“Compress and Accelerate” is a phrase I first heard from Mike Scott, a music teacher and friend back in Boston who is also a creative writer of great skill and insight.
In helping me with a writing project awhile back, he explained that you keep your story moving and heighten intensity and impact by using fewer words – Compress! Mike could always find overblown prose and extraneous words and he crossed them out mercilessly, always achieving an improved result.
He urged me to find and maintain the delicate balance between providing essential depth and detail while keeping the story vibrant, alive, and charging ahead – Accelerate! If you build momentum and forward motion in your story, you maintain the enthusiastic attention of your audience. It is much easier to lose momentum than maintain it.
What is true in writing fiction is also true in writing lyrics, spoken word, and in writing music itself. It is also true in writing proposals, promo copy, liner notes, resumes, articles, or dissertations, not to mention speeches and oral presentations. In short, these concepts are relevant to most things you do for your art and your career.
Students come to McNally Smith College of Music to advance their knowledge of music business, music production, and to improve their skills in performance, technology, and composition. There is much that the experienced professional educators in our college can offer students seeking careers. The core of music education today must be to provide students with the business skills, the technical savvy, and the artistry to succeed.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Monday, November 10, 2008
WE CAN SING THE TRUTH
Whether or not one was a supporter of Barack Obama in the election, we can now unite to bring about the change our country needs. Much hope was expressed in this campaign: for equality, for compassion, and for shared effort toward a common purpose. To realize these aspirations, we must all find ways we can contribute as artists and as citizens.
I want to share with you a song I wrote that echoes these themes, and dedicate it to President-elect Obama. May he have great success in bringing our hopes into reality.
Music has played a vital role in political movements, and has eloquently expressed feelings of generations, ethnic groups, and eras. Song can unite people in one voice to sing for freedom, for hope, and for change.
This performance of We Can Sing the Truth is by four fabulous faculty members at McNally Smith: Judi Donaghy, voice; Lori Dokken, piano; Charles Fletcher, bass; Dave Schmalenberger, drums. Their performance is outstanding! Thanks, guys.
WE CAN SING THE TRUTH
Words and music by Harry Chalmiers
Let us join our voices everywhere
Let us hear them lifted up in prayer
Sound the harmony, let peace abide
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
Let us join our hands together at last
Let us heal the bond and keep it fast
When we realize we’re the same inside
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
Now I lay me down my burden of shame
Take from my shoulders this needless pain
There’s a way to live that’s loving and kind
With an open heart and an open mind
Let us join our spirits, keep us free from fear
Let us lose the greed that led us here
In this present moment, we can testify
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
© by Harry Chalmiers, 2008
I want to share with you a song I wrote that echoes these themes, and dedicate it to President-elect Obama. May he have great success in bringing our hopes into reality.
Music has played a vital role in political movements, and has eloquently expressed feelings of generations, ethnic groups, and eras. Song can unite people in one voice to sing for freedom, for hope, and for change.
This performance of We Can Sing the Truth is by four fabulous faculty members at McNally Smith: Judi Donaghy, voice; Lori Dokken, piano; Charles Fletcher, bass; Dave Schmalenberger, drums. Their performance is outstanding! Thanks, guys.
WE CAN SING THE TRUTH
Words and music by Harry Chalmiers
Let us join our voices everywhere
Let us hear them lifted up in prayer
Sound the harmony, let peace abide
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
Let us join our hands together at last
Let us heal the bond and keep it fast
When we realize we’re the same inside
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
Now I lay me down my burden of shame
Take from my shoulders this needless pain
There’s a way to live that’s loving and kind
With an open heart and an open mind
Let us join our spirits, keep us free from fear
Let us lose the greed that led us here
In this present moment, we can testify
We can sing the truth, roll back the tide
© by Harry Chalmiers, 2008
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Prepare for Inspiration...
As a graduate student in composition at New England Conservatory, I learned that when structure was clearly and strongly established in a composition from one perspective, coherent and intriguing musical relationships would be found in many additional and unforeseen ways. It is the richness of these corollary structures that lead a work into the realm of true art.
To ask a composer to explain a composition may stimulate an interesting commentary on his/her thought process and intentions. However, once a composition is complete, the composer is just another analyst. A work of art belongs to the world, and can sustain vast interpretations.
To understand and master performance skills, to write or produce music of depth and importance, or to become an entrepreneur in the business of culture – there are many paths that provide structure to the course of music study. Likewise, there are many paths an individual may choose to contribute to the global art of music while sustaining a career in the arts.
A well structured education will create a vastly broader ability to comprehend ideas and opportunities beyond the specific focus of study. Inspiration comes more easily to those well prepared to receive it.
