# Debut Album 'Freedom' - Singles + Full Release!



## ChrisSiuMusic

Hi friends,

I'm very proud to share my lead single 'Spark' from my debut album 'Freedom'.

Inspired by Pixar's Soul, this song tells the story of someone who is feeling lost and overwhelmed, but can be comforted knowing that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and that hope is never lost.

I really hope you enjoy it, and have a wonderful rest of your Monday! 2 more singles will be coming soon, along with the full album release on August 15th. 

Thanks so much,
Chris


https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http...n5FsBk8noW4x9b2GX-1oIcZj-gHJiw8zGguoImIT9DWJ8


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## doctoremmet

Congratulations Christopher!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

doctoremmet said:


> Congratulations Christopher!


Thank you so much!


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## marclawsonmusic

Congrats Chris!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

marclawsonmusic said:


> Congrats Chris!


Thank you!


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## PeterN

Nice,

Are you releasing it yourself?

I saw your vid about mixing and mastering yourself. Are you like me, you even make the vids yourself? heh. Nice vid too!


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## Stringtree

There's something very hipster about your voice. Maybe a little Death Cab for Cutie. I like it, and the rawness of the lyrics at times belies the light feel of the animation and instrumentation. Maybe you're just Canadian.

Look at you. Doing what you were going in the direction toward doing. That's inspiring. I think you understand the meeting in the middle of ideas for adults and ideas for children.

In any case, way to go. I need slammin' drums and a few rock instruments, but your work is nice.

Thanks for sharing your music, and the bunch of other stuff you do.


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## ReelToLogic

Congratulations, Chris! I can picture this being part of a Disney movie.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

PeterN said:


> Nice,
> 
> Are you releasing it yourself?
> 
> I saw your vid about mixing and mastering yourself. Are you like me, you even make the vids yourself? heh. Nice vid too!


Thanks Peter! Yes the whole album is a self-release, so I'm very excited for it naturally.  

Regarding the videos, being a perfectionist I'd definitely want to do it, but I know my limits when it comes to visual art, so I knew it'd be a LOT better if I handed it off to someone who knew what they were doing. Same idea with the mixing/mastering, our own @DovesGoWest offered to help me out with the mixing/mastering for the album so I handed him the reins! 

Thanks again.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

ReelToLogic said:


> Congratulations, Chris! I can picture this being part of a Disney movie.


Many thanks!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Stringtree said:


> There's something very hipster about your voice. Maybe a little Death Cab for Cutie. I like it, and the rawness of the lyrics at times belies the light feel of the animation and instrumentation. Maybe you're just Canadian.
> 
> Look at you. Doing what you were going in the direction toward doing. That's inspiring. I think you understand the meeting in the middle of ideas for adults and ideas for children.
> 
> In any case, way to go. I need slammin' drums and a few rock instruments, but your work is nice.
> 
> Thanks for sharing your music, and the bunch of other stuff you do.


Well I AM Canadian... XD But thanks my man.

Trust me, there's a rockin song in the album, just you wait.


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## [email protected]

Hi, Chris, I understand that a lot of work went into the production of this song and I can imagine that the album is a project very important to you. Reading through this thread made me think about the style and characteristics of the "Pixar" and "Disney" genres.

For some reason it seems that your name is heavily connected with the "Disney" style and for "Spark" you refer to Pixar. If people wouldn't have mentioned that this sounds disney-like to them I honestly wouldn't have noticed. For me it seems that a typical Pixar song normally starts very reduced (voice & guitar/voice & piano) and then bringing in the orchestra slowly. Since you already start with the orchestra, this "Pixar-intimate-song"-moment is not there for me. This is totally fine, of course, it just doesn't remind me primarily of Pixar.

