“My love was lost a lifetime ago, and I know why…” sings Jes Hudak as she opens My Love Was Lost by Mark Andrew Hansen. This declaration is followed by an intricate piano performance, brooding and dramatic, reminding us of early Beethoven.
The opus expands with the lyrics, “Keep me down, I don’t want to know how I was drowned, let me grieve, I don’t want to bleed, inside no more…”. We connect with the deep melancholia and raw vulnerability. This is further amplified by a sublime and orchestral strings arrangement with epic vocal harmonies.
The cinematic allure is undeniable, and the song feels perfect for a poignant scene from a movie like Schindler’s List, or a more contemporary TV show like Euphoria, perhaps following the death of Nate in season three. In fact, we learn that the song was written in 2001 after Mark watched The Perfect Storm. He reflected on the themes of personal betrayal and abandonment from the film. Although the song remained unrecorded at first, the COVID pandemic provided the time and perspective that Mark needed to properly bring this “Shakespearean tragedy in musical form” to life.
Speaking on the release, Mark simply says, “Despair and grief are part of the human experience. Like the ocean waves, if you can stay afloat for long enough, the feelings pass and you can get to shore. This is the saddest and most heart wrenching song I have ever written. In working with another singer I was able to heal more and feel the negative experiences from a distance with a better perspective.”
On the sound design of the track, which was recorded remotely between Sydney and the USA, he tells us, “It’s hard to get vocals to stand out in a full orchestral mix. That was the big challenge of this song.”
We continue to be in awe of what Mark Andrew Hansen writes and creates, and this collaboration with Jes Hudak has certainly heightened the emotional quotient of the piece. We have added My Love Was Lost to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the exquisite discography of Mark Andrew Hansen, and anticipate future releases.