# Looking for some inspirational help here.



## Studio E (Oct 25, 2011)

Hey everyone. I've been a member here for a couple of year or so. I've really enjoyed this forum probably more than any other of similar types and I know that there are some serious heavyweight composers/arrangers on here. I started composing for tv commercials about 7 years ago. I've made it a fun part-time thing and I think that I have done a fairly good job on the projects I've had. I guess I'm saying that I have a decent knack for it. Not at all like some but better than others. Solidly mediocre if you will.

When I first started, I was using Cubase SX3 and handful of hardware synths. I quickly got excited as I got more work and really went to town buying stuff along the way. At my peak, about two years ago, I sunk myself deep into debt to build a home studio. It's nice for a home studio but far from a professional studio. Suits me just fine for what I do and I can just scrape by with what I have to occasionally record bands for money.

Then, about the time that the bottom dropped out of the market and unemployment went on the rise, my fulltime business took a serious hit and the music business stayed the same. I could no longer afford all the stuff I had bought. I was suddenly late on payments and just totally overwhelmed financially for the first time ever. In other words, I really screwed up and it had finally caught up to me.

So I doubled down, hunted harder for work, tightened my belt, got on repayment plans, etc, etc.  I basically got back to where nothing was late but I had no room to breathe either. I of course, used this experience to change the way I would run my finances for the rest of my life. I knew that I was done using credit like I had in the past. So now, for two years, I have been repaying everything. And it's not just the studio either. I'm talking car, toys, gear, software, engagement ring (that one payed off as a great investment by-the-way) etc. I am just about to finally pay off an amount that will allow me to breathe again later this week. It will literally free up about 15% of my monthly income which I will just turn towards the next debt until they are all gone which should take about another two years.

Meanwhile, I have watched TONS of cool products come out and pass me by. ALL the new strings, brass, this, that, the other thing.......man, it's SO hard to watch idly. 

Long winded I know, sorry. So here's the main point of all of this. Somewhere along the way, I have lost my inspiration to write. Don't get me wrong. When a commercial comes my way, I'm all about it and I love doing it. But, I used to also write a piece or two every year just because I had something inside of me that I desperately wanted to say. I haven't had that at all for a while and as such, I haven't written anything and it's kind of scaring me. In two years or less, I want to jump back in the game, buy LASS, HB, True Strike or whatever I feel I need to really enjoy the process and write some sick, over the top stuff. But, if I can't make it happen now, why should I believe I will then? THe only answer I have for that is that I have in the past. I don't know if it's the huge financial strain or what but it's just left me lately. 

Can anyone here share a similar story so I know that I'm not alone here? I still listen to James Newton Howard, Alan Silvestri, Randy Newman, Mark Isham, Howard Shore etc and I LOVE it! I want to write like that, and I have (to my own level of ability) but I just haven't felt it in a while. I guess I'm just looking for someone to tell me it will come back. please?

In the meanwhile, I have decided that I will train myself with more theory and exercises to increase my overall knowledge and competency and I will force myself to write just to prove that I can do it and keep my skills sharp. I'm just mising that under-the-surface push to really feel for what I'm doing.


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## Dan Mott (Oct 25, 2011)

I can relate to one point and that is, over the past few months I haven't touched my software or my microphone. I haven't even turned on my speakers. I'm simply uninspired, unmotivated and I have lost interest in composing all together. Whle I still know I love it and music is me, I'm just totally frustrated.

I decided recently to take up photography which is my second interest. It's amazing how when you're new to something, you don't think, you just do. It's just so fun, but where as with music', I'm just an OCD type perfectionist that I THINK and not DO! I've learned so much about music and mixing that I'm so aware of what I'm doing now which I think was for the better and for the worse at the same time. I remember years ago when I was making pop music that I wrote so many songs without even thinking. I actually couldn't believe from listening back to them the other day that I pulled those out of my ass. I don't even know how I did that and it was like I was a different composer back then. I had singers coming in to my studio and everything, but I haven't written a song in 3, almost 4 years. It's been a very slow process to losing interest and now I finally realize that I just don't want to do it anymore and I want a break for a long time. I started to lose confidence in my self and I started to doubt my abilities. 

I'm sure it will come back to you though. It should come back to me. I just know I'm a musician and I don't care if someone thinks different. So if you know that, then it should start coming back to you.


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## midphase (Oct 25, 2011)

I think there is something to be said about when creativity in one particular field becomes repetitive or uninspiring, and one seeks to find inspiration in other creative activities.

