Synopsis:
I plan to create a CD that will be a collection of songs that I have written. The theme of the songs will be friendship, loss and love. I intend to record the songs and then edit them on a computer editing program.
I want the music to be an expression of the theme. The CD will have four or five pieces and will be building on the theme.
There will be both musical and spoken word pieces as well as a collection of all the pieces spliced together to create a whole new piece.
This CD will be a collection of my music and a physical manifestation of what I have learned in this course.
Background:
I have always wanted to be a rock star, or a folk singer, or at least have something to show for all the vocal training and recording for other people that I have done. I decided that I wanted to make a CD when I first registered for this class.
I have never done anything like this. I have written music since I was a small child and had intensive vocal training. I have recorded professionally on other peoples projects but was never given a copy of anything that I had done. This is my chance to create something of my own.
Intent:
My intent is to end up with a CD that I can know I created from start to finish including my own music writing, recording, editing, cover design and so on. I want the music to reflect my present state of mind. I want to share what it is that I have been thinking and feeling over the last five years of my life as I have lost dear and wonderful friends and developed strong friendship ties.
Development as an artist:
Part of my goal is to learn the process involved in the creation of a CD. Once I have completed this project, it will enable me to take on similar projects in the future. Maybe someday I will create a larger project with more people and more instruments.
I think that having a CD that I can listen to and share with people will boost my confidence about my music and maybe give me the push to go back into live performance at places other than small fundraisers.
The Treatment:
Format:
The final recording will be produced in CD format.
Audio Overview:
My music is an expression of feelings inside me bursting to get out. This is a collection of pieces about loss and about the celebration of friendship; an odd combination but one that happened naturally. The pieces are ballads that happened to create themselves while I was playing guitar over a number of months.
The instruments on the CD are voice, guitar and computer generated effects.
The first song, "April's Song" was written while sitting in my living room wishing that I could write a happy song about a friend who had recently passed away. I wanted to remember her happily rather than focusing on how I felt about her death.
You always asked me to sing for you
You always wanted a song.
I knew that one day I would write one for you
I want you here to hear your song.
I don't want it to be sad, your song.
I don't want it to make me feel bad, your song,
I just want you to hear your song.
I remember the way you looked at me that day you came home.
A tear in your eye your arms around me, at home,
Oh, how you had grown.
I'll never forget your yellow sarong.
Or how you looked when you put it on.
That day you wore purple and said,
"I've so much to tell you,"
And then you were gone.
"Women" is a song with no lyrics. This song is about the friendships that I have had in my life, the friendships that I have now and the friendships to come. The harmonies are accidental. I listened to one voice and sang along with it, then listened to the second voice and sang along with that and so on so that each harmony only intentionally fit with the first voice. The rest had to fit together as friends fit together, with peaks of good and bad.
Women (Voice and 2 guitars)
"Walking" is a poem written shortly after the death of my best friend in high school. I feel that it speaks for itself. There is no melodic music in this piece, rather it is a rhythmical spoken word piece.
I walked with my face to the wind
until I was numb.
It's odd how pain, is the only relief from pain.
I wrote the song "yellow" for April, the subject of "April's Song." This piece also wrote itself one day as I was sitting and singing while thinking about my loss. The words are my feelings of her being everywhere .... being part of everything.
"Mr. Sun" is my three year old cousin singing with snippits of other parts of the collection of songs in this project. I also added a sound file that was saved in my folder accidentally. This piece is a mishmash of everything meant to symbolize the craziness of life, love, friendship, and loss. Despite it all, the world still turns and the three year old still sings for the sun to come out and "play."
Outline:
The CD will consist of the songs in the following order:
The theme moves from celebratory to sad to "life."
[ends]