THE 3 UNEXPECTED MUSICAL INFLUENCES
The most commonly asked question an artist will hear is, “Where does the influence come from?” My answer has never been as romanticized as most expect. It doesn’t come from the popular clichés, i.e. unrequited love or sitting in a room alone being struck with idea after idea. More accurately it’s collaboration- the centerpiece for all music careers. It brings you closer to your craft, friends and colleagues, the business of your craft, audiences, and yourself. During my residencies with the Arapahoe Philharmonic and the Boulder Symphony, both lead by Devin Patrick Hughes, I found more reasons to continue composing verifying that true influences, simultaneously as being the most valuable commodity for musicians, are relationships.
The ensemble you write for influences what you write
You may write for an orchestra that maintains a purpose of preserving traditional literature or a chamber group that wants to keep the world on edge with novelty. Either way, you’ll undoubtedly come to know their history and their mission resulting in you all taking the craft in new directions. Your style will be the average of all those you collaborate with most.
The ensemble’s audience influences what you write
I monitor how the general public- those outside the lines of having musical training- react to classical music. For my first orchestral audience, I couldn’t help acting on my curiosity in searching for their response to new music. They were divided, (as most audiences will be). Upon learning this, (and after taking advice from a book recommended from a friend), I got into strategizing my work differently. I asked myself detailed questions of my music such as, “How long would it be before the first break for silence? What is the effect of hearing tertian harmony after three minutes of cluster chords? After four minutes? Five minutes?” The answers took my music in a direction I could’ve never considered beforehand.
Approaching deadlines may be beneficial
I don’t encourage other composers to intentionally wait to start composing a few weeks before a deadline but on the off chance you do, or if your process has taken the entire turnaround time, expect some magic to occur during the homestretch. With only a few weeks left for composing my work, Quaternity, I put together a compositional strategy for myself that allowed me to write more with less time. I attempted the technique again with my Violin Concerto and continue to develop it with my current commission. It has taken more shape than I expected. If your commissioner does not set a deadline, set your own.
Originally published on November 30, 2019.