I'm actually experiencing that right now myself, earlier this year I directed a short film and it's been an amazing breath of fresh air from what has been feeling like a somewhat stale creative compositional place. 

I think for me part of the problem is that I don't feel particularly challenged by the projects that I am hired to work on, and I'm not particularly motivated to write music no other reason than for music's sake. I think after being a musician for 30 years, and working professionally almost 20 of those years...I'm feeling a bit burned out by it (and the shitty state of the industry doesn't help).

However, I can easily stay up until the wee hours of the morning in front of my laptop typing away at a story treatment or reading up about new camera gear and video software.

I think many of us are shifting focus into other creative areas, and yes...creating sample libraries is absolutely also a creative endeavor.

As I age, I'm beginning to realize that it's really all about being creative, and restricting oneself to a specific discipline doesn't have to be the only path.


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## NYC Composer (Oct 25, 2011)

I feel for you. The commercials business, which I spent about 25 years in and am still in, is virtually dead. I went from working 60 hrs a week to...well...much less.

I too go through periods of lack of inspiration, and I too took up another creative avenue to spark myself-I'm writing a mystery novel. I've finished about 10 chapters/ 12,000 words. However-

I still write quite a bit of music"for me". I took a page from, of all stupid things, the movie "The Last Samurai", and decided that whenever I could, I would work to perfect my craft. Now, my interests in music are so eclectic that could mean pretty much anything on any given day, from learning more about Kontakt one day to writing a song the next day to writing some semi-classical or ambient piece the next. I mess around for a bit, then I give myself assignments. When you have a gig, you get a specific assignment and a timeline, right? Try giving yourself one.

Another thing-I believe in something I heard once, which is "a writer _writes_." It's not about inspiration, it's about sitting down at proscribed times and doing work. Some days it will be inspired. Some days it won't. You do it anyway, on a schedule you set up and try to adhere to. In the end, you'll feel better having been productive, and you'll finish a lot more music.

Besides the commercials that still trickle in, I connected with some music libraries, and I eke out some money licensing or selling some of the tracks I do "for me". I started playing live again, a little. I took a theater project that panned out into a steady little income source. Making a little money from my music work is ALWAYS inspirational for me!  It probably is for you as well..? There may be other avenues you can explore.

I don't know if any of these ramblings are helpful to you, but they are offered up with empathy and best wishes. Rock on!


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## Lex (Oct 26, 2011)

Studio E @ Wed Oct 26 said:


> I guess I'm just looking for someone to tell me it will come back. please?



It will come back. 





If you had it, it didn't left anywhere. It's there where it always was. Fear and stress can make us loose connection with "it", and then we think it's gone.

alex


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## Studio E (Oct 26, 2011)

Hey Guys,

Thanks a bunch for the support. I feel better already, just knowing that it happens across the board. I did indeed write a screenplay for one of my pieces a couple years ago. Maybe that's an avenue I can use to spark things along. I also like the idea of giving myself assignments to make myself complete something. Thanks guys!

Eric


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## noiseboyuk (Oct 26, 2011)

Here's one other idea that may or may not float your boat. If you don't already, start exercising - running or cycling preferably, but outdoors. I need to do 10x the level that I do, but I guess it's better than nothing.

I fill my life up with noise (oh look at my name here...) both literally and figuratively. Getting out on the bike with no iPod is what my brain needs to start making its own noise! I've gotten so many raw ideas or changes of direction on that rubbish £90 bike. This is a hunch, maybe wildly wrong, but if you've been working commendably hard and have been stressed about cash, something that is freeing might be more beneficial than learning more theory.

Like others on this thread, I'm also a fan of a new creative outlet. I write, compose and do sound design, and those three things all seem to ebb and flow at different times. I'm learning to enjoy this... it's against the rules as we're all meant to just focus on one thing, but I love the variety and stops one thing becoming stale.


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## Daryl (Oct 27, 2011)

I think a lot of the problems can stem from the fact that for many composers, music is only computer based. For me, the best thing to do is to get out of the studio, immerse myself in proper music (not all that media cr*p) and start to enjoy music again.

Then when I want to write something, the last thing I do is turn the studio on. Much better to go away somewhere with paper and pencil and just write a few ideas. They don't even have to have notes; shape sketches can be really interesting, and can always be fleshed out when there is a keyboard handy, if you can't do it in your head.

Obviously if your music is electronically based, this is not possible. However, even then, just taking a field recorder around and singing, or making interesting sounds can be a real help.

