Kevin Gatzke

Musician - Composer - Arranger

In writing horn arrangements, my main focus is keeping the integrity of the song and style in tact. I only aim to enhance the composition without being obtrusive, and I am willing to work closely with the composer to achieve the exact sound they're looking for. Below is a small sample of my work. I also do transcriptions upon request. Please contact me for details!

 

This arrangement of the Kris Kristofferson tune harks back to the Stax sound of the 1960's. Drawing upon influences from the Memphis Horns and similar horn sections of the era, this arrangement gathers strength from it's simplicity. Riddled with pads, stabs, and bluesy interjections, the horns sink into the background, providing just the right amount of spark and energy to enhance the sections.

 

This high energy composition by Melody is a straight up pop tune. In an attempt to stay out of the way of the vocals, I put the horns primarily in the choruses to add texture and depth to the rhythm section figures. I changed the figure of the final chorus with octave stabs and pentatonic riffs to provide a powerful, exciting finish to the tune 

 

Here's an example of an arrangement I did while being a part of the compositional process. This is a video from my band Dynamo's latest release. In the verses especially, I tried to write something that responded to and played in conjunction with the vocal melody. The rest of the arrangement was more finding spots that fit into the complex, multi instrumental web of this piece; ramping up different sections, providing a bed of textures in others, calling back themes, etc.