ComposeCreate.com » Inspiration

Vision

Wendy — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 13:00:55 +0000

This is Lesson #8 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. I have seen so many organizations fail or falter because of a lack of clear vision and a committment to that vision. Composers and teachers must keep in mind that they are organizations in and of themselves and should work to develop and maintain a vision for optimal growth.

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)
Lesson #3 Change (page 50)
Lesson #4 Connected (Page 12)
Lesson #5 Productivity (Page 68)
Lesson #6 Strengths (Page 22)
Lesson #7 Attention (Page 48)
Lesson #8 Vision (Page 15)

Attention

Wendy — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:00:06 +0000

This is Lesson #7 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. This is great advice for those wanting to establish a presence online.

How Innovation Happens at 3M (and how it relates to music teaching/publishing)

Wendy — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:19:09 +0000

I love the Wall Street Journal as an unusual source of creative and entrepreneural inspiration. On Monday, March 1st, there was an article entitled, At 3M, Innovation Comes in Tweaks in which CEO George Buckley was interviewed about his company and their innovations and creative processes. Really the whole article is interesting and worth the read, but I love what he said in this part of the interview,

WSJ: How else do you get your people to be creative?

Mr. Buckley: Everybody wants to find out how to can creativity. You can’t. Creativity comes from freedom, not control. We let all the people in the R&D community spend 15% of their time researching whatever they like.

Now, I have heard of several companies allowing their employees to spend a small percentage of their time researching their own interests with remarkable results (Google for one). It only makes sense that people are most excited about projects that interest them and in which they have vested interests.

How does that relate to the world of music teaching?

Well, I wonder what would happen if we as teachers allowed our students to spend a certain percentage of their practice time and their music selection on music that they love and pick themselves? Several years ago, I had a 9th grader who was talented but was just about to quit piano his mother told me. We worked out a deal where he could chose up yo 50% of his pieces for that year and I would choose the remaining 50%. He could spend half of his time on music he loved as long as he spent half of his time on the music I assigned. This was the only way we got through that year, but I’m so excited to say that he is now a senior and has developed into quite the musician! He continues to study music that he loves, but it is often music that I have picked now that his tastes have developed. We spent a good deal of time in his 9th and 1oth grade years on Broadway music, church music, holiday music, etc., but it was well worth it as his love of music just grew by leaps and bounds.

I wonder how this could relate and encourage more innovation in the composing/publishing world as well?

Strengths (a note from Chopin)

Wendy — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:00:00 +0000

This is Lesson #6 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. While there is a lot of truth to this little adage, I don’t know that I would completely discount the importance of working on our weaknesses. Especially for a young composer, it’s helpful to identify weaknesses and strive to improve them since one does not always know their strengths. Young composers need to “outfit their arsenol” of techniques. But, I do understand the point being made here since doing what you are good at will certainly produce more in the area of your strength. Before sharing this little tidbit from the What Matter Now series, I’d like to share some thoughts from someone who has a bit more clout in the musical world.

In my reading of Aaron Copland’s Music and Imagination, part of the Charles Eliot Norton lecture series from Harvard, I found an interesting passage about Frederick Chopin. It seems Chopin’s friends tried over and over again to get him to broaden his portfolio by writing for other instruments and groupings. From a letter to one of his friends, we can hear his thoughts on the matter:

I know my limitations, and I know I would make a fool of myself if I tried to climb too high without having the ability to do it. They plague me to death, urging me to write symphonies and operas, and they want me to be everything in one, a Polish Rossinni and a Mozart and a Beethoven. But, I just laugh under my breath and think to myself that one must start from small things. Im only a pianist, and if I’m worth anything this is good too…I think it’s better to do only a little but to do that as well as possible, rather than try to do all things and do them poorly.

Should you need a bit more encouragement in this area, here is the little adage from the What Matter Now series that made me think of that great Chopin quote.