D


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## EastWest Lurker (Oct 27, 2011)

To the OP: I think what has happened to you has little to do with music, libraries, etc per se and more about stress and loss of self-confidence. Iy is hard to write music when you are worried to dearth about money and not feeling good about yourself.

You have had some good suggestions here. Here is a quote that helps me get through tough times:

"Success is rarely permanent. Failure is rarely fatal. What is required is courage."


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## Dave Connor (Oct 27, 2011)

This begs the question whether music must issue forth from the composer or simply be discovered or is a result from a combination of both. Everyone goes up and down as to what they can generate musically but the vast inherent resources in the Western musical system remain a treasure trove that still yields great riches. There are simply too many objective scientific procedures (musical forms and devices) to assist the composer in his endeavors to feel helpless or squelched creatively. 

The great composers of the past HAD to produce music and so relied upon and even expanded the conventions available to them. Some were staggering geniuses and others craftsmen but they all new the conventions and could crank out music without too much difficulty. 

I would model on works you like. Breakdown all the elements and then produce your own work containing them all. The finished products quality will be of no consequence because you will have learned a blueprint which you can rework over and over. Plus it should be interesting and even fun to see how some great composer fashioned one of his works. All the greats did this and eventually overcame the process with their unique personality on display more than the underlying structure and devices.


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## poseur (Oct 27, 2011)

i need to work, in order to proceed:
work.
i need to write.
i need to write, play instruments, conceive ideas, play "live", record, play for others, etc etc etc.
i need to write, in order to keep any possible doors of inspiration opened.....
or get new or old ones to open, if they seem shut-to-me.

i need to read books, walk, cook & shop for the ingredients i'll be cooking, listen to inspiring music, as well;
i need to walk --- i write some of my best material, while walking quietly:
even loud, bombastic, noisy stuff.

i need solid, somewhat regular contact with my family & friends.
i need contact with folks i dig who work in the same fields as me.

i want new things, new purchases, new instruments (real, & virtual),
but do not need them;
the other things are the necessity.

not everything i write is capable of being brilliant;
however, when "jobs" are slim.....
i find it necessary to write _for myself_, for unknown or somewhat random reasons:
not writing models of "other music i've heard", written for primarily "professional" reasons:
screw that, i say!

inspiration requires its own kind of work, and some serious coddling & care:
invite it back, as craftily, lovingly & beseechingly as you can;
it's there, somewhere..... simply waiting.

imo.
ymmv, unless you never drive.


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## NYC Composer (Oct 27, 2011)

poseur @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> i need to work, in order to proceed:
> work.
> i need to write.
> i need to write, play instruments, conceive ideas, play "live", record, play for others, etc etc etc.
> ...



Sounds like you and I are on the same page, D.The addition of hanging with people who do what we do is an excellent one as well. It's nice in realtime, but it's also something I find SO valuable about this forum in a more virtual sense-batting around ideas and sharing experiences and analyses of products etc etc with people who understand. To most of the world, we are such wonks-talk about "samples" and "bit rates" with a civilian for long enough and watch their eyes glaze over.

I thought Guy made an excellent suggestion as well-get some exercise. Get out and walk or bike by a lake or an ocean or a park. Smell the roses, see the kids play, make sure you're part of life and the living, get your blood moving.

Now go write something, damnit!


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## poseur (Oct 27, 2011)

NYC Composer @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> Sounds like you and I are on the same page, D.The addition of hanging with people who do what we do is an excellent one as well. It's nice in realtime, but it's also something I find SO valuable about this forum in a more virtual sense-batting around ideas and sharing experiences and analyses of products etc etc with people who understand. To most of the world, we are such wonks-talk about "samples" and "bit rates" with a civilian for long enough and watch their eyes glaze over.
> 
> I thought Guy made an excellent suggestion as well-get some exercise. Get out and walk or bike by a lake or an ocean or a park. Smell the roses, see the kids play, make sure you're part of life and the living, get your blood moving.
> 
> Now go write something, damnit!



hey!
i am writing!
time-out for a skype-call w/a director.....
posting-while-waiting.....

we should meet sometime, now that i'm back in ny..... _most_ of the time.

playing @ "the stone" on dec 4th, fwiw.

d


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## NYC Composer (Oct 27, 2011)

You bet. My studio is in Chelsea, dunno where you're hanging.

What's the 'stone'? You're paying the BlarneyStone??


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## poseur (Oct 27, 2011)

NYC Composer @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> You bet. My studio is in Chelsea, dunno where you're hanging.
> 
> What's the 'stone'? You're paying the BlarneyStone??


ah!
no.

