A first take on the required piece for a competition I'm doing this summer. I'm giving it a run tomorrow for a concert in Orange County. Sorry about the barking. Aiko has impeccable timing. (I didn't actually kick her at the end, although I wanted to- it was just a nudge...)
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Declaration of Attempt to Become a Writer
Can the dancer be a photographer, the potter a musician, the actor a sculptor?
Perhaps one language just isn't enough. Sometimes, the things that want to be said exceed their medium. I have a general sense of restlessness that goes through its peaks and valleys of activity. In the past, I've attributed it to too few amounts of meaningful personal interaction, general mental boredom, and lack of intellectual stimulus.
But what if it is really none of those things, and instead, the restlessness is an uneasiness created by potential for another form of expression that hasn't yet been realized? A medium that has been under my nose for my entire life, but not honed into a craft, not refined in the fire, not given the chance to speak much of the heart?
I really believe that there's an artist inside of everyone, and that connecting with this part of yourself is an essential aspect of understanding the Creator and yourself as a work of art. I gravitated towards the guitar at the age of five, for some reason unbeknownst to me. It pulled me and called me, and I was given the means with which I could answer. But I've always hungered to do more than just that; ironically, speaking without words has not always satisfied me. After much pondering, I'm going to take some of my friends' encouragement seriously and give writing a real shot. I just got the green light to do a minor field for my degree at USC's journalism school in arts criticism. We have a phenomenal Pulitizer prize-winning visiting professor on faculty right now who used to be the music critic for the Washington Post. And, his approval of my writing was a huge boost to my confidence. I sent him an academic research paper and to contrast, of all things, my blog entry about ramen- and he said he liked it enormously!
I'm really excited about this opportunity and have no idea what will come out of it. I don't even promise that I'll write anything good, or that I'll have the guts to share it. But, if this works out, I'll be taking his writing workshop in the fall. I'm not a natural critic, and am hoping that delving into the world of arts criticism will help me begin to articulate the nuances that make any work of art excellent, moving, shocking, or beautiful. I believe this will make me a better musician as well. I'm craving a new set of weapons to wield, and thinking about the possibilities unleashed by the power of the pen has me incredibly inspired.
Perhaps one language just isn't enough. Sometimes, the things that want to be said exceed their medium. I have a general sense of restlessness that goes through its peaks and valleys of activity. In the past, I've attributed it to too few amounts of meaningful personal interaction, general mental boredom, and lack of intellectual stimulus.
But what if it is really none of those things, and instead, the restlessness is an uneasiness created by potential for another form of expression that hasn't yet been realized? A medium that has been under my nose for my entire life, but not honed into a craft, not refined in the fire, not given the chance to speak much of the heart?
I really believe that there's an artist inside of everyone, and that connecting with this part of yourself is an essential aspect of understanding the Creator and yourself as a work of art. I gravitated towards the guitar at the age of five, for some reason unbeknownst to me. It pulled me and called me, and I was given the means with which I could answer. But I've always hungered to do more than just that; ironically, speaking without words has not always satisfied me. After much pondering, I'm going to take some of my friends' encouragement seriously and give writing a real shot. I just got the green light to do a minor field for my degree at USC's journalism school in arts criticism. We have a phenomenal Pulitizer prize-winning visiting professor on faculty right now who used to be the music critic for the Washington Post. And, his approval of my writing was a huge boost to my confidence. I sent him an academic research paper and to contrast, of all things, my blog entry about ramen- and he said he liked it enormously!
I'm really excited about this opportunity and have no idea what will come out of it. I don't even promise that I'll write anything good, or that I'll have the guts to share it. But, if this works out, I'll be taking his writing workshop in the fall. I'm not a natural critic, and am hoping that delving into the world of arts criticism will help me begin to articulate the nuances that make any work of art excellent, moving, shocking, or beautiful. I believe this will make me a better musician as well. I'm craving a new set of weapons to wield, and thinking about the possibilities unleashed by the power of the pen has me incredibly inspired.
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