Like a paper boat on a windy sea,
battered and bruised from the to-ing and fro-ing.
Drenched in drops of tears that fall like rain…
I’ve lost sight of the shore.

All this, yes.

But now that I am surrounded by all that is unfamiliar,
I’m more aware, more awake, than ever before.
And with wide, clear eyes I soon find myself
In a world of wonder I never dared dream about.
It’s in this world that wandering hearts come lost,
To be found.

Poem excerpt from My Heart Wanders.
Music, voice, words and photograph by Pia Jane Bijkerk.

Download. Share. Enjoy.

With Love and Gratitude,

Pia x

My second piano composition for the year, titled Spirit & Flight is now ready for you to download. Thank you for the incredible response to my first piece, Of Time & Light. It’s been such a wonderful process, each piece a reflection of a state of now for me, a deep dwelling. And there is something about publishing the work – as I’ve found in the past with sharing my creations in their raw state here on my blog – that not only helps me to grow but is so very nurturing as well.

Thank you for listening, I hope you’ll enjoy this composition.

With Love,

Pia

Dear friends,

It’s been many years since I explored sound here on my blog. And many years since my very first public piano recording. With your enthusiasm and praise I shrunk away, too timid to try again in case the next piece wouldn’t be as well admired. Life moved on but the music stayed in my heart.

This year, in working to open my heart ever more, I’ve decided to play again. For me. And to share it with you. Freely. Each month in 2014, I will upload a new piano composition: My heart’s voice. Each piece will be recorded in my own home on an old wooden semi grand borrowed from a friend, complete with ambient sound from my home & neighborhood. With each piece I am striving to let go: Let go of perfection; let go of expectation; let go of self.

There will be mistakes. I will not edit the compositions. These will not be professional recordings.

I offer each composition to you freely – you can download them and add them to your music collection, to take with you as you journey in your creative life. I recommend listening to them with your headphones so you can hear the birds singing in the background, and the pedal creaking, the keys clicking.

At the end of the year, in its roughness, will be an album. Here is my first piece, titled Of Time & Light.

This is my heart’s voice.

With Love,

Pia xx

peony love, a gift from my sweet friend Kylie.

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sending a little thank you gift to a dear friend overseas. Handmade gift tag by paper boat press.
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clockwise from top left: gorgeous jute crocheted Christmas decorations in newspaper taxi; signed copies of My Heart Wanders & Paris: Made by Hand wrapped and ready to be sent far away; on the coffee table; the sweetest handmade christmas decorations from paper boat press.
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Since I’ve been less and less mobile over the last few months, I’ve been relying on my iphone to capture some of my day enhancing moments. I’ve been posting them on instagram, which has become my new favourite ‘visual blogging’ medium as I love the instant, intimate aspect of it. It’s been a wonderful way to keep in touch with friends near and far, see what they’re up to during the day in a visual way. Every now and then I post some images on facebook and twitter, and recently I asked my readers if they’d like to see these images on the blog too, or if it would be too much repetition. There was lots of positive feedback, so I thought I should give it a try. I thought maybe once a month I could pick my favourite shots and post them in a collection like this – let me know if you like this idea.

Here’s the latest collection, with captions and links for your clicking pleasure…

inside Stef’s shop,newspaper taxi:1
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inside Stef’s shop, newspaper taxi:2
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afternoon tea with Stef at Black Star Pastry, featuring their beetroot chocolate cake with rose petals, and lavender and blueberry tart.
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surprise art in the park: 1… drink, anyone?
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surprise art in the park: 2… the beginning of a beautiful story.
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surprise art in the park: 3… nature’s purple neon spectacular, jacaranda love.
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on the coffee table: bowl of scented sunshine from the garden, a page from My Heart Wanders, rocks from French Boy’s  hometown lake in France, Heidi’s gorgeous book ‘super natural every day’, my collection of aromatherapy reference books, and a cup of chai.
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Also, I’ve been looking into some new-to-me music, here is my current background music while I work/lay on couch/waddle around the house, perhaps you’ll find something here you like too:

+twice by little dragon (also like ‘after the rain’)
+i follow rivers, lykke li
+how come you never go there, feist
+you are all i see, active child
+brother, matt corby
+feeding line, boy & bear

It’s all a-buzz here in le petit bateau because today my partner Romain – aka French Boy –  has just released his first album. It’s been a year in the making –  while I’ve been working intensely on my book, he’s been working on his album, rocking the houseboat down. How did we manage to both work from home on two completely different projects without a hitch? I have no idea. But it’s been wonderful, a year we will never forget, for all the right reasons.

So “fiction”, what’s it all about? Well, Romain is a rock and blues guitarist, and this self-produced album is a collection of instrumental songs which take their inspiration from various decades of pop, blues and rock. This is definitely an album for guitar enthusiasts (it ain’t mainstream music) and for those who love to rock on! Believe it or not, I am one of those people  – even though I play mostly classical piano, I love to listen to loud, feet stompin’ rock. “Fiction” is exactly that. I have lots of favourite songs on the album, including ruffian,  jungle path and la loue (which was inspired by one of our walks along the river loue in France, where Romain is originally from), but I think my favourite favourite is the album title song fiction – a fab mix of pop, synth rock & blues. I also love lawlessness 1 & 2 – Romain composed these for a dance piece titled “restlessness” choreographed by my dear friend Heidi here in Amsterdam earlier in the year. And the colour purple & stone are pure, beautiful head bangin’ rock.

A big congratulations to my french boy for taking his passion to the next level and producing something wonderful. Please be sure to spread the word about “fiction” to all your guitar-loving friends, and to listen to the songs, you can click here or listen to some of them on his myspace here. The album & individual songs are available for purchase on both itunes and cdbaby. For those interested in purchasing music the good ol’ fashion way – that is, on a CD – Romain will look into it in the new year.

And my contribution to the album? Yes, it’s the cover. I made a few different versions but this was the one we both loved the most. I hope you like it too.

xx