And with Disney I mostly associate very lush orchestration and strong melodies which could also work like themes in the instrumental scores - the themes of Disney's (animated) MULAN by Goldsmith come into mind which were also used as song melodies - or the songs of Leigh Harline, for example "When You Wish Upon a Star". Here the very strong theme is introduced in lush orchestrated strings (a lot of part-writing) and interrupted by very "sparkling" woodwinds.
In "Spark" you leave a lot of room between the individual phrases so that there is no strong line holding everything together. I don't think that the vocal lines could be also used as strong instrumental themes but are mostly shaped after the rhythm of the words and how you wanted to phrase them. So I would be very interested to know: What was before? The words or the "melody"?

So I would be very interested in what was important to you to create a "Pixar" or "Disney" feeling and which are the most important characteristics of this genre?


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## CGR

ChrisSiuMusic said:


> Hi friends,
> 
> I'm very proud to share my lead single 'Spark' from my debut album 'Freedom'.
> 
> Inspired by Pixar's Soul, this song tells the story of someone who is feeling lost and overwhelmed, but can be comforted knowing that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and that hope is never lost.
> 
> I really hope you enjoy it, and have a wonderful rest of your Monday! 2 more singles will be coming soon, along with the full album release on August 15th.
> 
> Thanks so much,
> Chris
> 
> 
> https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--MrbIRNxS8&fbclid=IwAR1xe_JEiU6K9RDiE_8SHqXoIze6HWO93OIB_NMXC9hcDoAMlGbvi8OLJ_o&h=AT3zfv23Q9ahS_sekigHavUP33vX0_CZBVjrC-SEuOI7j9FibBauJuvQ45cDs6-6bIFUYpzJ2Zjy4_nb3zjuJQsMxG8FJEO0u6b_SVXGMZsRHg9XQY9AjaEMVXnK2XUKw5FFMYU&__tn__=H-R&c[0]=AT3IYoR3BGg7raQTKsJp5Q6Vmp985VmpazzLiOaaJGQOmCtZIWhdWqDiwsA5D2zXHVsX4mkq42egQhXwGLoj7gTAnuDpfTU31OGjMvbFTHMv3VnWNtI_FB7BwEDhHg033tzofR6uSgn5FsBk8noW4x9b2GX-1oIcZj-gHJiw8zGguoImIT9DWJ8



Congratulations Chris. Nice idea having a custom made video for the first single.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

[email protected] said:


> Hi, Chris, I understand that a lot of work went into the production of this song and I can imagine that the album is a project very important to you. Reading through this thread made me think about the style and characteristics of the "Pixar" and "Disney" genres.
> 
> For some reason it seems that your name is heavily connected with the "Disney" style and for "Spark" you refer to Pixar. If people wouldn't have mentioned that this sounds disney-like to them I honestly wouldn't have noticed. For me it seems that a typical Pixar song normally starts very reduced (voice & guitar/voice & piano) and then bringing in the orchestra slowly. Since you already start with the orchestra, this "Pixar-intimate-song"-moment is not there for me. This is totally fine, of course, it just doesn't remind me primarily of Pixar.
> 
> And with Disney I mostly associate very lush orchestration and strong melodies which could also work like themes in the instrumental scores - the themes of Disney's (animated) MULAN by Goldsmith come into mind which were also used as song melodies - or the songs of Leigh Harline, for example "When You Wish Upon a Star". Here the very strong theme is introduced in lush orchestrated strings (a lot of part-writing) and interrupted by very "sparkling" woodwinds.
> In "Spark" you leave a lot of room between the individual phrases so that there is no strong line holding everything together. I don't think that the vocal lines could be also used as strong instrumental themes but are mostly shaped after the rhythm of the words and how you wanted to phrase them. So I would be very interested to know: What was before? The words or the "melody"?
> 
> So I would be very interested in what was important to you to create a "Pixar" or "Disney" feeling and which are the most important characteristics of this genre?


Hi there, thanks so much for taking a listen! Super interesting impressions you share. 

Many of the influences I grew up with include Alan Menken classics (Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, etc), plus some classical music and orchestral game soundtracks, which has shaped the way I write a lot of my pieces/songs. 