*"the stone"* --- john zorn's non-profit, artists' performance space:
http://thestonenyc.com/


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## NYC Composer (Oct 27, 2011)

Cool concept. Looks like Hipster heaven!


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## poseur (Oct 27, 2011)

NYC Composer @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> Cool concept. Looks like Hipster heaven!



it's been going steadily for a while, now..... more than a few years.

maybe not so hipster,
but a nice place to occasionally hear some interesting new music, in-performance!


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## José Herring (Oct 27, 2011)

poseur @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> NYC Composer @ Thu Oct 27 said:
> 
> 
> > You bet. My studio is in Chelsea, dunno where you're hanging.
> ...



Damn I wish I was still in NY. I'd love to do something like that.


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## poseur (Oct 27, 2011)

josejherring @ Thu Oct 27 said:


> Damn I wish I was still in NY. I'd love to do something like that.



NY is great! 
i still love it.

of course, you could always reach out to JZ & try to book something from cali, jj;
to be frank, though, it might not prove so easy for one to simply "book a gig", there.


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## zacnelson (Oct 27, 2011)

It's so good to see that others struggle with keeping the flame of inspiration and passion burning. Sometimes the best injection of creativity can come from having a restriction or limitation, for instance being forced to work with a specific form or time limit (eg a 30 second track at a certain tempo featuring a certain idea) so that you are not overwhelmed by infinite possibilities. When I have infinite possibilities I don't bother with any of them because I simply can't choose. Lately I've been working with some of my old songs recorded by a singer 6 years ago where I can't change the lyrics, vocals, key etc and it has forced me to work within those limitations. As a result I don't think about other possibilities so it forces me to produce a finished result. A finished product which is imperfect is better than spending a lifetime on something that `will be perfect' but ends up never complete.


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## George Caplan (Oct 28, 2011)

to get my mind freed up i would play sports.


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## NYC Composer (Oct 28, 2011)

George Caplan @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> to get my mind freed up i would play sports.



Pithy.


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## TheUnfinished (Oct 28, 2011)

I think Jay's comment is very relevant. Any creative endeavour can become laborious when you have so many worries in your life. Financial difficulties can upset your life very easily, even small ones.

It may be that because music has become so intrinsically linked to your financial concerns that you find it difficult to look at the creative music process without thinking about money problems.

You need to focus on something that's fun. Be that musical or otherwise. Do something for the fun of it and no other reason.

Lots of great advice above*.

*Above in the thread, not just above _in_ my post, that would be conceited! :?


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

In re-reading your post it seems to me you are referring to your "drive" to compose which you refer to as "inspiration." I would listen to all my favorite music from rock to jazz to classical. In most cases it was exposure to music that led people into and fueled their desire to learn and participate in music.

Inspiration per se is not necessary to the process and was not in the forefront of great composers minds nearly as much as technique. By that I mean that throughout history everyone who studied was able to learn compositional technique but not everyone was able rise to the level of the masters. It's hard to fathom composers with vast output like Bach, Mozart and Beethoven were inspired every moment they wrote. They were just supremely gifted, disciplined people that could hardly put the pen down without creating a work of genius.

As the great composition teacher Hal Johnson said, _When you're inspired, light a candle and face the East... when you're not use compositional technique._


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## EastWest Lurker (Oct 28, 2011)

Dave Connor @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> As the great composition teacher Hal Johnson said, _When you're inspired, light a candle and face the East... when you're not use compositional technique._



That should be in our signatures


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## NYC Composer (Oct 28, 2011)

How does one learn compositional technique?


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

NYC Composer @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> How does one learn compositional technique?



By studying independently the works of others as Bach did with Vivaldi as Beethoven did with Handel, Mozart and Haydn and as Stravinsky did with Bach. By also studying with a good teacher as all the above did because a knowledge and insight that has been passed down through generations is imparted. Not a general knowledge but a very specific critical analysis of how well the student is employing all the pillars of writing (technique): Harmonic progression, vertical chord construction, linear melodic writing, thematic statement and development and of course, form (to name a few.) Also monotonic writing which I doubt a lot of people even know about these days (all the above did) and may be the most problematic issue in the self taught composer. I hear that issue all the time. It's like an artist not knowing how to draw a straight line.


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

Jay I hope your got my PM a from a couple days ago.


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## EastWest Lurker (Oct 28, 2011)

Dave Connor @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> Jay I hope your got my PM a from a couple days ago.



