When you repeatedly experience something, you get used to it. For example, if I want to learn a particular technique on my guitar, I practice it. By practicing, I repeat doing the same thing over and over. But I have to be careful what I’m getting used to. If I …
This is the third and final entry in a series examining a song from four different dimensions: songwriting, arrangement, performance, and production. This post examines the latter two. So what do you do when you have such great material that don’t require a lot of decoration? You get out of the …
This is the second in a series examining a song from four different dimensions: songwriting, arrangement, performance, and production. This post focuses on the oft-overlooked aspect of music: arrangement. In the previous post we examined how John Lennon wrote an efficient little pop gem using two well-matched chord progressions and repetitive …
This is a first in a series examining a song from four different dimensions: songwriting, arrangement, performance, and production. “Nowhere Man” from Rubber Soul is a brilliant little pop gem with biting commentary on humanity’s tendency to to stick to her/his comfort zones. The impactfulness of the song is perfectly orchestrated by …
The other day there was a question asked in a group for musicians. What’s the higher purpose of your music? Someone like Elizabeth Gilbert, whose book Big Magic I adore, would take issues with that statement. She encourages creatives to do it simply for the fun of it. Don’t overburden yourself …