Sunday, September 12, 2010

Many Kinds of Silence

This weekend I decided to take advantage of my first three days off since the students have been back. It was a perfect time for me to seek out silence.

I set out to complete the task that Daniel put forth and really enjoyed watching R.E.M's "Man on the Moon" on mute (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hKSYgOGtos). The beginning of the video reminded me of an old western where a guy was aimlessly wandering through the desert, talking to himself while random images flashed on the screen. Of course, when you watch it back and listen to the lyrics, you realize the images weren't so random afterall.

Another interesting thing happened when I tried to find silence at various points throughout the weekend. No matter where I was or what I was doing, when the noise around me ceased, new melodies and lyrics came into my head. After writing all the new music down, I began to wonder. Many times I feel that I am forcing the creative process- trying to be inspired by new sights and sounds. Maybe I haven't had (song)writer's block. Maybe all I needed was a little silence.

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