs in the year 1967. And at a mere two years old, shortly after uttering the word “Mum” and “Dad”, he was already crooning his own rendition of Belafonte`s “Mathilda”. At the tender age of four he was convinced: The Phillips Radio played host to an entire orchestra and marcus was found disillusioned after disassembling the device and coming up short of any hidden musicians. In 1972, he became best friend with his first piano. Together they went through a succession of piano instructors, for loeber was never really into taking “notes”! To the delight (or frustration) of his inaugural teacher, he did however manage to come up with his own song the very first session. Three years later he successfully made his first recording, marcus still has the tape to proof it.

But music was only one ingredient of the gene pool loeber leaped out of. One side of the loeber dynasty ventured to America to become the largest BMW/Mercedes dealership in the country. Another loeber proved to be an inventive engineer. Thus, marcus was given talents other than music which could be the reason behind a slight detour in career planning. After Abitur and a brief stint in business, he dabbled in law but never quite envisioned himself a lawyer. Having been thoroughly infatuated with the likes of Debussy, Smetana , Scriabin and most of all, Brahms on the classical front and with Duke Ellington, Loussier and Sample from the jazz-infused side, his true calling surely lay somewhere else. Upon hearing Keith Jarrett`s Köln-Concert, he was well on his way. First, into a whole different direction, though.

Go West, young man! loeber went East! Long before anybody thought about walls come tumbling down, the hopeful musician entered a black American soul band and communist Poland. In 1985 that must have been likely one of the more exotic sightings for the musically deprived comrades. loeber does not beg to differ. By his own account, he “almost got caught and brought to the Warszawa zoo”

Go commercial, young man! And in 1994 loeber did. Unlike his academic efforts, these endeavors turned anything but sour. They turned heads. Must have been the right tunes at the right time. Just ask Swatch, Telekom, Audi, BMW, Lufthansa, Guiness and numerous others. He has worked in Sardine, Israel, the UK and ... Bavaria. More than 700 commercials to this present day ... and counting. One of them, accidentally - loeber was composing for his latest CD “Songs for Emelie” inspired by the birth of his first daughter, when one of his clients would not take “No” for an answer. They had to have it for their campaign.

In recent years, marcus loeber has branched out. His successful work as arranger and songwriter has increasingly made him more sought-after for projects far beyond the commercial horizon. With all this success under his belt, one of his dreams is bound to come true any given day: to write the score for a mayor motion picture in Hollywood.

The music of marcus loeber

Spontaneous, pure, improvised – that is my music. And that also happens to be my approach to music. Just to pluck away never really did it for me. My music has a motive, a track, if you will, a lead that I follow and keep searching for. Constantly. My music has a beginning. And it has an ending. If you do hear something in the background, splashing water or a bird singing, it is because somebody accidentally left the studio door open. It is genuine. Authentic. Just like my music.

Authenticity. Or … musical integrity. They exist thanks to a recording technology both intricate and intriguing. A technique that renders even the slightest details of the piano audible. Not only will you hear every single stroke of the keys, your ears will come across the resonance of the pedals. Not even the dampers that dampen the sound will escape your attention. Blue Notes? But of course, as they are an integral part of being spontaneous, of constantly improvising. How else to make the music feel utmost intimate and authentic. Generally, you are bound to keep a distance between you and the grand piano. Not with me. You are sitting right next to me while I am playing.

SONGS FOR EMELIE VOL I

What drives people to make music? The joy of playing, the desire to express emotions, the nurturing of the soul – there are so many reasons. The motive behind this particular music, behind those 17 songs you are about to listen to? Simple. The happiest day of my life, the day my daughter Emelie was born. Every song has a theme carefully reflecting and exploring moments, most of them full of joy yet a few hesitant, almost bordering on fear. For I was venturing into uncharted territory. What you about to hear are the musical chronicles of immanent fatherhood, the first improvisations tracing back to the days right after her birth, the last ones while witnessing Emelie taking her first steps. I hope you have as much pleasure listening as I had making them

1. FIRST MOVE

The first improvisation after day one. I was almost in a state of shock. The nicest shock imaginable, my head played host to mixed feelings ... happiness, a bit of fear perhaps, hope. FIRST MOVE encompasses an array of emotions that you go through as a new father. The beginning is contemplative, almost tentative. Thoughts running wild, all of them kept afloat by the complete joy that everything had gone so smoothly. The recordings were done single-handedly. I did not want to feel any pressure. The studio was empty, the moon had dipped the garden into an almost Mediterranean light und the surreal silence was only interrupted by the sound of the grand piano. Every detail is clearly audible, I have foregone all sound manipulations. Listen closely and the subtleties a piano enunciates will truly amaze you ...