Few schools provide the education one needs to comprehend and enter today’s music industry. McNally Smith is focused on exactly this, while providing solid fundamentals that are essential and timeless in music education and in the liberal arts.
To ask a composer to explain a composition may stimulate an interesting commentary on his/her thought process and intentions. However, once a composition is complete, the composer is just another analyst. A work of art belongs to the world, and can sustain vast interpretations.
To understand and master performance skills, to write or produce music of depth and importance, or to become an entrepreneur in the business of culture – there are many paths that provide structure to the course of music study. Likewise, there are many paths an individual may choose to contribute to the global art of music while sustaining a career in the arts.
A well structured education will create a vastly broader ability to comprehend ideas and opportunities beyond the specific focus of study. Inspiration comes more easily to those well prepared to receive it.
Few schools provide the education one needs to comprehend and enter today’s music industry. McNally Smith is focused on exactly this, while providing solid fundamentals that are essential and timeless in music education and in the liberal arts.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Jon Stewart and Ice Cube Visit McNally Smith!
The school year has begun, and already the excitement is running high. Jon Stewart and The Daily Show just left our campus after a highly successful run during the Republican National Convention. The most watched video clips on The Daily Show web site are some hilarious scenes from these programs. Check out the one that is tagged: Minnesota! Where everything tastes better on a stick!
Dozens and dozens of McNally Smith students performed throughout the city during the RNC, and they were professional, poised, and made us proud. It was especially rewarding to see so many of our entering students take advantage of this unique performance opportunity and to hear how exceptionally talented this new class is.
Then Ice Cube hit campus! He was in town to award the Ice Cube scholarship to Josiah Kosier, a full ride scholarship for the student personally selected by Cube himself based on extensive evaluation of compositions and performances by the applicants.
Cube was gracious and enlightening as he addressed hundreds of students in a Q & A session in our “Penthouse.” He also met with the committee that is creating a new Diploma program in Hip Hop, and has agreed to review our work and advise on the content and development of this exciting new program. It was very impressive to see how truly dedicated Cube is to students and education. He shares the passion, and is making a significant contribution to our future artists.
On a personal front, I’m working hard on preparing a concert program to kick off the new Faculty Artist Performance Series at McNally Smith. My concert is on Wednesday, October 22nd and you’re all invited! I’m going to include some classical guitar music, an “unplugged” set in which I’ll play and sing some of my songs and a couple of favorites by other songwriters, and conclude with an electric blues/rock set.
Faculty members Judi Donaghy, Lori Dokken, Dave Schmalenberger, and Charles Fletcher will perform with me. We’ll be joined by Melissa Matthews, an outstanding classical and improvising violinist from the Twin Cities.
Best wishes to everyone as the new academic year begins. We’re off to a magnificent start!
Dozens and dozens of McNally Smith students performed throughout the city during the RNC, and they were professional, poised, and made us proud. It was especially rewarding to see so many of our entering students take advantage of this unique performance opportunity and to hear how exceptionally talented this new class is.
Then Ice Cube hit campus! He was in town to award the Ice Cube scholarship to Josiah Kosier, a full ride scholarship for the student personally selected by Cube himself based on extensive evaluation of compositions and performances by the applicants.
Cube was gracious and enlightening as he addressed hundreds of students in a Q & A session in our “Penthouse.” He also met with the committee that is creating a new Diploma program in Hip Hop, and has agreed to review our work and advise on the content and development of this exciting new program. It was very impressive to see how truly dedicated Cube is to students and education. He shares the passion, and is making a significant contribution to our future artists.
On a personal front, I’m working hard on preparing a concert program to kick off the new Faculty Artist Performance Series at McNally Smith. My concert is on Wednesday, October 22nd and you’re all invited! I’m going to include some classical guitar music, an “unplugged” set in which I’ll play and sing some of my songs and a couple of favorites by other songwriters, and conclude with an electric blues/rock set.
Faculty members Judi Donaghy, Lori Dokken, Dave Schmalenberger, and Charles Fletcher will perform with me. We’ll be joined by Melissa Matthews, an outstanding classical and improvising violinist from the Twin Cities.
Best wishes to everyone as the new academic year begins. We’re off to a magnificent start!
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”
Albert Einstein
I’m reading the biography of Albert Einstein written by Walter Isaacson. One of the interesting facts I’ve learned is that Einstein’s theory of special relativity was inspired in large part by the work of the Scottish philosopher David Hume.
Hume was skeptical of knowledge that was not delivered by direct experience of the senses, and also argued that time had no absolute value or meaning. The idea that time was not absolute provided the critical final breakthrough Einstein needed to conceive his revolutionary theory.
