composer seeks cake...

I find it immensely interesting that as I wander through my seemingly unfocused and unproductive life, I am learning all the time. This week I discovered I actually like music theory. Oops.

Did you fall down? Pick yourself back up while I explain! It's not all that exciting to me to know that a Bb on the treble clef means we're in the key of F. But what is interesting to me is how we use intervals and chord modulations to achieve emotion and nuance in what we write. Play a C chord (C, E, G), nothing wrong with that. Try it as a C11 (C, E, G, B, D, F) and what delicious texture is created. Resolve that to a C9 ((G) C, E, Bb, D)... oh, lovely.

Also through watching feedback sessions and speaking with a composer mentor, I started to think about my identity as a composer. My old 'elevator pitch' seems out of date and doesn't really say much about me ("Vikki Flawith: Fresh, innovative instrumental cues for film & television. Horror/Creepy, Quirky/Light, Drama/Tension, Investigative/Science, Orchestral Hybrid."). One could argue the word 'innovative', while hopefully true, is a bit much. Thus I started mulling over a change.

It occurred to me in my work as a singing teacher I developed 'the shy singer' as a way of reaching out to those who have had similar experience but wish to walk a path towards finding and releasing their voices.

I asked myself what I could say about myself as a composer that would do the same.

I'm not much for hard sell, or marketing speak - those newsletters and websites which you have to scroll down and down while they tell you what they are giving you for $90 is a $900 value and this unique gift is free to you when you sign up, ad infinitum, until finally at the very end of all that junk they finally say it costs an incredible ... wait, this is a one time offer buy now before it goes back to the regular price... oh yes for you right now if you buy in the next 10 minutes it's only $1,049.99 for the book, course, special items and free gifts or three easy payments of $399 each month!!! - oh, yeah... drive me crazy.

(In fact once I had a discussion with someone who insisted I should not put my prices on my website, make people call and find out. Nope. Never. Don't play games. Here's who I am, what I do, how much it costs.)

Back to the elevator pitch. It's important to present yourself clearly. Say who you are, what you know, and what you have to offer as concisely as possible.

Of course, for a composer or other creative, what you produce demonstrates your abilities. But really it's who you are as a person that will matter most to those who are thinking about working with you. Do you come across as someone they'd like to have lunch with? Easy, respectful, professional, real?

Am I reinventing myself? Not really. I've just somehow, in the past few days, established a clearer sense of who I am as a creator of music and who I'd like to collaborate with on what kind of projects. I didn't know that before now. Maybe all these courses and webinars and mentoring sessions are making a difference. Having that clarity helps paint the path ahead.

If I get invited to lunch, I hope there's cake. ~