October Contest: Gossip

[DrApostropheX]

Thanks for your comments, Slartibartfast, Rachmiel and Skipscada! Starting next month I'll solicit themes in the Gossip thread starting on the 25th (of this month) and we can vote on which themes people like (not to say I won't throw an additional wrinkle on them, though ). I personally think that themes that allow for more artistic interpretation are more interesting than themes which require some rigid adherence to form (or musical genre, scale or mode, etc.) as we're all coming from different backgrounds and part of the fun is hearing how differently a broad theme can be interpreted.

For this month I wonder why everyone assumes drones and synth beds are the way to go, though. Personally, this month I'm working on a bossa nova yoga flow (two of the things that I find most relaxing and meditative)... We'll see if I actually get it finished though.

Personally, my favorite piece of music for contemplation, though, is Georgs Pelecis' "Nevertheless". At 28 minutes, it's long AF but raw, urgent and not boring in the least.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGclSMTx7Eg

[rachmiel]

> Call it flash meditation.

Musically catalyzed enlightenment for the wo/man on the go!

[folderol]

And I rather disagree with the anti's
I've composed plenty of meditative pieces. There is certainly plenty of movement in them, and nobody has ever called them boring. They usually seem to settle out at around 4 minutes.
So Nerrr

[slartibartfast]

Yes. No personal criticism intended - just trying to make some suggestions to make things better for all.

Rachmiel - I have absolutely no passion for Drum & Bass (although my son is right into it, and is, apparently, signed to a label - although he has never seen any money from them!), or for blues, but I would still give them a go if this was the theme. Ditto for Latin American themes - I don't know a samba from a bossanova, but I am sure I can find out. My one attempt at a D&B-ish track was a dismal failure. Sound selection and mixing in that genre is much more challenging than I realised.

I would rather have a go at a challenging theme and end up not submitting (due to a self-censored failure) than submit some tat just because it was easy. In fact, I have done this several times for past contests where my ambitions exceeded my ability. But they were all good learning exercises.

[skipscada]

I tried thinking about the concept of meditation in my life, and realised there's practically none of it. The closest I get to absence of thought is probably zoning out while "improvising" on the guitar, so that's a possibility. Kind of hard to do consciously, though. Also started working on a goofy rock track on the concept of "american meditation", i.e. channel surfing. Not sure if it's going to lead to anything worthwhile.

[rachmiel]

"american meditation", i.e. channel surfing.

Well I oughtta ...

[rachmiel]

I would rather have a go at a challenging theme and end up not submitting (due to a self-censored failure) than submit some tat just because it was easy.

Then don't make easy tat! Make something that passes your "good music" test. It's a real challenge to do that for a theme you find boring and dull.

[skipscada]

"american meditation", i.e. channel surfing.

Well I oughtta ...

I heard or read someone call zapping "american meditation" once, and it stuck with me. Interesting thought. At first it seems like the exact opposite of meditation, but in the end you drift away, don't even know what you're seeing and just keep zapping unconsciously until you snap out of it.

[DrApostropheX]

"american meditation", i.e. channel surfing.

Well I oughtta ...

True dat.

[rachmiel]

The days of channel surfing are long gone for me ... unless you count scrolling through saved DVR shows surfing.

Speaking of which, does anyone still say "surfing the web?" I say that to my students sometimes and they look at me like I'm unspeakably ancient or charmingly retro ... depending on the student.

[donkey tugger]

The closest I get to absence of thought is probably zoning out while "improvising" on the guitar, so that's a possibility. worthwhile.

Great minds etc....When I'm writing sometimes I get so into it that I haven't got a clue what's going on and find I've smoked 20 fags in about 3 hours. Makes the ensuing singing interesting...one must suffer for one's art etc.

[rachmiel]

Just noticed: no prizes this month. Cool. How about no winners/voting some month, just a theme with buncha entries and comments from all involved? Would be interesting to see if fewer (or more) people participated, if the overall quality was higher or lower, etc. Guess you'd have to call it "Contest" in quotes.

[Jazzaria]

Suggested no-voting model - give two sentences of feedback for each track. Specifically, a thing you liked and a suggestion for possible improvement/polish.

[slartibartfast]

Suggested no-voting model - give two sentences of feedback for each track. Specifically, a thing you liked and a suggestion for possible improvement/polish.

Or vote on the feedback, not the track....

[slartibartfast]

I would rather have a go at a challenging theme and end up not submitting (due to a self-censored failure) than submit some tat just because it was easy.

Then don't make easy tat! Make something that passes your "good music" test. It's a real challenge to do that for a theme you find boring and dull.

Don't worry, I am warming to the task. I find it best to not touch a keyboard or computer for a while and let ideas percolate in my head first, rather than rushing in and fiddling about in hope of inspiration. Some seeds are slowly germinating. Not sure if that is how others work, but it seems to work best for me. Time permitting, you will see something from me this month (and I expect it will be in the bottom half of the scoring, as usual!)