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)
Lesson #3 Change (page 50)
Lesson #4 Connected (Page 12)
Lesson #5 Productivity (Page 68)
Lesson #6 Strengths (Page 22)

Productivity

Wendy — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:00:43 +0000

This is Lesson #5 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. I’ve referenced this one at the beginning of the year when I was making 1 year goals. I love her last line, “Don’t worry about getting things done. Make things happen.” This is great advice for a composer.

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)
Lesson #3 Change (page 50)
Lesson #4 Connected (Page 12)
Lesson #5 Productivity (Page 68)

Connected

Wendy — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 13:00:29 +0000

This is Lesson #4 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. This one reminds me that while I need to embrace the benefits of new technology, I need to remember that there are parts of what has worked well in the past that I need to still maintain. Human nature will always be human nature and the ways that some companies have tapped into what appeals to us as humans in the past will continue to appeal to us in the future. (I think specifically of things like a genuine interest in people that leads to better customer service, a follow up conversation, etc. )

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)
Lesson #3 Change (page 50)
Lesson #4 Connected (Page 12)

The Sensitive Amateur Listener

Wendy — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 13:00:59 +0000

Like most composers, I am always testing my music. I test it for the following reasons:

To know what works and what doesn’t.
To know what is difficult for the performer and what is easy.
To know if the piece sounds as I intended it to sound.

But above all, I need to know if my piece makes a connection with the musician. This is especially true in writing pedagogical music. If it does not connect with a student at some level, then I know I need to rethink the piece and perhaps even toss it in the “just practicing pile.” Though my pedagogical pieces are first seen and approved by an editor, then evaluated through the eyes of a teacher, my first responsibility is to write music that connects with the student! A good editor of course will be an expert at knowing what music connect with students.

As I was reflecting on this evaluative process that I go through for my music, I also thought of the unique perspective that a non-musician can bring to the evaluative process. I count it a privilege to have a husband who is not a musician and his perspective on my pieces is often the most valuable to me in understanding what connects with people as human beings, not merely as musicians. Through the years of going to concerts together and having many deep talks about the nature, creation, and value of music, he has become what I would consider a “sensitve amateur listener.” He is exactly who I thought of when I read this great statement by Aaron Copland in his Music and Imagination lecture:

The sensitive amateur, just because he lacks the prejudices and preconceptions of the professional musician, is sometimes a surer guide to the true quality of a piece of music.

This just further validates to me that I do well when I pay attention to the amateur, for what connects with him or her as a human being gives me insight into what connects with all human beings, musical or not. The amateur does not feel the need to hide behind the knowledge that he knows he is supposed to have. Their response is usually from a connection with the music rather than musical analysis or judgement. And at least in my case, this honesty is invaluable to my evaluative process.

Change

Wendy — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 13:00:51 +0000

This is Lesson #3 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. This one is great for both composing, teaching, and life in general.

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)
Lesson #3 Change (Page 50)

Knowing

Wendy — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:00:58 +0000

This is Lesson #2 in the pages that most spoke to me in What Matters Now. This inspiration is directly relevent to music teachers!

Lesson #1 Passion (page 51)
Lesson #2 Knowing (page 78)

Passion

Wendy — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:00:32 +0000

Gina Trapani is the founder and a writer for a blog that I follow called Lifehacker. At the beginning of the year, she blogged about a wonderful little ebook called What Matter Now from which I have received a number of thoughtful pieces of advice. I’d like to share one of these little tidbits with you at the beginning of every week for a few months in hopes that they might be a help to you as you live, teach, or compose.

Lesson #1 Passion: (Page 51)

This is obviously great advice for a young person or student. But, if you can’t think of how this might apply to your life as a composer, then I’ll share how it has spoken to me of late.

I almost always write with a purpose. I like to have something to write about musically, so I am always brainstorming about new ideas. I find that though I can write decently for assignments given to me, my most creative writing comes when I write about that which I am passionate. I have found that “finding my passion” is not some abstract, difficult thing to do, but rather just finding out what excites me and places me in a state of wonder or fascination. I like that Derek defines passion as that which excites you and scares you every day! This is not always obvious to me, but when I search with those criteria, I almost always find something to write about and usually with good results.