Yes, Dave, no prob.


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## NYC Composer (Oct 28, 2011)

Dave Connor @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> NYC Composer @ Fri Oct 28 said:
> 
> 
> > How does one learn compositional technique?
> ...



So there is only one discipline known as 'compositional technique' and effective composition can only be achieved by the proscribed methods above?


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

"Effective composition" is an all inclusive term that quite literally can include the kitchen sink such as Jerry Goldsmiths effective use of spoons in Planets of the Apes. If you want to compose a sort of fugue as his Main Title in Patton or compose the way he did in the majority if his films then yes: you might consider studying composition as he did (and as composers have been doing for well over a thousand years.)


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## NYC Composer (Oct 28, 2011)

Dave Connor @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> "Effective composition" is an all inclusive term that quite literally can include the kitchen sink such as Jerry Goldsmiths effective use of spoons in Planets of the Apes. If you want to compose a sort of fugue as his Main Title in Patton or compose the way he did in the majority if his films then yes: you might consider studying composition as he did (and as composers have been doing for well over a thousand years.)



Ah, you've cleverly ferreted out my point-that composing a fugue is perhaps not the be all and end all of composition, which is why I mildly object to the term 'compositional technique' as an all-inclusive term, when I think what you really mean is classical/ European compositional technique (which I admire as one discipline).

Auto-didacts are composers too. We all study in our own ways, but not all of us have taken advantage of 6 years or more in a classic school (for example, Zimmer and Elfman are two who didn't) :wink:


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

Actually I'm keeping in mind this thread where someone has lost 'inspiration' and so I pointed out that composers throughout history did not rely on it. A modern film composer doesn't have the time to wait for it either. In the case of Zimmer and Elfman they have both relied very heavily on the classical composers, borrowing and emulating them. If you like their music than you are more in favor of the classical tradition then you realize. Zimmer with Stravinsky of late and Elfman's confessed predilection for Prokofiev and Shostakovich.

Ultimately my point was that compositional technique is the gateway to motivation and even inspiration because it opens up worlds to you not available otherwise. A med student studies biology because he doesn't instinctively know the underlying order beneath the surface. I think it's a near identical analogy with music. Pop music may be different but all those guys study what came before in their field as well. Like George Harrison or Keith Richards study of Chuck Berry.


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## NYC Composer (Oct 28, 2011)

Dave Connor @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> Actually I'm keeping in mind this thread where someone has lost 'inspiration' and so I pointed out that composers throughout history did not rely on it. A modern film composer doesn't have the time to wait for it either. In the case of Zimmer and Elfman they have both relied very heavily on the classical composers, borrowing and emulating them. If you like their music than you are more in favor of the classical tradition then you realize. Zimmer with Stravinsky of late and Elfman's confessed predilection for Prokofiev and Shostakovich.
> 
> Ultimately my point was that compositional technique is the gateway to motivation and even inspiration because it opens up worlds to you not available otherwise. A med student studies biology because he doesn't instinctively know the underlying order beneath the surface. I think it's a near identical analogy with music. Pop music may be different but all those guys study what came before in their field as well. Like George Harrison or Keith Richards study of Chuck Berry.



Dave , you make some good points here, however I never said I wasn't in favor of the classical tradition.. I simply think there's room for other outlooks. As to Zimmer and Elfman, the point was they are both very talented auto-didacts, not that they have no classical influences.

For the record, I am a fan of every classical composer you've named in your posts, as well as some more dissonant composers such as Penderecki and Bartok. Cheers.


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## Dave Connor (Oct 28, 2011)

I hear you Larry and I didn't think you were dissing the classical approach since it's obvious to all of us who've the heard quality of it and seen it's enormous impact on film. Regarding Elfman and Zimmer not actually studying privately they are both students of other composers work and have aligned themselves with trained musicians and orchestrators was what I meant to say. 

I'm not against ANY approach to film score or naive enough to think that a great score couldn't be done by someone who hasn't studied composition. I just couldn't offer any advice to them if they were going there own way and not interested in studying (which was what I was trying to do here for someone who seemed to be looking for an answer to going down the road in composition.)

Cheers!


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## George Caplan (Oct 29, 2011)

NYC Composer @ Fri Oct 28 said:


> George Caplan @ Fri Oct 28 said:
> 
> 
> > to get my mind freed up i would play sports.
> ...



to get your mind in good shape you need to be in physical good shape. sure this maynot help to get music inspiration but it helps to cope better with the lack of it. not that i would know about the music bit but in my profession this is why a lot of people spend time playing such like as racquet ball or squash. keeps the mind active and healthy.

a lot of people like traders and music people spend a lot of time in front of computers and then wonder why they get down or ill.


