Confession to the Moon
May 16, 2013
Confession to the Moon
Electric Cello part composed and performed by Lauren K. Jones.
Last Friday night, at around two in the morning, I finally recorded a version of my moon composition that embodied everything I wanted. After playing it probably hundreds of times in the last couple of months I finally had a version that conveyed the emotions I had envisioned in my head.
When I initially wrote the piece, I felt inspired by the full moon. Something about it gives me feelings of peace, excitement, and an insistent creativity that can't be ignored.
When I write music, I don't think of it at all in any kind of structured way. I actually find that to be very hard and it generally stops me in my tracks when I try to write a part. I don't think in terms of verse, chorus, bridge, chorus or any kind of traditional "classical" form. I don't even think in terms of keys. Sometimes I can think in terms of genre, but I find even that to be restricting at times. I create my best art when I simply allow the emotions to pour forth however they are manifesting themselves in my head. That can mean that the different pieces I write can have very different sounds.
This piece in particular calls upon some sounds I haven't made on my cello in quite a long time. In order to convey what I envisioned in my head, I had to think back to my classical training. I pulled the full, clean, calm sound from Bach and then added the passion from the romantic solo pieces I love to play on stage. Finally, I added some of the experimental sounds and scratches from the 20th century composers that always made the other classical musicians around me just a little bit uneasy (but I always loved). For the notes and composition itself, my inspirations were some of the artists I always turn to for solace: Tool, Anoushka Shankar, and Sheila Chandra.
I enjoyed writing and recording this piece. It was nice to revisit some of the playing styles I used when I played more classical music. I am already planning a Flash animation music video to go along with this piece. However, all this calm music has built up a serious need to rock out inside me. I've already started writing my next piece and it will take on a much different tone.
