General

Photo by Gaetan Lee

I’m a big fan of seeing people succeed at whatever they are passionate about.  To me, it is in a way like watching an athlete perform – there is an elegance, a beauty, a truth in the Universe in the movement and their grace.  They flow – they are in their element.  It also gives you hope, because if they can do it…

A common challenge for creative people is the lack of support they encounter as they build their career.  Amazingly, the most likely source of support is from strangers or acquaintances.  I believe that the hesitation of family and friends to pledge unconditional support does stem from a place of love and concern, but it manifests itself negatively almost every time – as judgment.  We see someone about to take a risk, and we are worried – moreso because we judge creative risks to have a low ‘return on investment’, so to speak, and that it’s a ‘waste of time’ or will end badly (drugs, depravity, desperation – you guys are creative types – you know how we live).

Which Witch is Which?

I think one of the big challenges in trying to lead a fulfilling life is learning to tell the difference between Fears - those things which make you afraid because they are actually dangerous and/or a bad idea, and those which you fear because they are new, different, challenging, and may result in (GASP) ‘failure’.  If you ask an entrepreneur, these last are called ‘opportunities’, and ‘failure’ is simple a natural part of the journey to ’success’.  There is no easy way to learn to tell the difference – it’s a matter of being very honest with yourself and listening to your intuition.  You will eventually be able to judge your fears with good accuracy, and I’ve made it a recent habit to always say ‘Yes’ to doing things which terrify me for all the right reasons.

What does this have to do with support?  Well, a lot of people don’t know how to tell apart their fears, and their fear for you takes over – that you’ll fail and be unhappy, that you’ll end up in a bad place, that you’ll blow the family fortune, or even (and possibly more often than you’d expect) that you’ll be a big success and they’ll feel lousy for not having taken a chance on their dreams themselves – dreams which they let die long ago for all the wrong reasons (fear of ‘failure’, being pragmatic).  Now, I’m not saying people should enable foolhardiness – again, this is one of those times when you have to see fear for what it is – is there a justifiable reason you are afraid?

Hector Projector

Now, by virtue of who this blog is intended for, I doubt I’m going to convert anybody who is not on a creative endeavor into being a Champion of the Dreamer.  But I think it helps to know where they are coming from – that fear.  It’s not really about YOU, it’s them and their own ’stuff’ that they are projecting on to you.  So what to do?

Do everything from a place of love.

Do it for yourself, don’t rely on outside support to do what you do.  Treat it as a nice ‘extra’ if you do receive it, and cherish and nurture that in people – it’s a rare thing.  That’s important too – to realize it’s not a given that people will support you.  Learn to give yourself support by judging your own stuff less critically, and by letting the work be a reward in itself.  And, even more importantly – GIVE AWAY WHAT YOU WANT – if you want support, support others.  It’ll come back to you, in such abundance it will surprise you.  It’s one of the weirder laws of the Universe – if you want something, give it away.

Quack quack

Let the negative roll off your back (you were wondering what the heck ducks had to do with this, eh?).  I mean really: let it roll off and dissipate (no baggage hanging around for future bitterness) – and this is a challenge.  Let it go.  Again – it’s not easy and it does take practice.  But if you are going to succeed, you are going to have to keep at it – and if you are going to keep at it, you’ll need to build thick skin – for rejection, and for those who just don’t really care about you or your work.  Work hard, but learn to move on quickly if you’re not getting anywhere.  Approach things without expectation and with no emotional attachment to the outcome – do it for what you love to do, not for what you think you should get.

No Island

But that’s only part of the picture – you need some sort of sustenance, support – you can’t be completely self-sufficient, you just won’t make it all alone.  Seek out you champions and supporters.  Actively look for people and groups that are aligned with your values and goals.  They will become your support structure, and provide guidance and direction when you need it.  Find a mentor in your field – they will help you in real ways that others cannot – on an emotional, and practical level.  Surround yourself with positive, inspiring, motivated people who themselves have goals that they are not giving up on.

Come on people now, smile on your…

Finally, I really want to encourage everyone to… ah… encourage everyone!  Try to jump in with genuine excitement and enthusiasm the next time someone describes their latest pet project, album idea, business plan, film treatment, or whatever.  It’s a small thing, but having that support, even a token ‘Sounds awesome!  Go for it!’ can make a huge difference to opening up creativity and improving chances – don’t perpetuate limiting beliefs – perpetuate passion, creative energy and love.

OK, time for a group hug!  … and maybe some Gravol for the nausea?

