First, there is the music you play and jam with your friends. Cover tunes? Blues? Country? Rock? Jazz? Bluegrass? Metal?
Why do you play these songs?
- They’re fun?
- Your friends tell you “you sound great”?
- You get money from bars and restaurants for playing these songs?
- Strangers tell you you’re great and want to have sex with you?
- They're songs you all know so they allow you to play together?
But what is YOUR music? Where is it? What does it even sound like? Have you ever experienced it? Do you care?
Most people either have given up on being creative or never were. Life is so hard and expensive, plus there is such a teensy tiny reward for most musicians, creativity is squelched in favor of making a few bucks for the advantages listed previously.
TRY THIS
Sit in a quiet place, close your eyes, take a few slow deep breaths, calm down, listen, what do you hear around you?
Can you hear music in your head? Are there any unrealized original music ideas that come to you in this moment?
What is THAT sound? Is it fast? Is it slow? Is it LOUD? Is it soft? Does it have vocals? Is it instrumental? Is it rich acoustic guitar tone? Is it electric guitar?
What would it take to create those sounds in your head? The first step is to figure out what that sound is that you’d LIKE to BE making. Maybe you’re happy with what you’re doing, in which case all of this discussion is a moot point. But……
If you are not happy or excited by what you’re “creating” then maybe it’s time to do self assessment and try to identify what you’d really like to be making in the way of music. For well over forty years of my life my original music efforts were pretty much ruled by:
- Friends Opinion
- Financial reward
- Lack of Understanding
$100 band gigs and free drinks only takes you so far, then what? Getting out of the business? I’ve heard so many people say “I’m getting out of the business, I’m quitting music.” My inner voice always responds with “were you ever really IN the business?”.
Want to make your greatest music ever? Forget the business. Focus all your attention on discovering what YOUR sound really is. Maybe your sound is playing cover tunes but if that is not really where your heart and soul are then maybe it’s time to try other things.
Get some basic recording gear and learn to record. Error and Trial until you get the sound to match what you hear inside your head. It takes time to learn new skills so you’ll need to plan to give yourself the space to achieve results.
WHAT’S YOUR GOAL?
If financial security is what you crave don’t count on music.
Pinning your success in life to the success of your music is a sure road to disaster for your creative efforts.
Put your original music above financial rewards, it needs to be lifted up and given respect. If you don’t respect your own creations why should other people?
Maybe your friends won’t understand, that’s ok. Who knows where music could really take you once you set yourself free from whatever is constraining your efforts.
EPILOGUE:
You can mimic a result, but not the creativity.
Good Music To You! Thanks for reading High on Technology
©2023 by Mark King, it's not ok to copy or quote without written permission