Funny enough, I never assigned myself to that particular genre of Disney or Pixar, but since people mentioned it to me I rolled with it.  

I think this association is in large part due to a couple of things: firstly, most of my music is diatonically based, with a few non-diatonic chords for enriched harmony and interest, which is something a lot of my favourite songs do as well. In addition, my preferred use of the string ensemble as the foundation, with woodwinds, brass and percussion contributing to the overall texture might have something to do with it. 

Regarding this vocal melody in particular, I totally agree with you. The lyrics came first in this song, and because the message is on the more pensive and reflective side of things in the verses, I opted for a more spaced-out approach between each phrase. To me, this results in a slightly more poppy sound, rather than more musical theatre/Disney. In any case, I'll be putting out more in the coming weeks, and hopefully you'll hear a variety of styles that you'll enjoy!

But ultimately, if someone were to ask me how to achieve that classic Disney sound, I'd always come back to a few things: 

- First and foremost, the melody and harmony are very important. I tend to like melodies that don't feature too many repeated notes in a row, and mix small/large intervals for emotional contrast. Harmonically, a diatonic base with some secondary dominants/modal mixture evokes that timeless quality in my opinion.
- Orchestrally, a base in the strings is quite typical, with woodwind flourishes, brass chorales/fanfares, and percussion tinkles/emphasis enhancing the overall arrangement. 
- The lyrics always have a story to tell, whether happy, sad, empowering, hopeful, angry, etc. A clear message is definitely on my to-do list at all times.

Anyway, thank you again for listening! I hope this ramble made a little bit of sense haha!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

CGR said:


> Congratulations Chris. Nice idea having a custom made video for the first single.


Thank you so much!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Good morning my friends! Great news: 'Freedom' officially releases August 15, 2021! That's just over a month from now, so please feel free to pre-save it on Spotify so you can hear it right away when it drops.

This has been a labor of love for me since the beginning of the year, and I seriously can't wait for you to hear the results. Thank you so much for all your support!!






https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/christophersiu/freedom


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## doctoremmet

Love the album art Christopher!






Will I be able to purchase your work on Bandcamp as well?


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## ChrisSiuMusic

doctoremmet said:


> Love the album art Christopher!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Will I be able to purchase your work on Bandcamp as well?


Thank you so much!! I actually don't use Bandcamp, but I'll definitely look into it!


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## doctoremmet

I like to support the musicians I meet on here, a nice opportunity to add great music to my collection - supporting the makers at the same time. Hence my question.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

doctoremmet said:


> I like to support the musicians I meet on here, a nice opportunity to add great music to my collection - supporting the makers at the same time. Hence my question.


I'll get that up and running; I see you've already followed me. Thanks again!


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## doctoremmet

For sure. I am quite fond of Bandcamp as a way to interact with artists and musicians, and share experiences and learn about other types of music. I think Distrokid likely caters to using it as an added platform. Nice of you to look into it!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Hi everyone! 

My 2nd single 'Once Again' is one of my favourite songs on my debut album. Why? Because I got to let out my inner Disney nerd and write the song I've always wanted to write!  

This song tells the tale of a love that faded away, but there's a possibility of rekindling what was once there. My songwriting approach has always been one of hope, positivity, and motivation, so I truly hope you enjoy this one, and that it moves you like it moved me when writing it! 

Thank you so much for listening!!


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## Levon

ChrisSiuMusic said:


> Hi everyone!
> 
> My 2nd single 'Once Again' is one of my favourite songs on my debut album. Why? Because I got to let out my inner Disney nerd and write the song I've always wanted to write!
> 
> This song tells the tale of a love that faded away, but there's a possibility of rekindling what was once there. My songwriting approach has always been one of hope, positivity, and motivation, so I truly hope you enjoy this one, and that it moves you like it moved me when writing it!
> 
> Thank you so much for listening!!



Beautiful song Chris! Looking forward to listening to the album. The videos are great as well.