This week I’m guest blogging at Studio Manifesto!

http://studiomanifesto.ca/2009/04/01/voodoo-your-creative-flow-using-rituals-to-maximize-your-creativity/ !

Creative Flow - Photo by entrelec

You know how a particular smell or perfume, or a song, can bring back a powerful memory of a person, place, or time in your life? Certain stimuli can trigger strong emotional states. For me, if I smell Calvin Klein’s ‘Eternity’, I’m back in grade 9, going out on my first date, and I’m madly in love. It’s as if I’ve time traveled on an emotional level, re-living all those strong feelings from those turbulent times.

In this phenomena lies a key to enhanced creativity and unleashing inspiration.

READ THE FULL POST AT http://studiomanifesto.ca/2009/04/01/voodoo-your-creative-flow-using-rituals-to-maximize-your-creativity/ !

Photo by Sam Javanrouh

Here’s an interesting little experiment.  I like to call it that, because it’s how I feel about it.  When someone offers an idea, my philosophy is to say ‘ok, let’s try it’ before nixing it outright – unless I have direct experience with something similar which did not work in the expected way.  Of course, when you are working on a film as the composer, you are working collaboratively with the director/producer.  You are going to be taking a LOT of suggestions!  And that’s not a bad thing – I always have a gut feeling about the people I work with – I know it will work or not, I know it will be an enjoyable challenge or an unmitigated drag.  If it works, I love getting ‘notes’ – in most cases, the work I subsequently produce is better, and I often learn something.

This particular clip was interesting, because it was intended as a ‘teaser’.  But it functions in many ways like an opening/credit sequence – a young woman is shown lovingly preparing food for a dish to be served at a banquet.  The visuals are beautiful and sensual, and it has a very peaceful quality.  The film however, deals with themes of family, pride, and death/loss, and how we don’t always see each other for who/what we really are, and sometimes can’t communicate what we really need.  It’s a dramatic feature, and these themes are very powerful in the film.  The challenge was, as I was only scoring this short teaser – should the music reflect the visuals, or speak to the underlying themes/story, or was there a way to do both?

Enough words.  Let’s take a listen to Version 1:

Note that I did not send this to the director – at first.  I decided it played too upbeat – it worked to the visuals of the piece, but if it were an opening, it would give a completely false impression of what the film was going to be about.  “Practical Magic” springs to mind (a musical guilty pleasure), as a reference I thought of when I reviewed the music against picture.  More on what the director said about this version shortly, as they did not hear it until after Version 2.  It’s decidedly major, with a rhythmic figure in the strings that gives it a ‘running’ movement, and has a slightly mysterious, searching melody based on the Lydian scale.

Here is Version 2:

I took the basic structure and figures from V1 and made the harmonic progression minor.  It wasn’t a straight inversion; some of the original progression just didn’t function the same way.  I managed to get some interesting movement in some parts, and I liked the development of interplay between sections – I wanted it to sound like a conversation – a back and forth kind of thing that would mirror the conversations/arguments that would happen in the film.  Each section wants to ‘be heard’.  After watching the fantastic 2003 film ‘Zatoichi’, I took the idea of matching actions on-screen with stylized rhythmic motifs – so when she is peeling a vegetable or chopping garlic, the woodblock and shaker figures come up.  I thought this might inject a bit of humour back into the scene, as the film is really about hope, and has it’s funny moments too.  The theme of death and loss is addressed as the music climaxes in intensity, becoming very mournful.  It then returns to a quiet simplicity, the french horn line representing quiet hope and acceptance of some truths.

The director’s feeling was that the string figure made it seem too urgent, and that the overall music, while beautiful, seemed in conflict with the calm energy of the scene (a gentle jazz tune was used to temp the scene).  Overall, the music seemed too dramatic and dense – when sparse and intimate was what she wanted.  I thought, hmmm – maybe my first instinct was off – maybe she will like the first version better, as it addresses her concerns – I fired that off, commenting that I felt it spoke to the character of the cook – youthful, optimistic, confident.  To my slight surprise, she felt as I did about version 1, and went a step further – she felt it was very “mainstream”, and reminded her of the Tom Hanks vehicle, ‘Big’.  At that moment, the term “mainstream” sounded like a dirty word to me.

