composer camp
just finished my composer camp victory lap with my pitbull pal javi. we took a very scenic walk through the hills above my house where you can see the jpl campus, mt. baldi, the hollywood sign, downtown los angeles skyline and catalina(on a clear day which today was!). victory laps are reserved for sunday nights when i have had a good week. its been quite a while since the last good week, so i have snuck a few in when i really didn't qualify. (javi also has his version of the victory lap where he runs into the living room with his food bowl after dinner)
all of this comes about from my self-imposed exile (that i now call composer camp) in which i spent last week figuring what i really care about, cleaning up my process and catching up on my reading, listening and score study.
i finished retrace our steps in spring of 2004 and since then its all been about promotion, concerts and recording. now that i have the time to write again, it was really hard to get back into the process (hence my self-imposed exile). the week was pretty brutal, anytime you cut yourself off from the world with limited input from outside influences can be very strange.
the main thought i have been carrying around is that i needed to work out some kinks in my compositional process. usually i spend a couple of weeks working out the harmonies, form and gestures and then see where it takes me. this presents a practical problem that the final result (although very interesting) usually resembles little of my original ideas. this process had much to do with inspiration, or being "in the mood" to write. i wanted more control and to work out my original ideas to their final result. it relates to when i first started teaching, i would come in with a organized lesson plan and student asks a question which throws off the whole lecture. not too bad to do on one day, but after a couple days in a row is not good. since i've learned how to stay on task in the classroom, i figure i should be able to do the same with my music, its all about the preparation.
the week has revolved about finding my center(where my interests currently are) and honing the process. typical "camp" day revolves around transcribing pieces (nyman, weezer, spoon, rodgers, my chemical romance... anything that has made it become part of the heavy rotation on my playlist) reading (graphic novels, short stories, and other strange recommended books by my friend john sinclair), going to the gym (i have to leave the house once a day) and listening to lots of music. surrounding myself with things that are intriguing and interesting is a good way to get the cobwebs stirred up. my analysis of pieces has gotten to the point to try and sythesize what makes them special. for the last 6-8 weeks i've been listening to limited rotation, but this week i cut the list down to the ones that stand out. i transcribe their gestures, harmonies, form, text, rhythms, and anything else that makes the music unique. why does the music work? what about it is important? after you really know a composers "tricks", learning their music becomes a common language between the two of us. whether the are alive or dead, i probably learn more by the notes they have written then ever talking to them. words lie, notes are forever.
through all of this i also adjusted my process. i have always started with voiceleading and form and gone from there. i have never found a way to really deal with all of a piece contrapuntally, but i finally took the advice that i resisted in lessons and started sketching on pencil and paper. after contrapuntally working out much of the piece on paper i felt much more connected to ther voiceleading and was pushing notes around the paper rather that relying on intuition to finish it.
i guess this is the point where i have to describe the big "why" in this process. you must be thinking why do you spend so much time with other peoples music. can't you just sit down and be "inspired"? my answer is simple.
you have to know where you came from, and how it works. everybody has influences, but its what you do with them is the point. glass loved indian music and beethoven. reich freaks out over javanese music, coletrane and bartok. i spaz over all of the above. i know that i'm still in composer puberty; working out the kinks, getting comfortable with my technique, and putting a group together. saturating myself in music that i love is the best a 30 year ride (if all goes well) that has just started. i could be accused of stealing; but i'm not taking their gestures, harmonies or forms. its much cooler than that. every time you learn a piece, i mean really learn it, you share its logic. its all there, you just have to know which questions to ask.
the best part of composition is when you know its a real piece. you have created your own universe with its own set of rules, colors, and characters. if things go well you get to play in utopia for a while (too long and it spoils), and when its finally done and bring it to the group its like sharing my new friends with the old ones.
i know they are going to get along and cannot wait to meet each other.
all of this comes about from my self-imposed exile (that i now call composer camp) in which i spent last week figuring what i really care about, cleaning up my process and catching up on my reading, listening and score study.
i finished retrace our steps in spring of 2004 and since then its all been about promotion, concerts and recording. now that i have the time to write again, it was really hard to get back into the process (hence my self-imposed exile). the week was pretty brutal, anytime you cut yourself off from the world with limited input from outside influences can be very strange.
the main thought i have been carrying around is that i needed to work out some kinks in my compositional process. usually i spend a couple of weeks working out the harmonies, form and gestures and then see where it takes me. this presents a practical problem that the final result (although very interesting) usually resembles little of my original ideas. this process had much to do with inspiration, or being "in the mood" to write. i wanted more control and to work out my original ideas to their final result. it relates to when i first started teaching, i would come in with a organized lesson plan and student asks a question which throws off the whole lecture. not too bad to do on one day, but after a couple days in a row is not good. since i've learned how to stay on task in the classroom, i figure i should be able to do the same with my music, its all about the preparation.
