Dominic DiGesu
5/22/20
Critical Reflection #6: Final Reflection
Over the last 6 weeks, I have been focused on making music. The goal was to tell a compelling narrative/story through music in a time of quarantine. Fortunately, the heart of my essential question – how to tell a compelling narrative/story through music, has been the same since the beginning of the project. The change came with the coronavirus forcing us to add – in a time of quarantine. Our entire approach to the question had to change. Before the pandemic, Gus and I were excited to make an album of 10 songs. The plan was for me to take the 50-minute subway ride from my apartment on the Upper West Side to Gus’ house in Brooklyn every day, so we could conceive, record and mix the album in Gus’ basement. When the COVID-19 emergency lockdown hit NYC, we had to come up with a new strategy to figure out what was physically possible. This involved more than just Gus and me, because if I went to Gus’ I would expose his family to my family’s germs and my family to his family’s germs, as well as whatever germs I would pick up on my way back and forth to Brooklyn. Neither of our families were comfortable with this. We knew we couldn’t be in the same place together, so we changed the plan to make an EP instead of an album remotely over FaceTime. We acknowledge that an EP is less ambitious because it is only 3 songs, which is shorter than an album. We did this because we didn’t know if we could even get one song done remotely. This forced us to make a schedule that we had to stick to. Our goal, which we achieved, was to record a song every 2 weeks.
In hindsight, I realize that my essential question was a way for me to test myself, seeing if I could do more as a musician, and truly collaborate and make music. I wanted to take responsibility for the whole piece, not just my part, with my partner Gus. Through this process, I learned how complicated and time-consuming making music through collaboration can be, especially when you are not in the same room.
I realized how important, yet hard it is to stay disciplined. When I go to school each morning, my job is to get up and show up – someone else made my schedule, someone else told me what I needed to do for homework, so I could be prepared for class. To complete this project, I had to make a schedule with Gus. We worked backward to figure out what we had to do by when to get the project done, and made adjustments along the way – sometimes we worked faster than other times. Similarly, in going to class I have to pay attention and participate but if I am having an off day, I could slide by because there are other kids in the class, who could pick up the slack. In working on this project, I couldn’t have an off day because if I was unprepared, I would be letting Gus down. I had more accountability and at the same time more flexibility. I enjoyed setting and working on my own schedule. I would rather work late into the night than get up early in the morning to do things, which is unlike going to school where I needed to be on the subway by 8:10 am or else I would be late. Gus and I worked together each day between noon and 4. Each of us prepared for the daily sessions in our own way and on our own time by practicing and coming up with ideas, which we shared on our scheduled calls by talking and playing. The process together and alone involved a lot of trial and error. I didn’t realize sometimes figuring out what does not sound good is more important than trying to figure out what will sound good.
Another thing I learned that surprised me was when we started, I expected to be telling a story through lyrics. This was stressful because I don’t think I am a good lyricist. What I learned was I could accomplish storytelling through instrumentation, which is where I am most comfortable with my abilities. The music, sounds and mix is reflective of mine and Gus’ feelings during the pandemic, which is our story.
I realize that there is a lot of expertise I don’t have and I need to learn, which is why I am going to music school. I was unaware of the intricacies and processes I had to become familiar with and will eventually need to master for recording. For example, I had to learn LogicPro. At first, I didn’t think I could do it. Gus was more familiar with it and he taught me over screens. Having the ability to use this program made us sound more professional and allowed us to add effects, so Gus and I could sound like a band instead of 2 guys playing in their bedrooms.
I learned that I need and want to enhance my skills – being a bass player is not enough to be called a professional musician. Making music is more of a business than I thought. The music tells the story but getting that music to the public in a form they can consume and relate to so strongly they want to buy it is a business.
Making original music was a great senior project for me, and Gus was a great partner. Face timing with him worked out well. I was comfortable taking musical risks because I knew he might make fun of my bad choices, but also knew he wouldn’t judge me or think less of me as a musician. We had a lot of fun and I am very proud of our accomplishment.