A Welcomed Goodbye

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6iu6ezFnw4

Here is the hyperlink to a more recent song that I've put up on YouTube.

Like nearly everything I write, nothing seems to be finalized. It always feels like the music and lyrics are evolving and growing. It usually starts with a general impression or idea in one key and rhythm, and slowly develops into something entirely different than the original thought or idea. I think most things in life are like that though; we have an initial impression of what it 'will be' or 'should be', but somewhere along the line we look back and realize that everything has changed. The astounding thing about that however, is that after we start we have no control over where the art takes us. Its much like ecological life. Derived from a seed, most seeds are the same. Encapsulated inside are the ingredients for life in all its splendor. Over time the seed develops much like many other seeds, but at any given time begins to become like a fractal-wholly unique and individual.

The point of this, I'm learning is to simply go with the creative flow of things. Like the ebb and flow of the ocean, there will be times of expansion and filling, and there will be times of contraction and releasing. Trying to manufacture and contrive a piece, or fit a piece of art into a structure or shell that isn't designed to hold it isn't expedient in the least. It actually seems to be very, very destructive to the actual integrity of the creative process.

I've had nearly 5 different versions of this song, and it seems silly to not post the progress. See, what I'm going for is the progress rather than the perfection that I've envisioned in my head. At times it is very frustrating. Especially when we think that our piece HAS to fit a specific mold or it wont be the song that we heard by our muse- but in fact that is the antithesis of the process that produces results and progress.

If you find yourself struggling to break this destructive cycle of creative disillusionment, take a break. You can't always be in the expansion phase of creation, much like you can't always breathe in... sometimes you have to breathe our and release. Write about it. Set up a 'creative wish list' to help you identify what you are actually trying to create. Creativity is production, and in production there are many curveballs that must be accommodated. One of them is the point of decision where you either realize that the art itself is a 'living' and 'breathing' form, or you attempt for actualize a piece that just wasn't meant to fit into its form. Release yourself from the chains of creative perfectionism and you will begin to see yourself producing amazing results.
I've found this little trick to help me tremendously in my creative journeys.

HAPPY CREATING ALL!

Working to Keep My Sanity

"like nothing happened"



A small recording of a thought turned into a song.

Sometimes music and art are my only sanity. It seems ironic that most of the time they are what also drive me crazy. My incessant need to feel and then to numb the feelings is only superseded by the insatiable curiosity of why and how... its often what keeps me going when I don't think I can continue. Its the driving factor in what causes me to create.
  I've often wondered why a Minor chord sounds sad as opposed to a Major chord sounding happy. I understand and can grasp the theory behind it, but what has always baffled me is how one small change in tone can create such a schism between atmospheres and feelings. Isn't it funny how life can be the same way sometimes? How the structures and paradigms around us can become inverted by a single, simple change in value?
 
  The Russian novelist Berthold Auerbach said that "Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." How apropos. This, I believe is how many musicians feel when they try to articulate complex emotions through a language that one cannot necessarily read or analyze, but rather must be immersed in to experience and truly understand.

Musical Articulation

  When I attempt to record music I have great ideas and meaning behind the music that I deliberately try to convey. However, the product of those ideas seem filtered by my musical vocabulary and the expressions that are most familiar to me. This is beyond frustrating sometimes. Sometimes the object of recording is to just record a piece to reinforce the routine and/or habit of doing so. Any skill that requires articulation and accuracy requires practice, and recording, much like music requires practice to raise the level of skill.
  This recording came together in about 2 1/2 hours from a few past ideas that seemed to work together.