by J. Aaron Stanley on May 5, 2010
I started working on a new piece today. I feel compelled. I HAVE to write it.
It is called “Chakras” for woodwind quintet and percussion.
Chakras is a musical depiction of the awakening of spiritual awareness. In many esoteric traditions, ordinary human consciousness is depicted as a coiled serpent sleeping at the base of the spine. The sleeping serpent represents potential. It is man’s fallen consciousness.
As the serpent (or “kundalini” in Eastern traditions) awakens, it begins its path upward through the seven energy centers called “Chakras”.
Each Chakra is associated with certain areas of awareness or consciousness. As each Chakra is energized and brought into balance, one becomes more awakened and conscious.
Ultimately, as the kundalini reaches the seventh Chakra of infinite awareness, one becomes fully enlightened and experiences oneness with God.
I do not claim to be an enlightened being. I can only use my imagination to create a stylized musical depiction of the awakening of kundalini and the process of each Chakra being energized and brought into balance.
It’s been a long time since I’ve written a chamber work. It feels good to be writing for a small ensemble. It forces me to think more about the music itself rather than what to do with all the instruments. (Plus, it goes faster. I’ve only got a few parts to worry about!)
I believe chamber music is the testing ground of composers. I regret not having written more chamber music. But it’s never too late for anything.
Expect more to come.
by J. Aaron Stanley on May 3, 2010
I sincerely believe there is room in the world for anyone with true talent and a passion for composing. Yet many talented composers are not successful.
Why?
Based on my own history, I believe it comes down to a handful of reasons…
- Laziness (in composing, in marketing, in general)
- Fear (of success / failure)
- Lack of self confidence (which relates to fear)
- Pride (assuming people should come to you… or that you’re too good for marketing)
- Lack of complete trust in the Universe/God to open the right doors for you
- Lack of knowledge and skill in sales and marketing
All of the above have held me back in previous years. (I’ll be blogging in more detail about each of these soon.) Fortunately, anyone can learn from their past mistakes and change their behavior.
Here’s what forced me to learn…
In January 2006, I gave up on my music career. I was broke and frustrated. My career seemed to be going nowhere.
In hindsight, I can see how I was the only one to blame for my failure. But it took a drastic change in my life to see it.
So what was it?
I became an entrepreneur.
I went into the business world and learned about accounting, marketing, sales, etc. I worked as an accounting manager… then as a marketing director for small manufacturing company. Then, I started my own business as a marketing consultant and copywriter, which I still do to a limited extent today.
There is nothing like starting your own business to force you to face yourself and your own shortcomings.
As an entrepreneur, I had to learn what it took just to stay afloat and keep the rent paid. There were times when I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, afraid I would wind up homeless.
But I stuck with it.
I eventually learned how to let go and trust that things would work out if I just did my part.
As I’ve explained before, this blog is a chronicle of my journey toward becoming a successful concert composer. I am not yet earning a full-time living from composing. So from a strictly monetary standpoint, I cannot yet claim to be “successful”. I’ve only just begun to get clear about my goal and serious about reaching it.
I’m writing this blog out of service. One day, I will lecture on how to become established and successful as a composer… and this blog will serve as a chronicle for how I got there.
My training as an entrepreneur… my trust in God… my burning desire to simply write great music. All will aid me in my journey.
And I can’t wait to be teaching others how to follow their dream and be successful at it, too. I feel that is as much a part of my mission as writing music.
In my next post, I’ll talk about how composing is pretty much like any other business…
I started working on a new piece today. I feel compelled. I HAVE to write it.