# Spacewalker - A Suit(e) in Homage to Alexei Leonov (NEW: now also on YouTube)



## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 12, 2021)

*Wow! *1000+ views!! Thank you so much _everyone_ for listening!! ❤️

Today I come to you with a piece that is very close to my Russian heart.



​
My *Spacewalker *_*Suit(e) *_is my homage to the late Russian cosmonaut *Alexei Leonov*, the first man in 1965 to "walk into space" i.e. to do what is now called ExtraVehicular Activities (EVA). He died in 2019, at age 85, after living a very full life. I composed my piece at that very moment, in his honour.






*The Earth is round!*
were the first words out of his mouth as he caught his first view of our world from above.
Maybe, for some people, he should have added
_*and not flat!*_
​
During this first walk into space ever, supposed to last about 12 minutes, almost the same as my piece, a very serious and never anticipated problem developed: Leonov's spacesuit started to inflate and balloon out of shape because of the pressure difference! It became impossible for him to go through the airlock again to re-enter the capsule!

With nerves of steel, and without telling anyone, he opened a valve on his suit and let some air go out. He had literally minutes of life left and was starting to feel the effects of the lack of oxygen, but with much effort he was able to re-enter the _Voskhod 2_ capsule, close the hatch and rejoin Commander Pavel Belyayev.




They returned to earth safely but off-course and spent 2 nights in the freezing Ural mountains before being rescued.

In 1975, Leonov also was the commander of the _Apollo-Soyuz _mission and became the friendly face of Soviet cosmonauts for the whole world.

Robert Louis Stevenson once wrote that

_Man is a success who has lived well, laughed often and loved much._

*Alexei Arkhipovich Leonov *was such a man!
A skillful pilot, a pioneering cosmonaut, an acclaimed author, a talented artist,
a beloved family man, a public figure, a hero, _my_ hero.​
My *Spacewalker *_Suit(e) _in his honour has three parts:

*Part 1 - "The Void" *is about the marvelous emptiness but frightening loneliness of space and the majestic beauty of vistas never before contemplated by another human being so freely. (3:52)

*Part 2 - "Trapped-Out"* is my attempt to describe his state of mind, alternating between emotion and reason, as he realizes that he cannot reenter the capsule and has to take some extreme measures to save his life. There, alone, floating, gasping for air, you can imagine him in some semi-conscious state, hearing familiar voices calling him from earth below and, maybe, even from above, from the infinite void itself. And then regularly, suddenly, he snaps out of this dreamy trance and applies his training and logic to try to survive against all odds. (4:09)

*Part 3 - "Mission Accomplished"* is all about the sweet exaltation of returning home safely and the satisfaction of a job well-done, the celebrated hero reflecting on this unique experience, cherished by a nation, surrounded by his family with their warm embrace and already dreaming about his next great adventure. (2:58)




For those who might be curious, I used Arturia Pigments and mostly analog synths to be true to the early 60's period. Percussions were added symbolizing time running out and Leonov's rational side. Brass added a military flair to the third part.

For more about Leonov and this mission:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAPBRvd8OTY (Rare color footage of first spacewalk, Alexey Leonov, March 18, 1965) (subtitles in English)
Read "Alexei Leonov: A Soul in space" and details about the Voskhod 2 mission
Watch the movies: _The Age of Pioneers _a.k.a. _The Spacewalker _a.k.a. _Spacewalk_

Music composed and performed by Tatiana A. Gordeeva
Sound & cover art concept: Uber Nemo, based on Leonov's own painting (he was first an artist) "Over the Black Sea" (oil painting on canvas, 1973).


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## doctoremmet (Aug 13, 2021)

As a kid who grew up in 1970s and early 80s, I was exposed to a lot of exciting "space news". Back when people still read newspapers (I mean literally everybody in our town did, I knew - I was the paperboy). And those papers would have Viking, Voyager, rings around saturn photographs and a while later Space Shuttles spread across their frontpages. One could hardly miss space news.

I became a space nut. This ^ and the Star Wars toys in my Donald Duck magazine caused that.