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## Studio E (Oct 29, 2011)

Once again, thanks for all of the great responses. I kind of hit the wall in the past few days of what I could take as far as activity around the homestead. There has just been too much going on and I have finally decided that it is time for me to do what I want and nothing else for a little while.

I really don't want to bore everyone with the details but I've basically been running for 13 to 14 hours a day for about a month and I am finally at a point where I can rest and maybe that will help.

On the exercise front, I actually do fairly well. I lift weights a bit, I walk 3-5 miles a day. I even lost about 20 pounds in the past 5 months so overall, my health should be just getting better.

All I know for now is that I'm going to slow my pace and let everyone around me deal with a little less of me for a while until I feel recharged. Thanks again guys!


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## chimuelo (Oct 29, 2011)

I excercise on my old lady.
If I am having a crappy week I smile everyday and say great, great day, but she knows the truth when we have time for a brief breeding episode and I beat her like a death row inmate...
Then I can hear great ideas in my mind as a hand comes out and pats me on the back.
Some of my poor buddies gave up trying on their wives years ago.
I guess if I was doing my thing and out of nowhere the wife says " Honey I think we should change the color of the ceiling and walls. " I would definately throw in the towel.
Thankfully we can still buy women here legally, when and if that time ever comes. They are usually cheaper as they don't need wekkly Retail Therapy at Ceasars Forum SHops.


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## Studio E (Oct 29, 2011)

I've had a pretty good day today. I've been more or less sitting on my butt all day in the studio just goofing around with my template. I'm still just an XP 32 guy with one slave but it's not too bad. I feel like I've got a pretty good template going here.

One thing I am noticing is this; I know that a lot of people say not to play strings like a piano player and I agree as far as the block-chord triads and what-not. I have written some string stuff monophonically across 4 or 5 tracks and I've had some good successes with that. But, I AM a keyborrd player, not the worlds worst either, and I find it much easier to pull up a full string patch to get ideas flowing and it's really no problem to spread the voicings out over 3+ octaves while doing so. At least to get ideas down. I have to hear the harmony with my melodies or it just falls flat. Of course, after I get an idea I really like, I will go back and record the midi tracks one string section at a time. I think I've been trying to avoid what comes naturally to me and perhaps that's a mistake. 

In addition to that, there has been a ton of stress around here for a while and letting that slowly slip away will only help I'm sure.

Another point, and make of this what you will because I might sound a wee-bit spoiled here. My main orchestra is still EWQLSO. I have Platinum but I use Gold because it's easier on my system. Today, in addition to all my separate string section midi tracks, I also loaded a full strings patch and tried to adjust the attack and release to be playable for hashing out ideas on strings. Not to rail on the old stuff but, I need some new stuff to kick up the inspiration. It's always worked in the past. Every time I got a new library, it results in some great new piece (great to me that is) that I write. Just trying to get decent legato out of the "legato" patches in EWQLSO a frustrating exercise. I just can't wait to pick up LASS and Symphobia or VSL SE, something to kick it up and make it less of a fight.

Anyway, I did have a few sparks today. Nothing I wanted to keep to develop but some voicings I really liked that I will use later. I really want to attempt something like the "Shawshank Redemption" end titles music. I feel like I have it in me but I need to figure a main theme that will inspire me to pull through several minutes of orchestration, then give it my best.


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## George Caplan (Oct 29, 2011)

chimuelo @ Sat Oct 29 said:


> I excercise on my old lady.
> If I am having a crappy week I smile everyday and say great,



:lol: 

whenever im having a crappy week i just go out and buy another porsche. its ironic because this has been a very good week and i never buy anything when that happens.


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## chimuelo (Oct 30, 2011)

Im sure you'll buy some treats when you get a few back to back good weeks, THe economy has grown slightly for the last 7 months, and the best month was October. Now I know why Bloomberg wants to OCW folks to blow off steam for another month.
Plus they can use the homeless and other unforntunate immigrants to clean up, Union workers won;t be used for such menial labor, or the the COnnecticut surburbanites...


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## poseur (Oct 30, 2011)

wow.
what a truly imaginative way to distract a fairly specific thread-topic!
fantastic; really well-done.
previously, i was interested.....
now, i'm def wondering precisely why i returned.
oh, well.


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## thomas75 (Oct 30, 2011)

Thank you!


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