We talked, and decided that the basic material comprising version 2 was good and I would work from that, to produce something slightly more spare, less urgent and suspenseful, with more of a focus on the solo instruments.  There was a lot of material and ideas in V2 that I really liked – the rhythmic string motif being one.  I moved towards a compromise; here is Version 3:

In this version, the music holds off a bit until the visuals set a bit of the pace.  The tempo of the piece was reduced from 120 to 110 bpm – to bring a bit of calm.  Instead of the urgent string motif, I have only the harp (playing half time from V2) and a solo flute and cello.  When the rhythmic motif does come in, it’s for a few bars only, and at a reduced dynamic – the strings alternate to long, legato bowing instead of the staccato they played throughout in the previous versions.  I reduced the intensity of the build, and in general re-arranged some of the sections to play in lower, darker registers, to lessen height of the climax.  I was very happy with this version, and felt it improved not only how it worked to picture, but it became much more interesting as a piece – it had more variation in rhythm, texture, and dynamic.

I got final approval from the director on this version, with a few small changes – the harp would come in 2 bars early as an introduction to the melody, and the first solo would be taken by the violin instead of the flute – the flute reminded her too much of those warbly soundtracks for the National Film Board of Canada’s 1970’s nature documentaries.  It was quite humorous – definitely a product of our age – she said, “I don’t know about the flute… it kind of reminds me of…” and I said “Wait, don’t say it, I already know”.

All in all, I enjoyed this process of carving away at the block.  If I were on my own, I would likely have stopped at version 2 and begun the process of finessing the piece.  I can’t deny, however, that the final product is qualitatively better than version 2, and I’m very pleased by that.  I enjoy the collaborative process – it’s not for everyone; you really have to let your ego go while maintaining your position as an expert in your field.  It’s very important that you find a way to effectively communicate with your director/producer/client, and that you keep focused on win-win solutions to all problems.  If you can do this, it’s a very rewarding experience where you get to do good work, learn something, fulfill (some) of your own artistic desires, and make your client happy (which has positive side effects for you as well!).

To hear the final piece and see the recording session of the orchestra at CBC studios, click here:

http://adrianelliscomposer.com/AdriansBlog/?p=116

How it all got started...

Caterpillar: Who are YOU?
Alice: This was not an encouraging opening for a conversation. I — I hardly know, sir, just at present — at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.

- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

I think this a fantastic question to ask yourself as a creative person, and I’ll be addressing it in an upcoming post.  But for now, let’s start with actual introductions, and we’ll leave out the tripped out hookah smoking polypeds for now.

Hi!  (yea, that’s a good start…)

My name is Adrian, and I’m a composer, producer, and all around music-creative guy.  My primary area of focus is creating music for media – film, television shows, web stuff, and even video games.  In that sense, I also consider myself a filmmaker and storyteller.  I work as a craftsman, helping to bring life to someone’s vision.  I’m drawn to do this because I love the collaborative spirit, I love the visual medium, and I love analysing and telling stories.  Obviously, I’m also deeply passionate about all aspects of music, and can geek out about recording technology, guitar playing, and production.  I also adore working with other musicians, either in recording my own works or helping them see their own vision come to fruition.

So… what am I DOING here??

Sharing and connecting!  Imagine that – on the Internet of all places!  I know, it’s a terrible idea.

I thought it would be fun to share some thoughts, working ideas, insights and stories – both my own and from others.  I’m looking forward to hearing from YOU – the filmmakers, web-heads, musicians, composers, producers, fans, trolls – and hear your stories, responses, and insights.  Get in touch with me, or post response – also, tell me what you’d like to hear about or see!

But wait… what?

Here are some things you will find coming up:

Videos! I’ll be documenting some of my projects as they unfold, everything from composing to recording, from the studio to the sound stage, and everything in between – it’ll be an intimate look at the mysterious “creative process” you’ve read so much about.  You’ll also find videos that delve into the technical side of the craft.  I’m hoping that it will be interesting to both those who are musically inclined, as well as those who work in other fields.

Podcasts! for download and listening on your favorite YouPod-a-maphone.  Collections of my tracks for personal use (sounds kinda dirty, doesn’t it) and episodes where I do a little talking about the tracks, what they were for, how the collaboration worked, and insights and anecdotes.

Blogs! web based text-talky things, where an ‘author’ goes on and on about ’stuff’.  I heard you liked media, so I put some media in your media so you can enjoy your media while you… wait, uh… never mind.  Here are some future topics:

1. Using limitations to enhance creativity

2. Creating your ‘myth’ or ‘legend’

3. The composer as filmmaker

4. Creative rituals, creative time

5. Creating your niche, standing out, being different

6. Stuck?  Ways to break out of your own mold

… and plenty more (right, brain?  Say yes… good).

See you next time!

Cheers,

Adrian