Hi! My name is Jhana Allan. I am a violinist and singer songwriter based in Melbourne. After a few years playing in bands (The Woohoo Revue, The Willie Wagtails, Rosenstein) I have decided to go solo and release my very first album of originals, Darkest Night.

Having come from a classical music background I started writing my first songs on mandolin when I moved to Melbourne in 2012. The songs have slowly grown and the album will be a testimony to those last five years. I hold a lot of nostalgia for the dry, open landscape of the northern Tablelands, having grown up on a beautiful property near Armidale. That nostalgia, and the 'country' aspect definitely comes out in my songs.  

Some things among many that generally get me inspired are: cold cloudy weather, poetry, the moon, and pouring milk slowly into tea so that it forms clouds.

I will be recording with a group of wonderful individuals, Oscar Neyland (The Willie Wagtails, The Rookies, The Grubs, Richochet) Alice Cotton(Still Water), Duncan Stephen(The Number Nineteens, Junior Under the Moon) and Jan 'Yarn' Wositzky, (The Bushwhackers).

The songs arose from delving into the dark corners of life, and recognizing the beauty and strength in being vulnerable. Your support of independent music is gratefully recieved! I hope that you find some joy and connection by listening.  

01/03/17

Got back from a weekend of recording on Tuesday. We managed to get 8 of the 12 songs more or less recorded. It was a real learning curve for me in realizing just how long it takes to record a song. I definitely overestimated how much we could get through. We stayed at Liz Frencham and Steve Vella's beautiful little house inTrentham, 50 metres away from the Wombat State Forest, with beautiful little bush tracks that me and Alice made good use of in the breaks.

There were a few tears and minor artistic melt-downs (which are pretty commonplace with me) but the rest of the team handled it with respect and supportiveness which I am most grateful for. 

Who knew that recording a CD that contains some of your most vulnerable songs could be challenging?  :)

Alice managed to take alot of good photos and a few videos that I'll share with you here for a little taster of what's to come on the CD.  And will incude some photos of the lovely bunch who shared the experience with me.

Kicking the shoes off

Jan Wozitsky doing the banjo thing

Me and Alice enjoying some much-needed foresty times

Here is a link to a video made during the recording of one of my songs: Soft Morning Light

https://www.facebook.com/560634850774706/videos/646939455477578/ 

With the funds I receive, I'll be able to cover the costs of paying the musicians for their time and expertise. This will cost around $2050. The remaining $450 will go towards paying some of the recording amount to Steve, the recording engineer,  Any extra I receive will go towards the rest of the recording, mixing, mastering or pressing of the cds. 

Here's a breakdown of the costs:

• Recording: $1200
• Paying Musicians: $2000
• Mixing: $1,100
• Mastering: $600
• Pressing: $642

Total: $5,542 

 This is the first time I've ever attempted to record a CD so there will be many challenges along the way. Recording the music will be the easy and fun bit! :)

The challenges I face in creating this CD are mainly financial. The Pozible campaign will only pay for a part of it. 

The whole making of the CD from start to finish will cost roughly $5,542,  not counting any extras for promotion. 

After I have paid for mixing, mastering and pressing, I'll need to promote it, organize for a launch, and hopefully a small tour.

I plan to have a fundraising concert to help with these extra costs.

As a musician, I haven't been able to rely on performing to support myself, so my main income is violin teaching. That in itself takes preparation and planning. For me, it will be a challenge to juggle all of these pursuits. 

My dream is to play at festivals and travel around playing music with wonderful people.

I hope I can also use my music to aid positive change around issues such as environment and refugees. I believe that music can be powerful in this way.