"i've always wanted to compose music for games, film or anything with a story and a script. as i never was presented the opportunity of doing so, i decided to take the initiative and make my own scenarios to illustrate sonically.
when i think about it now, i believe yoko kanno's debut album song to fly might have played a major role in this. it has been a reference for me for years. as far as i know, these particular compositions of hers were not necessarily connected to anime or film (which is what she is mostly known for), yet to my ears, they possess the same soundtrack quality, which was the driving element in the creation process of five dreams."
– viktor benev
following motions in circuits (2019), aeon (2020) and architextures (2022), enovae records is proud to publish the fourth addition to viktor benev's
studio album catalogue, drawing on influences from cinema, litterature and games and leading the auditory on a
sonic voyage in multiple universes :
from the ghostly ambiance in carlos ruiz zafon's book september lights,
which inspired the haunted manor, through the fictive, poetic world of square enix's final fantasy game series
(clouds and in the city of broken angels), the long-métrage final fantasy : the spirits within, reflected in the more textural and ambient eponymous track, and
up to pixar's robots or amanita design's machinarium, which gave birth to the playful drum'n'bass track robots in the factory.
the album utilizes sound objects from various locations, which apart from adding up to the authentic character of each piece, carry an imprint of benev's personal sound-hunting travels, a trait, which can be considered as a signature in his works.
the electroacoustic scenery enveloping each composition has its own distinct character. instruments with celestial timbers (tongue drum, music boxes, celestra) and piano are often there as protagonists melodically leading you on this journey, whereas drums, vibraphone and wood winds that overlap with sound synthesis of electronic music elements, create rich textures that enhance the uniqueness of each composition. these elements seamlessly intermingle and complement each other laying the groundwork of the five cinematic soundscapes.
"when composing, i find having a guiding narrative gives the music additional depth. this element can be lyrics or a scenario, which helps the composer envision what the soundtrack of a scene should sound like in order to create a desired emotional reaction. other than this aspect, which is rather abstract, because of its perception being based on the listener's own experiences, i find it interesting to create a sense of environment by representing the noises in a location or the events happening by designing entire sound worlds. in cinema we have bruitists - sound designers that work on capturing or creating the environmental noises in a scene. i like the idea of taking on that supportive role as a composer and integrating noise in a composition even without it being necessarily in relation to moving image. i believe undertaking such position gives noise the value it deserves to be part of an electroacoustic work and makes the listening experience richer, more detailed and human. after all, we live in a noisy surrounding and the sounds we hear are in constant interaction with our lives. to me that's an integral part as important as the music in its classical definition.
you would be amazed at how fully one remembers a past event only by hearing the right sound."
– viktor benev
"breathtaking journey into a world where fantasy and reality blur." – last day deaf
"naturally skilled story telling and sound design" – tome to the weather machine
CREDITS
released 29/05/2022
sound objects cartography : neuchatêl (switzerland), ravna (bulgaria), boulogne-billancourt, montreuil (france)
produced, composed, performed, engineered by viktor benev
visual conception by bilyana furnadzhieva