The Sound of Life

A few people who have heard music I'm working on have told me either that my music generally makes them think of soundtracks, or they have described scenes that certain songs evoke. Such comments are always very welcome because I want my music to create emotional and visual responses. One day, because of these comments, I decided to try writing a piece specifically for a soundtrack. I didn't have a particular scene in mind, but I was aiming at something that sounded appropriate for film. I ended up calling it The Sound of Life because I figured that without a particular movie for it to be attached to, it might as well be part of the soundtrack of life.

Working with a soundtrack in mind was very different from the way I normally work. In one sense, I think you are very limited because the mood and some aspects of the music are dictated to the creator beforehand. in another sense, its very freeing. Usually, people watch movies for the plot, theme and/or acting. The music is a part of the package that just comes along with the rest. That means those first notes don't need to make an impression. That means I don't have to worry about tricks and gimmicks like vocals or a catchy hook to capture interest. Like it or not, listeners will hear all of the song, so I don't need to think about capturing their interest in the first few seconds. I can write a piece that is meant to be and will be taken as a whole. Of course because the song wasn't actually for a soundtrack, this didn't hold true, but I wrote it as if it did.

You can hear the result yourself next month. The Sound of Life is the second track on Meeting of Minds.