Good luck with the album.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Levon said:


> Beautiful song Chris! Looking forward to listening to the album. The videos are great as well.
> 
> Good luck with the album.


I really appreciate that Levon. Thank you so much!


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## PeterN

ChrisSiuMusic said:


> Hi everyone!
> 
> My 2nd single 'Once Again' is one of my favourite songs on my debut album. Why? Because I got to let out my inner Disney nerd and write the song I've always wanted to write!
> 
> This song tells the tale of a love that faded away, but there's a possibility of rekindling what was once there. My songwriting approach has always been one of hope, positivity, and motivation, so I truly hope you enjoy this one, and that it moves you like it moved me when writing it!
> 
> Thank you so much for listening!!




I was listening to it, and it reminded me of Eurovision songs, sometimes in 1980s. Thats not a bad thing - this is the best pop European countries did, and then competed against each other. Recently, the contest has gone somewhat woke, but lets not stir that in here.

So, you are on the "Elton john Level" now, and still a young guy. Its a *tremendous achievement*. 

But, to get forward from that level, a level which is certainly satisfactory, you must first cross the River Rubicon, and then the River Styx. Once you have crossed the Styx, you must bring a poisonous Rose from the Kingdom of Death, kiss the Princess there, and also ask the Gandharvas, Apollo and Muses, if you may return to Earth. Kf they give you that permission, you must cross it over the Sirens ocean. Its a risky journey and it might. be better to play on the safe side.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

PeterN said:


> I was listening to it, and it reminded me of Eurovision songs, sometimes in 1980s. Thats not a bad thing - this is the best pop European countries did, and then competed against each other. Recently, the contest has gone somewhat woke, but lets not stir that in here.
> 
> So, you are on the "Elton john Level" now, and still a young guy. Its a *tremendous achievement*.
> 
> But, to get forward from that level, a level which is certainly satisfactory, you must first cross the River Rubicon, and then the River Styx. Once you have crossed the Styx, you must bring a poisonous Rose from the Kingdom of Death, kiss the Princess there, and also ask the Gandharvas, Apollo and Muses, if you may return to Earth. Kf they give you that permission, you must cross it over the Sirens ocean. Its a risky journey and it might. be better to play on the safe side.


Thank you Peter! I appreciate it. Wow that's some poetry right there..


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## gsilbers

Very cool . Congrats


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## ChrisSiuMusic

gsilbers said:


> Very cool . Congrats


Thank you so much!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Hi friends, I'm so excited to share my 3rd and final single from my debut album with you, called 'Up To You'! This song is all about taking control of our own lives and making a difference. Please enjoy!



If you'd like to support me at all by presaving the album, please feel free to do so here. Thank you again! 






Freedom by Christopher Siu


Stream and Save Freedom - Distributed by DistroKid



distrokid.com


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## Gingerbread

ChrisSiuMusic said:


> Hi friends, I'm so excited to share my 3rd and final single from my debut album with you, called 'Up To You'! This song is all about taking control of our own lives and making a difference. Please enjoy!
> 
> 
> 
> If you'd like to support me at all by presaving the album, please feel free to do so here. Thank you again!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Freedom by Christopher Siu
> 
> 
> Stream and Save Freedom - Distributed by DistroKid
> 
> 
> 
> distrokid.com



That's really catchy! I like it!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Gingerbread said:


> That's really catchy! I like it!


Thank you so much!


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## [email protected]

So far _Once Again_ is my favourite because here I find all those things I missed in _Spark_ to give it that "Disney"-vibe.
_Up to you_ is quite nice and if you wanted to aim at a generic pop song I think suceeded - but is has the same problem as many operas... as in "composers may not be the best lyricists".

Is this honestly a song about getting up early to be running at 8:00? I think it's well produced and also quite catchy but honestly the lyrics pull it down a bit. It actually has a bit of the _Friday_ (Rebecca Black) vibe to it where she sings that she got up to eat her cereals and that friday comes after thursday.

In my opinion this song would benefit heavily from new lyrics!

