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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 15 AUGUST 2021 5 MUSIC PIANIST and aerospace engi- neer Leonardo Barilaro releases the single "Turkey is Burning" to raise awareness about the dan- gerous situation that thousands of people are living in the south- ern area of Turkey. Since the last days of July Turkey started to experience an unprecedented situation, where dozens of wildfires hot- spots spread in few hours and, also due to very strong winds, burned more than 50 villages and hundreds of square kilo- metres of forest. These num- bers refer to the region of An- talya only, between Manavgat and Akseki. Currently fires are bringing destruction also in the area of Bodrum and Marmaris. "Turkey is Burning" is a com- position for spoken words, the voice of a Sky News reporter and the desperate cry of who lost everything, united with nu- ances of electronica downtem- po sounds. There are referenc- es to two main famous Turkish melodies, Ölürüm Türkiyem in the first part and İzmir Marşı in the second. The piece features the sound of a sampled burning piano lying on a layer of aerial synth notes, structured to create dis- comfort in the listener, usually looking for easy-going music during summer. All the income from the track streaming and purchasing will be donated to official organi- zations to support those who lost everything and is in need of food and basic goods. Every day the news are over- saturated by real-life dramatic situations all over the world, Leonardo the Space Pianist on one side is aware that hu- man nature is selfish, while on the other side is confident that there is a large number of empathic people that can help to spread awareness of what is happening in Turkey just with few clicks on the screen. The author believes that one drop can enter in resonance with thousands of other drops, leading to a change in the con- sciousness of society. In Turkey is burning much more than Nature. Leonardo is an Italian artist based in Malta and developing his music re- search where he merges with different live techniques piano and synth, designing the steps to the first concert on Mars. Since the start of the Covid19 pandemic he produced and released 4 EPs and 10 singles, developing his contemporary space music genre. The experimental "Turkish is Burning" and its message are out August 9th on Spotify and all main music digital plat- forms. Leonardo Barilaro releases single 'Turkey is Burning' MALTESE singer/songwriter Juno Valdez and producer Ste- vy Vee have released the track 'Scream My Name', which promises to be the song of the summer. "This track is exactly one half me and one half Jean Claude Vancell, my creative partner in crime since we met at St Aloy- sius 17 years ago," Valdez said. The singer said that 'Scream My Name' is a song that per- sonified lust which can be illus- trated through the title. "It's a shameless flirtatious but also demure-at-times tan- go between raw attraction and sexual tension," she said. The Track's music video isn't like regular music videos; to Valdez, it's a performance cele- brating the culmination of hu- man existence. "Few people know that just four months before that video was shot, I underwent major surgery, so the video foremost- ly represented the immense wonder of the human body's power in healing itself and coming full circle, springing back in a healthy summer tan and dancing playfully around a basketball court." Valdez said she found her- self writing the storyboard and doing a lot of its production, which was something she had not realised she could do. "That is what music is to me, a safe space which allows me to run free, creatively, happily. And when you are there, build- ing on something that you built that came from nothing, you catch a glimpse of the infinite creative potential that lies in us all, be it to build a song or an empire. There is that magic in us; I truly believe that." The music video features a re- al basketball player from Mal- ta's national team, Matthew Scerri, and a genuine black belt Andrew Barthet. The track itself features a unique watermark, as Valdez pushed her writing boundaries to give it an urban feel in the middle when she breaks out in- to rap. "It was the longest song we'd ever written. I wrote the vo- cal melody and lyrics in 2018. January to July 2020 was taken with constant re-drafts of this song's production, entirely the creative genius of Jean, whose artistic talents are truly end- less. Somewhere in between, talented guitarist Luke Grech came in and did the guitar riffs. The rap came at the end after my husband said he'd still flip the channel if he heard it on the ra- dio." Valdez said this was the biggest Track to date. "One has to remember that many years ago, I chose not to do music full time. I chose to have a career in law. I am very fortunate to have a career that has taken me all over Dubai, Abu Dhabi, China, Japan, and Vietnam. So to still be able to score points with my music here and it is very rewarding, and a reminder that we can do it all, just not all at the same time." Singer Juno Valdez and producer Stevy Vee drop new collaboration 'Scream My Name'