And after a couple of visits to the local library I became aware of Laika, Gagarin and the fact there were cosmonauts even before there were astronauts. I had a Yuri Gagarin poster on my wall, next to that famous one of Buzz on the moon.

So Tatiana… great theme! Your compositions on display here really bring me back to those old days, the esthetics of the synth patches you’ve chosen really remind me of how I used to associate “synths” with “music from the future”. Excellent! And the heroic brass is just a perfect fit as well.

I think it is about time some National Geographic big shot gives you a call and asks you to score a new documentary series.

❤️


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## doctoremmet (Aug 13, 2021)

This one goes out to Alexei and Captain Godiva.


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## DSmolken (Aug 13, 2021)

Sounds like it'd make the perfect outro to a Sovietwave mix playlist.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 13, 2021)

DSmolken said:


> Sounds like it'd make the perfect outro to a Sovietwave mix playlist.


Absolutely. You make lists like that? I never knew I did, but now I’m aware I need those in my life! Maybe a good follow-up to Secret Agent and Glockenskull instruments: Sovietwave Synths!


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## DSmolken (Aug 13, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> Maybe a food follow-up


Food. Heh.

Sovietwave pretty much uses modern Western instruments, though, they really are more practical live, especially when it comes to staying in tune. Arturia Pigments really is perfect for this.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 13, 2021)

DSmolken said:


> Food. Heh.


One of THOSE typos hehe…


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 13, 2021)

DSmolken said:


> Sounds like it'd make the perfect outro to a Sovietwave mix playlist.


Sovietwave? Guilty as charged! 

Quoting _https://phasermagazine.com/main/2019/11/11/nostalgia-for-the-future-what-sovietwave-has-taught-me (Phaser), _Oxford's Music & Style magazine:

"Sovietwave tracks are obsessed with nostalgia for the Soviet Union, taking much inspiration from the space race, propaganda, and ultimately, promises of a utopian future that never came."

Absolutely agree! 

*I think that everywhere, and especially in the former USSR, children of the space age daydream about "**the future that never was**" *("remember" flying cars?).

My Canadian husband was still emotional on July 20, 2019, as the 50th anniversary of the moon landing was celebrated. And my _Spacewalker_ track was even used by morn1415 for his YT video "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IywttKTpe5U (Weird Pictures by Apollo Astronauts that still exist!)".

Space also has this unifying effect, making us aware of all being on this "pale blue dot" floating into space, as Carl Sagan famously said. One can only think the same way about a few other things in human affairs, Science and the Arts first come to mind, Music being ahead of course! 

*Maybe the past talks to all of us in ways that the present cannot do now and the future is still not able to do yet.* Science of the past, even when it did not (yet) become reality, has this flair of optimism and romanticism that transcends epochs. Think about Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, the Steampunk and Dieselpunk movements, etc., all are still very popular today, even right here on this forum!

Again, quoting from _Phaser Magazine:_

"...there is clearly a demand for music that deals with nostalgia, lost innocence, and the melancholy of ideologies and dreams failing us."

*Maybe going from utopia to dystopia leaves us only with nostalgia to try to mend our broken dreams?... *

I've also explored this theme in my piece called _Nostalgia._


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## doctoremmet (Aug 13, 2021)

For all the Dutchwave fans out there (all seven of them), I am preparing a video with lots of Philips CD-i imagery and this guy:












I’m hoping Tatiana will score it!


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## doctoremmet (Aug 14, 2021)

Thank you for quoting Carl Sagan.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 14, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> This one goes out to Alexei and Captain Godiva.



Thank you kindly @doctoremmet !! ❤️

Where in the world do you find these fantastic bands, at least half of which I have never listened to nor even heard of before ?? *Are you some kind of A.I. DJ ?*



​
And where _outside_ of _this_ world did you find this guy ???   



​


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## doctoremmet (Aug 14, 2021)

That guy’s name is Chriet Titulaer. IIRC he became famous in july 1969 when he was co-presenting the Apollo 11 TV programme on Dutch TV. He has the most charming voice and went on to present “anything remotely geeky / tech related” on Dutch TV throughout the 70s and 80s.