Einstein’s greatest theories didn’t rely on laboratory experimentation nor was he building on similar work by his contemporaries in physics. Instead, he created “thought experiments” that envisioned a grand new perspective on the cosmos that extended from photons to the end of the universe and shattered the foundation of Newtonian physics.
Music students often become obsessed with practicing their craft to the exclusion of other aspects of their intellectual and personal growth. Relying on their “laboratory work” of hours and hours of practice, they seek super technique and command of vast repertoire as the crucial components of success. Important as these things may be, of more significance is the depth of ideas that musicians bring to their art.
McNally Smith College is in the process of developing a fresh approach to liberal arts education that will both reflect and extend our focus on music while deepening the appreciation of ideas that enrich musical thinking. We believe that the quality of ideas expressed in the musical language of composition, performance, or production is the distinguishing factor between timeless art and momentary success.
In the 60’s, for a short while, the Dave Clark Five was just as popular as the Beatles. But their catchy, danceable tunes were no match for the musical and lyrical sophistication that made the Beatles a true cultural force for over forty years and counting.
“A new idea comes suddenly and in a rather intuitive way,” Einstein once said. “But,” he quickly added, “intuition is nothing but the outcome of earlier intellectual experience.”
Intuition and inspiration provide wonderful sparks for the flame of creativity. Broad intellectual experience provides a rich air for this flame to burn brightly, with intensity. The well prepared musician is balanced, having developed solid technique, a broad and diverse repertoire, and a supple, energized mind fed by great ideas of many disciplines.
Albert Einstein
I’m reading the biography of Albert Einstein written by Walter Isaacson. One of the interesting facts I’ve learned is that Einstein’s theory of special relativity was inspired in large part by the work of the Scottish philosopher David Hume.
Hume was skeptical of knowledge that was not delivered by direct experience of the senses, and also argued that time had no absolute value or meaning. The idea that time was not absolute provided the critical final breakthrough Einstein needed to conceive his revolutionary theory.
Einstein’s greatest theories didn’t rely on laboratory experimentation nor was he building on similar work by his contemporaries in physics. Instead, he created “thought experiments” that envisioned a grand new perspective on the cosmos that extended from photons to the end of the universe and shattered the foundation of Newtonian physics.
Music students often become obsessed with practicing their craft to the exclusion of other aspects of their intellectual and personal growth. Relying on their “laboratory work” of hours and hours of practice, they seek super technique and command of vast repertoire as the crucial components of success. Important as these things may be, of more significance is the depth of ideas that musicians bring to their art.
McNally Smith College is in the process of developing a fresh approach to liberal arts education that will both reflect and extend our focus on music while deepening the appreciation of ideas that enrich musical thinking. We believe that the quality of ideas expressed in the musical language of composition, performance, or production is the distinguishing factor between timeless art and momentary success.
In the 60’s, for a short while, the Dave Clark Five was just as popular as the Beatles. But their catchy, danceable tunes were no match for the musical and lyrical sophistication that made the Beatles a true cultural force for over forty years and counting.
“A new idea comes suddenly and in a rather intuitive way,” Einstein once said. “But,” he quickly added, “intuition is nothing but the outcome of earlier intellectual experience.”
Intuition and inspiration provide wonderful sparks for the flame of creativity. Broad intellectual experience provides a rich air for this flame to burn brightly, with intensity. The well prepared musician is balanced, having developed solid technique, a broad and diverse repertoire, and a supple, energized mind fed by great ideas of many disciplines.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” Charles Darwin
When I was a graduate student in composition at New England Conservatory, I worked on a project as a film composer’s assistant. My duties included the realization of chord symbols as voice leading under the composer’s melody, some orchestration, notation decisions, and copying the final score and parts in ink. My primary technological tool was a six-inch, clear ruler with pennies super-glued to the bottom so the ink wouldn’t smear as I moved it across the page. I also used a set of drafting pens that invariably clogged within minutes of setting them down.
Recently I saw an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper for a film composer’s assistant:
“LA based Film composer seeks full time, detail oriented, multitasker. Duties will include some engineering within Logic and Pro Tools, studio maintenance, PC and Mac maintenance of hardware and various software plugins. Must be fluent with Gigastudio, Reason, Ableton Live, Native Instruments and many more. Good understanding of signal flow and MIDI is essential, putting together demo CD's and DVD's compulsory, and knowledge of blanket licensing, web casting, digital distribution, viral network, meta data management, and digital aggregators necessary. Some office work and cleaning required.”
In a period of twenty-five years this job has changed so much as to become two unrelated jobs with the same title. The skills and knowledge for one do not prepare one for the other. My education as a music student prepared me well to perform the first version. I wonder if the music education I would receive today would prepare me to do the second.