And... you should add hand claps for the a cappella passage


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## ChrisSiuMusic

[email protected] said:


> So far _Once Again_ is my favourite because here I find all those things I missed in _Spark_ to give it that "Disney"-vibe.
> _Up to you_ is quite nice and if you wanted to aim at a generic pop song I think suceeded - but is has the same problem as many operas... as in "composers may not be the best lyricists".
> 
> Is this honestly a song about getting up early to be running at 8:00? I think it's well produced and also quite catchy but honestly the lyrics pull it down a bit. It actually has a bit of the _Friday_ (Rebecca Black) vibe to it where she sings that she got up to eat her cereals and that friday comes after thursday.
> 
> In my opinion this song would benefit heavily from new lyrics!
> 
> And... you should add hand claps for the a cappella passage


Thanks again for listening! I can see what you mean regarding the Friday comparison haha, but hopefully it’s nowhere near as silly as that (I mean I think everyone knows Friday comes after Thursday XD).

Honestly, this song like the others was written entirely from the heart, so the lyrics are from true experience and belief! 80% of the feedback I’ve received regarding the song was actually about how much they enjoyed the lyrics, and that they were really glad to hear this sort of motivational message in the song. And as a writer, that’s all I can ask for. 

I definitely appreciate your feedback, but I respect that you probably wouldn’t enjoy much of the rest of the album. And I wouldn’t expect you to! It’s a personal journey and exploration of sorts, so it contains a few twists and turns that you might not expect, and therefore turn a few people off. To each their own! 

Take care,
Chris


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Hi friends! Now that 'Freedom' has officially released, I'll be sharing one track per day on my YouTube channel, starting with Prologue. Prologue is the introduction to the album, a Disney-style sweeping opener. I hope you enjoy this, and that it gives you a taste of what's to come.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

'Get Out' is the feel-good song I've always wanted to write! With my passion for big band and simply having a good time, this is definitely one of my favourites on the record.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Once Again tells the tale of a love that faded away. Is it possible to rekindle what was once there and start again?


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## Levon

ChrisSiuMusic said:


> Once Again tells the tale of a love that faded away. Is it possible to rekindle what was once there and start again?



Chris, congratulations on your new album! A beautiful collection of songs. I've been enjoying listening to the album.


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Levon said:


> Chris, congratulations on your new album! A beautiful collection of songs. I've been enjoying listening to the album.


Thank you so much Levon! I really appreciate it.


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## AllanH

Thank you for sharing here. I really like 'Once Again'. Beautiful song, lyrics, vocals, well ... everything. You're very talented!


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## Macrawn

Really nice stuff. Your voice was a nice surprise I wasn't expecting that. 

The animation stuff is cool too, is that done on Adobe?


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## ChrisSiuMusic

AllanH said:


> Thank you for sharing here. I really like 'Once Again'. Beautiful song, lyrics, vocals, well ... everything. You're very talented!


I really appreciate that, thank you!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Macrawn said:


> Really nice stuff. Your voice was a nice surprise I wasn't expecting that.
> 
> The animation stuff is cool too, is that done on Adobe?


Thank you! I actually hired people on Fiverr for the videos, so I have no idea what programs they used


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## ChrisSiuMusic

'Ready' is my personal tribute to the art of songwriting. Without it, I don't know where I'd be today. I hope you enjoy it


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Full album premiering now!


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## M. vDiva Fabbiani

Hi @ChrisSiuMusic! I’ve listened to you album on Spotify and I really enjoyed it, especially the more Disney-ish tracks! All the best to you!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

M. vDiva Fabbiani said:


> Hi @ChrisSiuMusic! I’ve listened to you album on Spotify and I really enjoyed it, especially the more Disney-ish tracks! All the best to you!


That’s so kind, thank you so much!


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## ChrisSiuMusic

Just had the CDs arrive.  So happy! If you're at all interested in picking up a copy, please do so *here* and scroll to the bottom! Thanks so much.


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