I remember first hearing about stuff like Laserdisc, NatSav, computers, glassfiber from him in his programme “Wondere Wereld” (‘wondrous world’). Like, 10 years or more before Joe Normal would have ever heard about it and 20 years before it became mainstream. The actual tune for that show was that first Vangelis track in the above playlist. 

He is one of the main reasons I became the nerd I still am.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 14, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Where in the world do you find these fantastic bands


I actually want to become a DJ  one of those old-fashioned radio DJs.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 14, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> That guy’s name is Chriet Titulaer... He is one of the main reasons I became the nerd I still am.


We'll, if he was not a nerd and an astronomer (both of which he really was!) he could certainly play the part... Or play Abraham Lincoln... Or an Amish man from Pennsylvania 

But one thing is certain: if I had been living in the Netherlands at that time I would have watched him with great interest like you did! This girl likes nerdy stuff... and nerdy people! I even married one!


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## Number Six (Aug 15, 2021)

I love anything space and this is perfect. This floating first part is a big "buzzy" for my taste but still has nice chords. I also like the tension in part 2. What brass library did you use in part 3?


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## doctoremmet (Aug 16, 2021)

In honour of Alexei I decided to wear my Spacewalk socks today.








I was also somehow reminded of a fantastic guitar player I once knew and played in a band with. He told me about the phenomenon I believe they call “backmasking”. The man was convinced that the true meaning of what we want to say [ but can’t of course *) ] is revealed once you record man’s words and play back the reversed waveform. The single most important and convincing piece of evidence for this?




I know… I know… stunning piece of information. I wish y’all good luck secretly recording the words of your directors today (“thanks for the cue… it sounds… interesting”) and playing it backwards!


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## doctoremmet (Aug 16, 2021)

*) because like Andy Partridge said in 1980: there is no language in our lungs, to tell the world just how we feel! There is no muscle in our tongues, to tell the world what’s in our hearts!

_I thought I had the whole world in my mouth_
_I thought I could say what I wanted to say
For a second that thought became a sword in my hand
I could slay any problem that would stand in my way
I felt just like a crusader
Lion-heart, a Holy Land invader
But nobody can say what they really mean to say, and
The impotency of speech came up and hit me that day, and
I would have made this instrumental_
_But the words got in the way_


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## b_elliott (Aug 16, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Today I come to you with a piece that is very close to my Russian heart.


I adore this work. 
As I listened, I realized I have three Russian sources in my life now:  Lex Fridman's podcast for the geeky stuff; Anna Pavlova who has Glen Gould's piano magic; and TaG for modern music. A three's company. sorta.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 16, 2021)

Number Six said:


> I love anything space and this is perfect. This floating first part is a big "buzzy" for my taste but still has nice chords. I also like the tension in part 2. What brass library did you use in part 3?


Thank you very much for listening and for your interest. About the brass library used: I did not check back but from memory I think it was the solo trumpet from Chris Hein Horns Pro. Hope it helps. ❤️


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 16, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> In honour of Alexei I decided to wear my Spacewalk socks today.


Wow!  Doc, did you really have these socks in your current socks drawer?? 
I seriously NEED to talk to your wife URGENTLY !!! 

P.S. My husband wants to know where you got them and if they have them in size 11.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 16, 2021)

b_elliott said:


> I adore this work.
> As I listened, I realized I have three Russian sources in my life now:  Lex Fridman's podcast for the geeky stuff; Anna Pavlova who has Glen Gould's piano magic; and TaG for modern music. A three's company. sorta.


Thank you for much for listening and commenting. Very much appreciated! And thank you for associating my name with illustrious Russians  I now know where you got your latest Webern reference recordings 

Your post reminded me that I don't spend enough time listening compared to composing. I went and checked your Webern/Zappa tracks and loved them! Interesting, fresh and unexpected!

Following a similar train of thought you migh enjoy my track entitled *Mind Games* a piano duo human-machine dialogue based on cellular automata and human composer exchanging thoughts.