Let us note one crucial fact at this point: technology has not wrought these changes. People have. Technology is merely a means, a tool, albeit a powerful one. But it does not operate independently of human agents who decide when, how, or whether to embrace new knowledge, tools, and techniques. At least, not yet.
The question is not so much about technology as it is about us. Can we as educators embrace change? With incredible ease we have available to us the music of Africa, China, and Indonesia in its abundance of rhythmic layers, rich textures from exotic instruments, and fresh and vibrant tone colors. We have instant access to improvisational traditions from India, Brazil, New Orleans, and Harlem. We have the ability to see music in vivid color with the full sonic spectrum presenting a visual map inviting new and deep theoretical insights. We have the opportunity to bring all these and many more musical treasures into the classroom to shape our understanding of art and culture, of history, and of the future.
Yet in spite of what we can bring to bear from diverse cultures, in spite of the technological tools for creating, understanding, and performing music, the curricula in the vast majority of music departments, colleges, and conservatories looks very much the same as it did in past decades. With the exception of a course or two here and there, it could be from past centuries.
It is deemed acceptable to teach harmony, counterpoint, ear training, music history, ensembles, and all the fundamentals of a music education in the same way, year after year, decade after decade. I suggest this is flawed because music itself is evolving, as is our wider exposure to new music through history and geography. We should provide fresh insights, new approaches, and the application of new technologies in dynamic, diverse curricula.
Music as an art, a vocation, and a commodity rides the intense cultural currents of globalization, digital media, and the Internet. Students emerging from our institutions of higher learning must learn to navigate these powerful currents or be dashed upon the rocks of irrelevance. There is no other choice.
When I was a graduate student in composition at New England Conservatory, I worked on a project as a film composer’s assistant. My duties included the realization of chord symbols as voice leading under the composer’s melody, some orchestration, notation decisions, and copying the final score and parts in ink. My primary technological tool was a six-inch, clear ruler with pennies super-glued to the bottom so the ink wouldn’t smear as I moved it across the page. I also used a set of drafting pens that invariably clogged within minutes of setting them down.
Recently I saw an advertisement in a Los Angeles newspaper for a film composer’s assistant:
“LA based Film composer seeks full time, detail oriented, multitasker. Duties will include some engineering within Logic and Pro Tools, studio maintenance, PC and Mac maintenance of hardware and various software plugins. Must be fluent with Gigastudio, Reason, Ableton Live, Native Instruments and many more. Good understanding of signal flow and MIDI is essential, putting together demo CD's and DVD's compulsory, and knowledge of blanket licensing, web casting, digital distribution, viral network, meta data management, and digital aggregators necessary. Some office work and cleaning required.”
In a period of twenty-five years this job has changed so much as to become two unrelated jobs with the same title. The skills and knowledge for one do not prepare one for the other. My education as a music student prepared me well to perform the first version. I wonder if the music education I would receive today would prepare me to do the second.
Let us note one crucial fact at this point: technology has not wrought these changes. People have. Technology is merely a means, a tool, albeit a powerful one. But it does not operate independently of human agents who decide when, how, or whether to embrace new knowledge, tools, and techniques. At least, not yet.
The question is not so much about technology as it is about us. Can we as educators embrace change? With incredible ease we have available to us the music of Africa, China, and Indonesia in its abundance of rhythmic layers, rich textures from exotic instruments, and fresh and vibrant tone colors. We have instant access to improvisational traditions from India, Brazil, New Orleans, and Harlem. We have the ability to see music in vivid color with the full sonic spectrum presenting a visual map inviting new and deep theoretical insights. We have the opportunity to bring all these and many more musical treasures into the classroom to shape our understanding of art and culture, of history, and of the future.
Yet in spite of what we can bring to bear from diverse cultures, in spite of the technological tools for creating, understanding, and performing music, the curricula in the vast majority of music departments, colleges, and conservatories looks very much the same as it did in past decades. With the exception of a course or two here and there, it could be from past centuries.
It is deemed acceptable to teach harmony, counterpoint, ear training, music history, ensembles, and all the fundamentals of a music education in the same way, year after year, decade after decade. I suggest this is flawed because music itself is evolving, as is our wider exposure to new music through history and geography. We should provide fresh insights, new approaches, and the application of new technologies in dynamic, diverse curricula.
Music as an art, a vocation, and a commodity rides the intense cultural currents of globalization, digital media, and the Internet. Students emerging from our institutions of higher learning must learn to navigate these powerful currents or be dashed upon the rocks of irrelevance. There is no other choice.
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