2. I WOULD TELL YOU

What? That`s easy. Everything a father wants to tell his newborn child. But how? Words do not reach. Yet. Melodies, however, do. Thus, I have put all my feelings, all my love for my daughter into his song. Emelie`s first love song.

3. GOOD NIGHT

Imagine. Your baby, as it sleeps peacefully, those tiny armed wrapped around its little head. A sight to behold. Surely, it dreams something. I have tried to accompany Emelie`s dreams with this song. GOOD NIGHT is careful and dreamy. And so hushed, that it would not wake her up ...

4. ONE FINGER

The name says it all. A song about the smallest hands in the world. With the tiniest of fingers. ONE FINGER. The title starts with a very simple melody played with just one finger. Later the other nine are allowed to join the fun. Something reminded me of the great Duke Ellington who was once asked while giving an interview about the beautiful melody he was just playing. “I was just dreaming“, he quipped.

5. BRAHMS LULLABY

The mother of all lullabies. Is there really more to say? There is. Because my interpretation deviates from the original in more than one way. Notice the pauses between each melodic flow? Interruptions, yet without deliberation, just a bow to the fact that even while playing, the thinking does not stop. Nor does the improvising, the interaction of trial and error. All of which renders this song so spontaneous, without a method, without notes. What you hear is Brahms making his way from my heart through my head into my fingers.

6. SARABANDE

At the beginning there was the musical box. The piano being its logical ally, like a giant footnote with huge content. SARABANDE is a dance thriving on motion yet constantly changing directions that leaves the fundamentals slightly out of focus. Exactly how I feel about this song. Tangible, yet unable to grasp.

7. WIDELANDS

The view from my studio offers a lot. For instance, so many trees you can hardly see the forest. However, it is not really what you would call panorama. But with a little fantasy you can imagine yourself beyond the horizon. While doing that I came up with this beautiful melody.

8. THOUGHTS

Perfect states of tranquility, moments of timeless quiescence, instances of being completely relaxed, try to imagine those. And then ... listen. I have managed to give my utmost bliss a musical frame. While at the same time collecting every subtle sound the piano can possibly utter. With ever so tender sounds. I almost fell asleep ...

9. SECOND TRACK

And had I passed out ... I would have not been on to SECOND TRACK. The second improvisation of the evening. With a few insecure, almost sad undertones, however, they are an integral part of happiness. So much that runs through ones head. That burning desire to do things right, the sudden responsibility that lingers. But it is all for the best for it puts true happiness into perspective.

10. YOUR BLUE EYES

No, not a homage to Ol` Blue Eyes. Rather a hymn to the most wonderful and dark blue eyes of my daughter.

11. I SEE LOVE

Love. There can never be enough. Therefore, there can never be enough love songs. Here is another one for Emelie.

12. FAREWELL

Fortunately, an incident completely unrelated to my daughter. Nevertheless, somehow fitting during those times. I had to say goodbye. A very final goodbye for a good friend has passed away. Circumstances under which FAREWELL developed.

13. I WOULD TELL YOU

Twice the charm, double the fun? Not really. But this melody just would not let go of me. So, what could I do but to play her again, vary her slightly and put her on the record.

14. SONG FOR EMELIE

One night, just Emelie and me. She had trouble sleeping, probably stomach cramps. So there I stood, helpless, at her bed, trying to comfort the poor thing. My words were flowing, so were her tears. I gently caressed her little face and began to hum. And in my head a melody popped up. This melody. I found the time to wrote it down because my daughter had fallen to sleep almost instantly. Today, whenever she hears the song her whole face lights up. This song in a musical box, there could not be a more fitting gift for Emelie.

15. TIGER'S TUNE

A song from August 2003. Friends had just had Tiger, their first son. For me it was like being revisited by the sentiments I went through earlier in the year. I was outside looking in, with fascination, how a child immediately changes all the parents` priorities. At once. Like Emelie did it with us. All of a sudden, the whole spirit of human instincts become evident. To succumb to them while still being true to yourself – that is the trick. TIGER'S TUNE reflects these notions of composure and ease. Speaking of “ease“, the song appeared to have eased Tiger's digestive problems. As it is rumored by the proud father.

16. OUTRO

An ending yet a new beginning. Borrowed from one of the most famous German lullabies. For me the gateway to many beautiful melodies to come. For Emelie will surely be the source of inspiration. She will be my muse.

17. FIRST WALK (Etude for 2 Pianos und six Hands)

October 2003. A song dedicated to Emile`s ever increasing range of activities. She laughs, she crawls and, unless it is five feet high, there is not a single object that those tiny fingers can not get their hands on. Time to write a song that requires more than two hands to play. So I did. An etude for six hands for two pianos. One of my commercial clients became so enthralled with the song, they asked to use it for one of their commercials. It will now be running for about three years. After that, they need to sort out the copyright issues ... with Emelie.