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## shadowsoflight (Aug 16, 2021)

Hey - finally got a chance to listen to this after recommendation from @doctoremmet, as I am very much a fan of space-themed music. Very nice stuff! These pioneers of space travel must have had nerves of steel, I can't imagine how overwhelming it would be in a situation like the one Leonov found himself in. Really liked the concept of this "spacesuit(e)" and you did a wonderful job!


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 16, 2021)

shadowsoflight said:


> Hey - finally got a chance to listen to this after recommendation from @doctoremmet, as I am very much a fan of space-themed music. Very nice stuff! These pioneers of space travel must have had nerves of steel, I can't imagine how overwhelming it would be in a situation like the one Leonov found himself in. Really liked the concept of this "spacesuit(e)" and you did a wonderful job!


Hello! I'm really glad you enjoyed it! And thanks for telling me 

Yes, I really have the upmost respect for these space pioneers from _any _country. What courage facing so many unknowns! It's hard to imagine how little we knew then (and even still now).

Science pushes away the darkness of ignorance. Once the respected French Académie officially stated that meteorites are impossible ("rocks don't fall from the sky"). Closer to us was the "impossibility" of spaceflight, even "heavier than air" flight. In the 50's, before the first images from space, terrestrial globes showed oceans as black... because we simply did not know how they looked from space!




​J.A. Wheeler, Feynman's advisor, once wrote that


​
So true!


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## b_elliott (Aug 16, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Thank you for much for listening and commenting. Very much appreciated! And thank you for associating my name with illustrious Russians  I now know where you got your latest Webern reference recordings
> 
> Your post reminded me that I don't spend enough time listening compared to composing. I went and checked your Webern/Zappa tracks and loved them! Interesting, fresh and unexpected!
> 
> Following a similar train of thought you migh enjoy my track entitled *Mind Games* a piano duo human-machine dialogue based on cellular automata and human composer exchanging thoughts.


I recently e-mailed and to my astonishment received a prompt reply from Anna about her Webern performance. Long story short, my score did not match hers, so she sent me a pdf of Kinderstuck по-русски (Russian). I replied back with my Soundcloud link to Kinderstuck Variations.

I await her response...

Mind Games -- just listened -- whoa girl! The cellular automata music I heard earlier this year (Stephen Wolfram site) sounded lame so I figured AI/CA was not ready for prime time; but, you were doing this high level back in 2016! I am now eating crow...


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 16, 2021)

b_elliott said:


> Mind Games -- just listened -- whoa girl! The cellular automata music I heard earlier this year (Stephen Wolfram site) sounded lame so I figured AI/CA was not ready for prime time; but, you were doing this high level back in 2016! I am now eating crow...


Thank you so much. I want to rework this piece as I'm not happy with the pianos and the mix. Wow, 2016! I forgot that it was so long ago already 

You don't need to eat crow... I'll cook you turkey


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## b_elliott (Aug 16, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Thank you so much. I want to rework this piece as I'm not happy with the pianos and the mix. Wow, 2016! I forgot that it was so long ago already
> 
> You don't need to eat crow... I'll cook you turkey


Ha ha. BTW, the 2016 version is still bonkers good; but, I would be interested in your rework. 
When you do post it, perhaps a bunch of us would like to know (or see) what programs, vsts, skills, etc are required to pull off music of this sort. 
Best, Bill


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## doctoremmet (Aug 17, 2021)

I know I would love to watch a tutorial or walkthrough video of Lady Godiva at work, rocking the casbah.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 17, 2021)

b_elliott said:


> Ha ha. BTW, the 2016 version is still bonkers good; but, I would be interested in your rework.
> When you do post it, perhaps a bunch of us would like to know (or see) what programs, vsts, skills, etc are required to pull off music of this sort.
> Best, Bill





doctoremmet said:


> I know I would love to watch a tutorial or walkthrough video of Lady Godiva at work, rocking the casbah.


Haha, Lady Godiva usually "rocks the casbah" _very_ slowly. Watching me work in my studio would be as fascinating as watching wall paint drying. Of course I could make a time-lapse video but then I would look like some lunatic on speed 

Seriously, when my new _*Mind Games*_ piece will be finished I will try to explain steps and tools involved. Not sure that I'll have that much to say or that it will be that interesting but I'll do it anyway. I promise you both.  Thanks for your interest!


