Make the Hands Dance – The Challenge of Animating Musicians

Posted on by Christina Diggles

For almost as long as I’ve been a musician, I’ve noticed the sometimes quirky, sometimes laughable loops of hand and finger motion that you tend to see in cartoon players. Whether it’s a ukulele being put through the same three chords no matter what is played, or a flute with fingers hopping wildly, it seemed to be an easy way out.

While it certainly is easier, I have much more sympathy for the choice now. 😂 Ganneldor’s hands are about as accurate as they can be with a limited palate of hand positions, and no official concept of how his harp is tuned. It was a process, full of listening, rewinding, and adjusting. Calengil was much easier, having only to look adorable and engaged with the music.

Then came the map… but perhaps its best to let you watch that for yourself. 😉

Riding the Plains of Rohan

Posted on by Christina Diggles

This is the second video I’ve finished on the road, and I absolutely love how the animation came out! Between the lovely harp by Paige Marcelle from the CD cover (from which I carefully removed Ganneldor and colored in the gaps) the new comissioned hair by the.red.butterfly (on Instagram) for the animation, and the other licenced art I used, recolored, and carefully pieced together, this has been a wonderful trip through Rohan!

All that mobile editing and transfering between devices needed a stable cloud service (and file requesting for the comission work!). I was so excited to see that PCloud, who I’ve used for years with my business, offered me an affiliate status last night! So if you need some extra cloud storage, you can pick that up and support my work all in one! My favorite thing is that they offer a lifetime option instead of having one more monthly subscription.

A few other ways to support my work are to leave a tip or download the mp3s!

Consider the Stars

Posted on by Christina Diggles

The day before yesterday I did something that I hadn’t done in a long time. It was late, we were preparing to say farewell to friends. And we stood and stared up at the moon and the stars.

The moon was so bright, and whether it was the atmosphere and clouds or its very brilliance, we all saw almost a doubled moon. To me it seemed a moon with two blue glowing crescents hugging its sides. And a faint redish moonbow graced it as the misty clouds floated by.

It reminded me of the song I recorded this January. Nature can be a wild and unforgiving place, but when I look at its very vastness I cannot help but wonder at how much vaster is my God who made it, “sustaining all things by his powerful word.”

I hope you enjoy this peaceful song, reminding you to take a break, take a breath, and simply consider the stars.

An Elvish Lullaby

Posted on by Christina Diggles

Sometimes we make goals and they fall by the wayside… sometimes we get oh so close and have to remind ourselves that we have made progress… and sometimes we succeed! Here’s to seven months of lyric videos! 🤩 I’ve enjoyed the process of learning to bring what is in my mind to life. This is my favorite animation so far, even though there were times I was nervous about the results.

Notes from the YouTube Description:

Here in the US, we have just passed a holiday taking time to be grateful for all the blessings in our lives. It is a fitting month to release this song which, more than any other, has required the help of a community. Thank you to @totalspiffage for permission to use your tune to “Mir Dalen Somniar” for this expanded Quenya edition. No melody I could have written would have been so captivating and well-fit to the piece. Thank you to Röandil for your translation of the original lyrics, and to Luisa Rother for translating all I wished to portray into the second verse, this song would not exist without you. Lastly thank you to Orondil for your input and corrections on pronunciation as I recorded the track. It truly feels as though I am among the elves when I am with the Vinyë Lambengolmor. Lastly thank you to the friends and strangers who again stepped up to aid my sanity when the animation went awry, gave tips and advice when I was uncertain of the artistic direction to take, and simply lent eyeballs so I could see the video with fresh eyes. 💖

And so we come to the seventh song in Ganneldor’s story: On many a quiet night, the air scented with flowers, Ganneldor played the harp and sang this old Noldo lullaby with his wife Liraewenel. For they had at last become a family of three. 2923 Third Age

*Linguistic note: þ was originally pronounced like “th” in English. However, during the time of Feanor it began morphing to the “s” sound, to Feanor’s great displeasure. Due to my own story taking place in the third age, it made sense that Liraewenel, and thus Ganneldor, would use the more modern pronunciation. (Please don’t smite me, Youtube Feanorians!)

Look up the “Shibboleth of Feanor” to learn more!

And Just Like That – It’s November!

Posted on by Christina Diggles

Did you ever wake up one day and realize that a deadline had snuck up when you weren’t looking? That’s just where I found myself a few days ago. I had turned over a new leaf creatively: Rather than cramming the last week of the month, I storyboarded the video early, and prepared a few graphics. I even got critiques on Ganneldor, who I was creating by recycling pieces of Liraewenel (a licensed and further edited art piece). I would perfect him once late October arrived. I was taking advantage of time at home, catching up and preparing all the Christmas things. Then all of a sudden I realized there were only two days to animate and post the video.

I was so glad I had prepared, but it was a marathon that ended after midnight on October 31st. While I ended up posting it November first for quality control, I’m really excited about how it came out! For November? I’ll continue with storyboarding, but this time I’ll try to keep tabs on how close the end of the month is!

Enjoy the Call of Rivendell. 🙂

Resting at the Finish Line

Posted on by Christina Diggles

What is your favorite part about a job? The excitement of planning? Writing down all your ideas? Getting in a flow state of focused work? Or is there a special place in your heart for taking a moment to relax, perhaps with tea or a favorite book or movie, knowing that your project is done!

