Friday, March 19, 2010

I need a Mac and Finale Software. Any sponsors?

When finally deciding what career to pursue my first choice was music composition for movie scores, game soundtracks, ect. It doesn't take much to trigger a song in my head and there are times I start composing things without even trying. Random songs are constantly playing in the back of my mind just like a MP3 player stuck on permanent "shuffle" mode.
I've never regretted or resented this gift I've been given, nor the opportunity I took to play the violin from elementary through high school. I still have the instrument my parents purchased for me, although I regret not picking it up more. It's been a wonderful way to outlet my musical ideas and, at times, express emotions I couldn't properly put into words.
But after some prayerful consideration I came to the conclusion that it wasn't really a viable option for me. While I believe I have the natural talent to get started the cost to attend schooling to hone my skills is extremely prohibitive. And I sometimes doubt my lack of commitment to an profession that can take a decade or more to get a break.
That doesn't mean I don't still think about and mentally compose music all the time. There's no switch I can throw to stem the endless tide of new ideas and variations. Most of what generates in my noggin is string quartet or chamber music of the classical variety from the Romantic or Baroque period, with occasional brilliant flashes of John Williams-esque epic orchestral masterpieces. Along with Williams my favorite movie score composers include Hans Zimmer, James Horner, Howard Shore, Randy Newman, Stephan Zacharias, Ennio Morricone and others.
In fact, sometimes I'll go see a movie just because of the score composer. Such is the case with Schindler's List. I was listening to a local classical radio station at age fifteen or so when they were featuring some of John Williams' most famous work and I was absolutely riveted. Hearing Itzhak Perlman pouring his heart and soul into that gorgeous violin solo nearly brought me to tears, and I ran out and bought the soundtrack. That began my infatuation with movie scores. Next was Forrest Gump followed by Mr. Hollands' Opus. More would follow until I started earning enough money to buy the movies.
Flash forward to about 8 years ago when my grandparents gave me a wonderful electric piano with the ability to record, loop, layer and edit without the aid of a computer. I'd been teaching myself to play simple melodies and chord structures and began filling the internal memory with whatever struck a chord. (Pun intended)It was about this time my music tastes really began to include more classic jazz, big band and swing, blues and even bluegrass, which inevitably started influencing my compositional style and range. I still have the piano and would like to see what I can do just as a hobby. Who knows, I could wind up writing a gorgeous choral arrangement, wedding suite or the next movie score!

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