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## Toecutter (Aug 17, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> In honour of Alexei I decided to wear my Spacewalk socks today.


Here I was all immersed in Tatiana's track... until I saw your feet  Thanks for the laughs XD

Tatiana, another awesome sonic adventure, there's always so much depth to your tracks, accompanied by some great backstory. Thanks for sharing!


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## Bollen (Aug 17, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> _The Spacewalker _a.k.a. _Spacewalk_


Just watched this a few months back, damn I just love Russian cinema!!!


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 17, 2021)

Toecutter said:


> Here I was all immersed in Tatiana's track... until I saw your feet  Thanks for the laughs XD


Toecutter is discussing socks ?!? 


Toecutter said:


> Tatiana, another awesome sonic adventure, there's always so much depth to your tracks, accompanied by some great backstory. Thanks for sharing!


Thank you so much for listening and kindly commenting! I really appreciate!! I usually try to share the context surrounding my tracks as they come to me this way. Thanks again!! ❤️


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 17, 2021)

Bollen said:


> Just watched this a few months back, damn I just love Russian cinema!!!


Isn't it different?  I think that the absence of Hollywood-level budgets forces _good _Russian directors to be more creative and go deeper into characters and subjects imho. Of course bad ones are the same everywhere. 

Speaking of which we plan to watch _The Spacewalker_ movie _again_ tonight! 

I'm also making finishing touches to my own _Spacewalker_ YT video to accompany my music for those who prefer this platform. Don't expect much SFX and action though... It will be mostly static.


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## Bollen (Aug 17, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Isn't it different?


Remarkably different! I don't think it's just budgets... It's partly talent and partly no studio interference!


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 18, 2021)

Bollen said:


> Remarkably different! I don't think it's just budgets... It's partly talent and partly no studio interference!


You're very probably right, although I didn't feel at liberty to say myself and risk looking a bit biased towards my Motherland 

I watched the movie last night (in Russian) and it brought back the same emotions that I felt the first time I saw it. ❤️


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 18, 2021)

FYI: My _SpaceWalker _is now also available on YouTube for those who prefer that platform. In addition to the English description it also has bits of info in Russian for convenience.



The 4K version is still being processed... But the HD version is OK now.


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## sostenuto (Aug 18, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> Today I come to you with a piece that is very close to my Russian heart.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Such emotive, reflective, impactful work. Went immediately to YT version. Still playing now.

Awareness of Alexei Leonov, but powerful memories of Sputnik, Yuri Gagarin, so long ago.

1954-1958 _ US Air Force (Airborne Early Warning).  Sputnik -1957 !
1958-1965 _ Aerojet General (Sacramento,CA area) Titan missile program. Gargarin -1961 !

Distant memories _ unheard-of slow, silent, object passing through clear night sky. Raising questions, concerns, stimulating imagination. Spacewalker brings all that back so vividly. 😯

Thank-you Ms Gordeeva ! 👏🏻👏🏻


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 18, 2021)

sostenuto said:


> Such emotive, reflective, impactful work. Went immediately to YT version. Still playing now.
> 
> Distant memories _ unheard-of slow, silent, object passing through clear night sky. Raising questions, concerns, stimulating imagination. Spacewalker brings all that back so vividly. 😯
> 
> Thank-you Ms Gordeeva ! 👏🏻👏🏻


My pleasure Sir! ❤️ And thank you so much for listening, commenting so kindly and sharing you memories!

Your prose describes those distant memories so vividly that they don't seem distant at all suddenly. I can feel the awe that such passages would evoke in those times. Litterally out-of-this-worldly experiences!

BTW did you know that "sputnik" in Russian means "companion", like for a spouse?
And "voskhod" means "sunrise". 

Also, my husband once visited a Titan missile silo left intact (but disarmed of course) in Arizona and was quite impressed by the missile itself (9-10 stories high I think) and the installations in general. All this for a _mere_ 90M$US each in 2021 dollars, if I remember well.


