Saturday, June 09, 2007

Being Honest in Music

Here's a good way to get someone's undivided attention. Ask, "Can I be honest with you?" People will stop whatever they're doing and have a listen to what you want to say.

The same is true in music, too. When you compose, are you being honest? Are you putting "you" in the music, or are you putting on airs? Are you the real thing, or are you wearing the emperor's new clothes?

Sometimes I start writing a piece and I have to abandon it. There's more than one reason this might happen, but chief amongst them is that I feel the music is not communicating honestly.

The shame of it is that I hear many audiences being impressed with dishonest, unlistenable music. I guess you can fool a lot of people a lot of the time. But do yourself a favor: don't fool yourself. Always let your music be an honest expression of yourself.