ARMS WIDE OPEN out now

New collaborative project, Mighty Oaks summer shows & more

Photo by Antony Sojka

Hi everyone,

I have to be honest: I’ve been struggling at integrating my newsletter into my life. In a perfect world, writing a newsletter should just be the gracious creative extension of what an artist does. I’m afraid the reality is quite different for me :) So recently, inspired by a friend’s bi-yearly newsletter, I came up with a different, more realistic- goal for a newsletter frequency: the seasonal newsletter. Writing every 3 months feels more sustainable for me. So here it is, the first of 4 seasonal / quarterly newsletters, sent out around the change of season.

Right now, I’m sitting on a train to Munich, where I will kickstart a new exciting project that I will be able to tell you about very soon. In the meanwhile, I have some actual news for you all here below. Have a lovely weekend and see you around the summer solstice!

Yours warmly,

Claudio

PS: it’s a sunny day, and green fields are separating the railway from the forest in the distance. I’m a sucker for a good old shifting landscape :) If traveling by train is your thing too, please let me know in the comments :)

Artwork by Merle Sibbel

ARMS WIDE OPEN EP

Last week, Lotta St Joan and I released our collaborative EP, ARMS WIDE OPEN. When we started writing these songs in the spring of 2023, Lotta and I barely knew each other, but we instantly connected through our love for melancholic, warm, cinematic, handmade sounds. In the course of a few sessions we wrote and produced 4 songs which we both love and see as something neither of us could have created without the other. I’m very proud these songs are finally out and I hope you’ll take the time to fully immerse yourself in them.

ARMS WIDE OPEN consists of four — and a half! — songs that deal with the attempt to make sense of the world. Inherent in all songs is the desire to resolve inner and outer conflicts as a “healer”, which inevitably leads to no tangible solution. Our musical admission of the complexity of things and yet a work that wants to comfort and understand.

Photo by Eliott Sebbag

Mighty Oaks Summer Shows

It’s been so good to be back on the road playing shows in Erfurt and Kassel this past weekend. These were the first shows of 2025 and the first ones at all since October 2024. It’s been great to see so many people singing and clapping along and I loved being back at my stage position, surrounded by my instruments and singing my lungs out :) There’s a long series of indoor / outdoor shows and festivals lined up throughout the summer, and I hope to see you there!

One more thing..

Here’s something unusual and new that happened in January: I got to spend a week immersed in the film industry as a musician. I had the the honor to be part of the jury at the Max Ophüls Award Film Festival, one of the most important film awards in Germany for emerging talents and I just wanted to tell you a little bit about it.

The whole experience has been mind-blowing. I got to meet so many inspiring film professionals, watch high-quality documentary films — sometimes even 4 in a day! — and discuss them — in German! — with other members of the jury and in such depth that I never did before. I am not only looking at the film industry as an attractive opportunity as a film composer. I am also fascinated by its structure and dynamics, especially in comparison to the music industry, which I know quiet well by now. Who are the players? How do they collaborate? Who are the gate keepers? What are the business models? But mostly, how does the creative process take place? There’s a lot to unpack there. If you’re interested, let me know in the comments ;)

Anyways, I left the festival with a deep sense of hope and belonging. Hope in the new generation of talent which has shown to be rising strong with their novel, creative, eye-opening approaches to political, ethical and social issues. Belonging because the sense of community and spirit of collaboration that I could breathe at the festival has just been heart-warming. I’m very grateful that I got to be part of such a beautiful event. Keep an eye on the nominees and winners!