Pare This Down to Something

It is a typical and logical view to see the composer as creator, the one who makes something from nothing – fills the void that was with content, knowledge, purpose. This model lends itself to the soundscape of old, the silent vastness of the farmland where true reflection can be done. The romantic ideal of the isolated genius only immersed in their own thoughts and creations, the outside world is not permitted into this process.

The practitioners of music now, and the listeners as well, are mostly surrounded by the opposite. The loud abrasive city is all around, even in solitude it is heard. The noise of media, advertisements, promotion – even the imagery is noisy. All of this noise is the potential. With all sound as music, music making is no longer creating but editing. No longer is something coming out of nothing. The potential for anything is always present. Even to carry on a tradition is to scrape away to reveal a form. There is the potential for everything, but we look for those that pare this down to something of seeming purpose.