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## sostenuto (Aug 18, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> My pleasure Sir! ❤️ And thank you so much for listening, commenting so kindly and sharing you memories!
> 
> Your prose describes those distant memories so vividly that they don't seem distant at all suddenly. I can feel the awe that such passages would evoke in those times. Litterally out-of-this-wordly experiences!
> 
> ...


Your husband .... as often related by You .... seems astounding guy!
While not been close to the Titan _ in silo _ have been finishing night shift, and held in bunker as 1st Stage engine fired. Ventured out, and peeked around walls to look straight at massive twin thrust chambers, just hundred yards away. Indescribable ! Every sense overloaded.
Challenging now, to comprehend that experience, with Gargarin, Leonov, Armstrong, Aldrin reality.

Perhaps even more notable, to share your compositional talent __ to transcend time, so impressively. Makes my day ! (Clint Eastwood aka Dirty Harry) 😉


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 18, 2021)

sostenuto said:


> Your husband .... as often related by You .... seems astounding guy!


I tend to think so but I might be biased 


sostenuto said:


> While not been close to the Titan _ in silo _ have been finishing night shift, and held in bunker as 1st Stage engine fired. Ventured out, and peeked around walls to look straight at massive twin thrust chambers, just hundred yards away. Indescribable ! Every sense overloaded.


Wow must have been terrifying indeed! My husband (sorry!) was once at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL where von Braun used to be and where they were also were testing the space shuttle engines. That was also something to see. Apparently the holding structure was once almost ripped off the ground by the power of the engine!







sostenuto said:


> Challenging now, to comprehend that experience, with Gargarin, Leonov, Armstrong, Aldrin reality.


Indeed!


sostenuto said:


> Perhaps even more notable, to share your compositional talent __ to transcend time, so impressively. Makes my day ! (Clint Eastwood aka Dirty Harry) 😉


Thank you again so much! ❤️


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## Dirtgrain (Aug 18, 2021)

Sublime opening, with a nice transition to an engaging interplay of several voices--I feel the mystery, the immensity, the danger of space. I didn't expect the choir in part two--you took it in an unexpected direction (for me, anyway)--I get what you were after from the music and your description--it works. The last part opened with an oboe-like synth sound that I didn't expect either--still thinking about it. The tail end winds down nicely.

This is my favorite thing I've heard here lately (and after that cool piece from you that I commented on a week or so ago). Rock on.


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 18, 2021)

Dirtgrain said:


> Sublime opening, with a nice transition to an engaging interplay of several voices--I feel the mystery, the immensity, the danger of space.


The first title I thought I would call Part 1 was "Floating into Space" but finally I chose "The Void" exactly for this quasi-mystical mystery and danger feel 


Dirtgrain said:


> I didn't expect the choir in part two--you took it in an unexpected direction (for me, anyway)--I get what you were after from the music and your description--it works. The last part opened with an oboe-like synth sound that I didn't expect either--still thinking about it. The tail end winds down nicely.


That's me, the unexpected one  You see why I introduced the voices in Part 2, calling from his family down on Earth and maybe also from "the great beyond"...


Dirtgrain said:


> This is my favorite thing I've heard here lately (and after that cool piece from you that I commented on a week or so ago). Rock on.


Thank you so much! This means a lot to me! ❤️


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## LamaRose (Aug 18, 2021)

Russian contributions to science, philosophy, literature, etc were largely excempt from U.S. K12 studies back in the 60's and 70's. Most prophetic for me, as a military Airforce brat, was the Cold War blackout of Russia's great contribution and sacrifices in the effort to defeat Nazi Germany. 

But my dad, heavily involved in Strategic Air Command (SAC), had quite the historic library of books that told the broader truth of events. I always held a deep regard for those greater Eastern bloc Countries as a result of my Dad's influence.

And the _Apollo-Soyuz mission _was a big deal in my circles... a revolution of sorts in the brainwashed mind frames that our political leaders so wished to exploit.

Tatiana's piece really evokes that deep, expansive, 70's coldwar mood... for me personally.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 18, 2021)

LamaRose said:


> Russian contributions to science, philosophy, literature, etc were largely excempt from U.S. K12 studies back in the 60's and 70's.