This year, there have been times I reveled in the process, and times I wished I were already through and on to the next stage. But now? Now it is time to sit back and rest in a job well done. (Well, after I finish actually notifying everyone who wanted to hear the album was streaming, and finish adding the lyrics to my website…) In addition to the reward of having an album I actually enjoy listening to, I may have enjoyed a homemade chai tea latte this morning. 😊

For those who haven’t yet seen, you can find the download here (the best way to support future projects), or stream the album most places you listen to music!

I’ve also been dipping my toes back into light animation for lyric videos for the album. The plan is to release one a month – however, I do plan to deviate from that schedule at Christmas! There is a certain other song I wish to record and release instead… 😉

So, to recap on all the exciting things:

As I prepare to check “website update” off my list, and move on to practice the violin, I hope both you and I find joy in the day’s work (or rest!). Whether we’re looking back from the finish line, or already sprinting ahead, there are such beautiful adventures to be had!

Time to Be Buried in Music! (Again)

Posted on by Christina Diggles

This has been an exceptionally musical year! From singing overseas for the first time, to my first time back at string festivals since 2020, to finishing writing and recording my upcoming album (available June 30th!!), it seems there is always something to work on. But that’s the joy of things, isn’t it? To be surrounded by something you love?

Now, it’s not all fun and creativity. I’ll admit last night I was less than happy about spending almost two hours trying to change a font color on the website. Perhaps you remember the nearly unreadable text in the old checkout page? Well, my test purchaser (Mom) decided it really needed to be fixed… and I agreed. 😬 After some Youtube research, plug-in searches, and throwing CSS code around, the input text is now a nice black! And honestly, it was satisfying to learn how to fix the text class color.

Have you learned any surprising skills in relation to your hobby or passion? There is definitely something to be said for hiring a professional so you can spend more time doing what you love. But putting in the time to learn new things has its perks – I’ve found several times that learning completely unrelated skills helped me grow in my main craft!

And now for the run-down:

  • First priority – prepare my violin auditions for string camp
  • Make sushi for lunch (I highly recommend learning to roll your own with a bamboo mat! It it so much less expensive, and a fun activity, especially after too much computer work!)

Hmm… honestly if I got those two things done today I’d be alright! As for future projects? Most of that is still in the planning stages, but I do hope to finish remastering and publishing the soundtrack for Yesterday, Today, and Forever this summer!

I hope your summer has been full of fun and fulfillment. 😊

Remember!

You can download Ganneldor of the Greenwood in two days!!!

Enjoy New Music June 30th!

Posted on by Christina Diggles

(And one new song to hear today!)

I may be late posting here, but the projects mentioned in the last post have continued more or less on schedule! What Can I Give Him was indeed released on October 19th, and we’ve had a great response at our concerts! So now I’m beginning to brainstorm for our next family album. Will it feature well-loved or obscure hymns? New songs? Oft-requested favorites? I’m uncertain yet, but looking forward to seeing how the project will unfold.

In the meantime, a surprise release is now available many places you stream music! I hope you enjoy The Bard’s Song as much as I enjoyed recording it! 🙂

But what about the fantasy album, Ganneldor of the Greenwood? The songs were all received well at the Omentielva, and I enjoyed hearing many talks on Tolkien’s languages and the ongoing research and study of them. Since then, all the songs have been recorded and the album cover completed! Be on the lookout for a single from Ganneldor of the Greenwood to drop on Youtube in the coming weeks (if all goes well on the tech side of things*), and for the album itself to be in the shop beginning June 30th!

*If all does not go well, I’ll reveal the album cover instead!

New Albums Coming / Premier in Poland

Posted on by Christina Diggles

My family’s group has been in need of new recordings for quite awhile, and I’m happy to say that a Christmas album should be out by the end of this year. “What Can I Give Him?” will contain hymns like “Silent Night” and “Child in the Manger,” as well as more upbeat songs like “Rejoice with Exceeding Great Joy” and a humorous rendition of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” As of today, I need to meet with Dad to hear his critique before entering the mastering phase… and record an instrumental part by my mom that I completely forgot about. Sorry, Mom!

My next planned musical foray will be “Ganneldor of the Greenwood,” a story album inspired by the world of the Lord of the Rings. (No, I had no intention of making an album… it just sort of happened in my spare time. 😂) If all goes well it should be released in 2023.

However… All eleven songs will be premiered live at the 9th International Conference on J.R.R. Tolkien’s Invented Languages, to be held in Kraków, Poland August 6th. Although in-person registration is closed, registration for the Onatsie [online day through Zoom] is available until August 3rd by emailing Beregond through www.omentielva.com. School-age children and students attend free, while adults can register as “non-attending” for 135 Polish zloty, or approximately 29.09 US dollars.

Although I will be joining from my home in the US, I am sure it will be a lovely time and provide a window into the amount of work that is still being poured into the languages Tolkien left behind.

Preparing for the Onatsie on August 6th

Book Trailers are Here! 

Posted on by Christina Diggles

It is time to update the website again, and so this front page announcement is being moved to the blog post archives. On one exciting note, I have learned how to make the most recent blog post live on the home page automatically. Sooo, new content should be arriving soon!

It was such a joy to create a book trailer for Renee Jensen, and to read her latest story. If you are looking for Christmas presents (or even if you aren’t!) I highly recommend you check out her book at Barnes and Noble or Amazon. If the Amazon price is not $19.99 for hardcover or $9.99 for paperback, check other sellers beneath “add to cart.”

And if you are writing a book and like what you see, contact me and we’ll chat! So far my favorite technique is adding animation to the book’s illustrations.