Our teenage years are often a time of self-discovery and learning more about ourselves, capturing this journey through harmonies and melodies is Leo Amadeus. The 17-year-old, queer Canberra artist launches his first album, These Past Few Years at Smith’s Alternative on Saturday 27 July.

A mega album, These Past Few Years can be broken down into three parts- piano, orchestral and pop songs and has a runtime of just over two hours.

“I wrote 15 pieces of music for piano, 15 pieces of music for orchestra and 15 pieces of music for a band,” says Leo.

The album tells the story of someone discovering who they are, each section represents one of the past few years and the journey of self that was undertaken.

Starting with the piano solo, Leo captures 2020 and his experience throughout the first year of the Covid pandemic. When the pandemic first broke, Leo and his father had a running joke that it would last three years like the Spanish flu, this is reflected in the song Clown March, a joyful jaunt that gets slowly darker.

The year also marked a new era for the young musician, it was when he first started to truly look at himself and place the pieces of who he is. Less confident in his musical abilities, it felt right to rely on his strength as a trained pianist.

“It felt appropriate, I felt a lot smaller in 2020 and I have grown since then. It made sense to have just piano and to not have words,” says Leo.

The whole album was written in 2022 as he thought about the years gone by. Developing his skills further, Leo explored orchestral, a genre that had always fascinated him, for the second part of the album; 2021, a year of mental health turbulence.

“Some of the pieces are called It’s So Cold and The White Room. I didn’t feel like going insane, but I feel like I could have if I had not kept myself in check and had the right people around me.”

The final part is where Leo starts to put his voice to the songs, mirroring the confidence he has gained over the years. A year of big things, 2022 was the year Leo wrote the album and came out to his friends, it was a time of learning about his identity and sexuality. A musical theatre kid, Leo says some of the pieces are quite theatre-inspired.

“The Marvelous Café was this hypothetical situation where I would go to this café and I would come out to my family, but it didn’t happen. It’s very musical theatre, very upbeat, everything happening all at once.”

Recorded at The Shed, a friend’s family recording studio for local creatives to express themselves. These Past Few Years took Leo just over two years to fully complete, the journey wrapping up in a solid album full of original tracks.

“There are some themes that link them together, some of the songs are the same in two parts but played on different instruments, and there are melodies that occur in different parts of the album. They’re separate but also together,” smiles Leo.

Playing the piano on the album himself, Leo says although one day he would love to have a live orchestra perform his music, this one has been created through software. He is proud to share his journey and hopes others will enjoy the ride.

“For younger people who are exploring their sexuality it might be good for them to hear my music and think ‘Hey, that sounds like me,’” he says.

“Everyone has their own story to tell, and this is mine.”

Trying to figure out the keys to a song he had heard on the radio on a Casio keyboard, Leo was around eight when his mother thought it would be a good idea to get him piano lessons. Not particularly enjoying the lessons, it wasn’t until 2021 that Leo realised music was what he wanted to do for a career and started appreciating the craft further. Since then, he has been fine-tuning his music and studying music theory.

“I feel very connected to music, particularly when I feel happy. I feel like I can express more in song and lyrics… I can be myself more and express emotion through music.”

At the album launch, Leo will perform an arrangement of the final section of the album with the help of a nine-piece band. There will also be a selection of new songs where Leo has been exploring comedy, with a style reminiscent of Tim Minchin.

“I’m sort of veering out more into this uncharted territory which is going to be my project for the next year,” he says.

Along with the exploration of comedic tunes, Leo is also working on a short film, finishing an acting diploma and preparing for monthly performances at Smith’s Alternative in Smith’s Miscellaneous and Classical Capers.

See Leo Amadeus at the join the launch of These Past Few Years at Smith’s Alternative on Saturday 27 July 6pm; leoamadeus.com

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