Music and Idea Generation

Some of us can create and be creative, and to others it may come naturally.

There are great ideas that come out of your head and through your instruments, through the words you write and in your music.

But it can be a daunting task to continue to generate new, creative and quite frankly, great ideas that could manifest themselves into hit songs, poetry, etc. Really, it comes down to a spark. An insignificant thought, idea, or something less that stays lit within the bowels of your subconscious waiting for a opening to enter your cerebral cortex.

Is that spark within you?

Does that come from an outside place, or maybe a muse?

In music and in life, this is no different. The concept will remain.

There is nothing more than a bunch of people gathering on a Friday night over beers and a few blues staples, then you have a hobby. Whether you appreciate it or not, ideas can truly come from sources unknown - and places one may consider insignificant.

What does it all mean?

There is a thought which says that creativity takes time, but this is untrue. It is that ember, that flame which stays lit and in waiting. In music you cannot count on the 'professionals' to create these ideas - they can come from anywhere.

Mozart was merely a child when he composed Twinkle, Twinkle, and Beethoven was deaf, and yet he composed some of the most brilliant pieces you could fathom. They had talent, but they also had something 'click'.

This brings me to a thought on the idea of the 'Blink' which Malcolm Gladwell has discussed. The blink of an eye is all it truly takes to create. Although his ideas don't focus around this topic, I believe they are relevant here.

How does one create? How can I light that spark, and what happens if my flame has been snuffed. You need that spark, and it may come from an unlikely source. There is something to be said in allowing oneself to be free of the pressures of having to create.

Writers, no matter what type of writer, can lose that spark. They can be missing that small piece which allows them to turn that minuscule idea into reality. There is nothing potentially sadder than an idea gone unrealized. Teach yourself to grab these ideas and run. Create and learn, and continue.