Same here in The Netherlands. WW2 events were mainly taught from an extremely narrow Western European perspective in the 70s and 80s. I also distinctly remember how the 8 o’ clock news would report the USSR involvement in Afghanistan. Curious how Dutch contemporary history books will look back on the Dutch involvement 100 years from now…


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 19, 2021)

@LamaRose and @doctoremmet, you both warm my heart beyond words!! ❤️

I'm so happy to know, to have direct proof, that the truth was able to penetrate the East-West information curtain, firewall, to reach intelligent people and open their heart to the fate of the Russian people during these awful years.

An old adage, usually attributed to Churchill but much older, is that "history is written by the victors" and this is certainly the case here, even with the recycled quote itself. 

Soviet forces and the people might not have "won" the war in the eyes of many but they went to extremes (e.g. Leningrad) to fight the invaders and pushed them back out of our country. Of course _all_ countries involved in WWII suffered extreme losses but none as much as the USSR.

An often forgotten "sidenote" is that China lost the most people (20M) after USSR. It was really a world-wide war, really the first WWW.

Even most amazing to me, to return to the more positive space context here, is how quickly after the losses of WWII, the USSR was able to turn itself around in a single decade and come up (literally) with Sputnik, also, like later Voskhod and others, under the impetus of "Chief-Designer" Korolev (who's name was unknown even to cosmonauts for fear of assassination by the West) and the beginning of the crazy Cold War arms race with the US.

All of these events have a special meaning to me, personally, as my father was a test pilot. He was too young to be involved in WWII of course (thank God!) but passionate about planes and spacecrafts all his life. Now you know.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 19, 2021)

Tatiana Gordeeva said:


> as my father was a test pilot.


Whoa. He must have flown a lot of MiG prototypes then… cool….


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 19, 2021)

On a more funny note, how many of you, _young propellerhead boys _ remember, from the same early 60's period, the American Boeing *X-20 Dyna-Soar* ("Dynamic Soarer"), failed precursor to the Space Shuttle ? 



​
*Dyna-Soar* ???  Wow, that's what I would call an _*epic*_* marketing failure* !!! 
_Dinosaur_ ??? No wonder that it's now "ancient history" !


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## DSmolken (Aug 19, 2021)

Oh, come on, dinosaurs are cool.


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## doctoremmet (Aug 19, 2021)

DSmolken said:


> Oh, come on, dinosaurs are cool.


I hear they love space too


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 19, 2021)

doctoremmet said:


> I hear they love space too


Why? What came from space killed them!  Or not?...


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## DSmolken (Aug 19, 2021)

Ah, the Far Side. At the beginning of the semester in one of my university classes, we were asked to name favorite authors. Mine: Gary Larson and Bill Watterson (the Calvin and Hobbes guy). I meant it. I still do.

But look on the bright side, at least nobody's made the "Spacewalker, Texas Space Ranger" joke yet.


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## LamaRose (Aug 19, 2021)

I love that Larson illustration. And lest we omit, Quetzalccoatlus Northopi (partially named after a famous aeronautical engineer, no less) was about the same size as the Dyna-Soar! Coincidence?


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 19, 2021)

LamaRose said:


> I love that Larson illustration. And lest we omit, Quetzalccoatlus Northopi (partially named after a famous aeronautical engineer, no less) was about the same size as the Dyna-Soar! Coincidence?


The man looks kinder... My first impression... Didn't know either personally...


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## Number Six (Aug 19, 2021)

Wow, that's a "big bird"! Many funny posts here! Carry on! Haha!
I listened again to you track, this time on youtube and I loved it again! Great job!


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## Tatiana Gordeeva (Aug 24, 2021)

Number Six said:


> Wow, that's a "big bird"! Many funny posts here! Carry on! Haha!
> I listened again to you track, this time on youtube and I loved it again! Great job!


Thank you so much for listening...again! ❤️ Sorry that I forgot to reply to your post earlier. _My Glass Octopus_ has kept me pretty busy lately. Also at work on another piece.


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