ME IN ACTION
Here's a glimpse of miself in action — covers, own compositions.
Green Clue
Toe the line
Spoon
PERFORMING ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS
This is a composition featured on the latest album of the Taper project. This time, the piece begins with a funky intro, followed by a jazz-inspired walking bass line played in half notes, which then develops into a quarter-note bass line. As in some of my previous compositions, there is also a modulation between these sections. The piece then moves into a solo section, where the melody is sustained over syncopated guitar chords. The final section is built around a vamp that further develops the funky bass line and provides a foundation for a guitar solo.
This is an original composition based on the typical elements of a blues in G, written to be performed on the guitar.
Spoon is a fully modal composition performed at a medium tempo (129 BPM). Since the number of chords available in a modal composition is relatively limited—being based primarily on chords that contain the characteristic note of the mode—a modulation to a different mode and key is introduced in one of the sections in order to provide greater harmonic contrast.
Sample work that showcases compositional and performing skills
Composition & Bass Performance
Composition & Guitar Performance
Composition & Bass Performance
Use the buttons to explore detailed information about each composition.
"Toe the Line" is one of the latest compositions from the Taper project. It is an instrumental track written to showcase different aspects of bass playing, including melodic lines, a fast-tempo walking bass line, and solo sections in different keys connected through harmonic modulation. The composition was written by me and is structured around three main sections: the intro, the A section, and a later B section that modulates to a new key.
The Audition Run
Composition & Bass Performance
Serial Composition
Mountain Dance
Gdansk
COVERS AND OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
Serialism! The use of Schoenberg’s serialism in heavy metal creates a unique sense of tension and release. Observe how the twelve-tone technique is applied in contemporary music.
This time I'm playing Mountain Dance by Dave Grusin, a fantastic composition famously recorded by Marcus Miller on bass. For this arrangement, I shortened the middle section to make the performance more engaging.
My bass cover of Gdansk by Paquito D'Rivera, featuring improvisation throughout the entire track.
Sample work that showcases compositional and performing skills
Composition
Cover
Bass Improvisation
Bass Improvisation
Blues for Brecker
This video features an improvised performance of Blues for Brecker in the version arranged by Paul Pesonen, performed on electric bass. The interpretation presents different walking bass lines, alternating between straight scalar motion and more advanced lines built on intervals of thirds.
Bass Improvisation
Anouschka
Anouschka is an instrumental jazz composition by Paul Pesonen. The piece begins with an Afro-jazz feel in 3, which flows smoothly into a jazz 4/4 section. The piece then returns to a second Afro-jazz section before ending unexpectedly on a D♭maj7(#11). Throughout this performance, I improvise over the chord changes.
