Category Archives: Arts

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where does your creative thinking seem to thrive?

Arashiyama Bamboo Grove

Good morning, I hope the reading of this post finds you well. You are a creative thinker, even in the least bit, whether you are prolific music composer, hobby artist, NewYork Times best-selling author or finger painter. There are certain places where your creative thinking seems to flourish best, or there are certain scenarios involving those places that are a catalyst to it.

This has a direct alignment to problem solving as well. Many times I’ve read (especially in articles of productivity) that if you’re stuck on a problem, seeking a solution, the best thing to do is remove yourself from your current environment and take a walk. Removing yourself from the focus of what your dealing with, in order to gain clarity, can often be just what is need to find (or at least better approach) a solution. A familiar scenario is writers or composition block. At times, a total shift in mindset, even momentarily, could be just the thing to get back on track.

As for me, being a musician since I was 14, songs that I write, music that I compose often pops in my head. In doing so, I need to be able to some how get it out of my head and onto, into, some sort of medium so I won’t forget the foundation of the idea. The weirdest thing with me is that for as long as I’ve been a musician, these ideas seem to always come to me…in the shower, LOL! I’ve lost track of the times, over the decades, when this has happened, even to the point of me hopping out, throwing a towel around me and either running down to the studio or grabbing a portable cassette recorder and humming, even beat boxing the idea in so I don’t forget the “virgin idea” (which often times happens to be the best foundation for the final song)…hilarious times.

Things are a little different now, with the advent of mobile phones, as I can just grab the phone and record said ideas into the voice memo for recollection. Even more convenient is the ability to export that audio into my digital audio workstation, if need be, and continue from there, building more of the track around it.

As for writers who suffer the same, I suspect it’s far easier just grabbing something to write with and some sort of paper, but you get my drift!

If you deal with this in anyway, shape, or form – how do you handle capturing your creative thoughts while in an environment not readily conducive to maintaining them?

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Fresh!

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Fusion: Where Music, Technology, and Artist Creativity Intersect

Coming soon.....

Hello readers and listeners.

I trust all is well today. This post is a follow-up to the previous post about the subject of an upcoming podcast I hope to resurrect entitled Fusion. The concept of this podcast came to me via an off the cuff discussion I had a few years ago with a fellow podcaster/recording artist/graphic designer. Both of us, being musicians in our own right, began discussing our backgrounds and influences in making music, which invariably talking about how technology (past and present) played a role taking the music from inner to outer.

I began to see the different paths he had taken and compared them to mine. I also began to see, along our separate journeys, how there were things we couldn;t *readily accomplish* (but did) that we could easily accomplish now. The conclusion of the discussion led me to develop the concept for this podcast – one that would share the insights of an (generally musical, but not limited to) artist by which they leverage technology to get their art out there – including their journey along the way, their influences etc.

The format of the podcast is to use an audio interview, very casual but basically formatted, and to just have some fun with it (which is the most important part). Being a techy, I have to include the usual aspects of what kind of hardware/software was/is being used, suggestions/recommendations, tips, etc…but fuse the overall flow with some laid back fun.

As said, although the general focus is about music (recording, arranging, creating, production, podcasting), every once and awhile, I’d like to include the same concept with regards to web design, photography, etc. All aspects of using social media, Web 2.0 and the like are definitely topics of discussion as well.

That being said, I’d like to invite all interested in leaving me your Skype ID, Yahoo IM, iChat ID, Grand Central number or even cell or landline number so the audio interview can be recorded to my laptop. Primarily, I’d prefer to do it via net chat, but will consider landline/cell phone interviews down the line (gotta keep it as inexpensive as I can – heh!). If you are interested, feel free to leave your info in the comments section or e-mail me

Thanks (for your time and interest) in advance…

peace!
F!