the week has revolved about finding my center(where my interests currently are) and honing the process. typical "camp" day revolves around transcribing pieces (nyman, weezer, spoon, rodgers, my chemical romance... anything that has made it become part of the heavy rotation on my playlist) reading (graphic novels, short stories, and other strange recommended books by my friend john sinclair), going to the gym (i have to leave the house once a day) and listening to lots of music. surrounding myself with things that are intriguing and interesting is a good way to get the cobwebs stirred up. my analysis of pieces has gotten to the point to try and sythesize what makes them special. for the last 6-8 weeks i've been listening to limited rotation, but this week i cut the list down to the ones that stand out. i transcribe their gestures, harmonies, form, text, rhythms, and anything else that makes the music unique. why does the music work? what about it is important? after you really know a composers "tricks", learning their music becomes a common language between the two of us. whether the are alive or dead, i probably learn more by the notes they have written then ever talking to them. words lie, notes are forever.
through all of this i also adjusted my process. i have always started with voiceleading and form and gone from there. i have never found a way to really deal with all of a piece contrapuntally, but i finally took the advice that i resisted in lessons and started sketching on pencil and paper. after contrapuntally working out much of the piece on paper i felt much more connected to ther voiceleading and was pushing notes around the paper rather that relying on intuition to finish it.
i guess this is the point where i have to describe the big "why" in this process. you must be thinking why do you spend so much time with other peoples music. can't you just sit down and be "inspired"? my answer is simple.
you have to know where you came from, and how it works. everybody has influences, but its what you do with them is the point. glass loved indian music and beethoven. reich freaks out over javanese music, coletrane and bartok. i spaz over all of the above. i know that i'm still in composer puberty; working out the kinks, getting comfortable with my technique, and putting a group together. saturating myself in music that i love is the best a 30 year ride (if all goes well) that has just started. i could be accused of stealing; but i'm not taking their gestures, harmonies or forms. its much cooler than that. every time you learn a piece, i mean really learn it, you share its logic. its all there, you just have to know which questions to ask.
the best part of composition is when you know its a real piece. you have created your own universe with its own set of rules, colors, and characters. if things go well you get to play in utopia for a while (too long and it spoils), and when its finally done and bring it to the group its like sharing my new friends with the old ones.
i know they are going to get along and cannot wait to meet each other.
Labels: composing
posted by paul bailey at
7:20 PM
3 Comments:
First of all, congrats on the composer camp/exile and victory lap. Sounds like fun!
I have a question regarding the following excerpt from your post:
" . . . but i finally took the advice that i resisted in lessons and started sketching on pencil and paper."
Did you not use pencil and paper before? Did you do all of your writing at the computer? Did you work it out through a sequencer, or did you work directly into a notation program?
Just curious.
Shane
in past pieces i went staight from a voiceleading sketch to computer, but taking the time to work out ideas on paper has been a interesting experience. i feel like i get a kinesthetic response using a mouse and sequencer, but only recently have realized its limitations. i think the computer works best (for me) with scoring and arranging (especially with a bad soundcard). my imagination and experience gives me a pretty good idea what it will sound like on live instruments.
if i thought it would help i'd probably pledge allegiance to satan to have the muse visit on a regular basis, but until then its all about process and technique.
I tend to work differently depending on what I'm making.
If I'm making one of my mp3 pieces (small pieces I make just to keep me making something), then I make them straight into cubase sx via my audio/midi set-up. These pieces are completely improvised.
If I'm working on something for live musicians, I always work pencil and paper. I just like the tactile aspect of having mechanical pencil and paper in hand (with eraser very nearby) and the ability to shuffle through pages as the piece develops. I almost always have the structure worked out before hand, with a little room for changes. Greenhaw and I used to talk about how it was all about coming up with the structure, and then all you have to do is fill in the notes. I think he even said this on a KUSC interview we did in '95.
I used to always finish pieces 100% before I would go putting them into Finale (usually using the old Roland U20 to get the notes in quickly). Lately, I put them in somewhere between 70% and 100%. I will often finish the incomplete ones in Finale, as they are fairly well developed by that point.
I know this has no bearing on anything, but I always find it interesting to see how others work.
As for the muse, you're on the right track. It's all about the writing. Stravinsky said to write every day, and Glass said something to the effect that he wasn't the best composer at Julliard, but he was the most persistent. Just keep writing.
As for me, I suffer the opposite problem from you right now. There's plenty of music in my head (some may even be good), but no time to do anything about it. Perhaps this is a necessary germination period, similar to what Wagner, Schoenberg and Part went through. Or maybe it's just the life of a husband and father of three (with two jobs). I'm guessing it's the latter.
Keep up the great work!
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