5 ways to unlock musical creativity

Sometimes creative blocks come around and throw us a bit off track. Here’s how to dig deep and find your next big idea, even when you feel stuck.

from SoundFly

The Mysterious Origins of Creativity

Every artist forges a different path through their career. Whether catalyzed by sheer luck and accident or the dogged pursuit of a sound, everyone’s origin story is unique.

In our courses, we always ask our instructors to explain how they got their start, doing what eventually led them to success. Below are five lessons on the origins of a creative voice or process, which reveal the multitude of ways one can cultivate the seeds of inspiration. But these links are only accessible with an active Soundfly subscription.

So make sure to subscribe to make the most out of this ideation toolkit, and everything else Soundfly has to offer. Here are our favorite 5 Lessons On… Artist Origin Stories.Enjoy!

Jlin: “I worked on calculus for 4 hours and in FL Studio for 4 hours every day.”

After dropping out of college, and famously taking a job at a steel mill, producer and composer Jlin had to figure out how to educate herself and invest in her creative success through rigorous routines.

Check Out This Full Lesson on Soundfly

Enrico de Trizio: “I would rather play a totally unique sound than an imitation.”

In this interview in Advanced Synths & Patch Design, composer Enrico de Trizio asks: “Imagine asking a saxophonist to play a plastic instrument that plays back another musician’s sax sound?” That’s how keyboardists feel.

Check Out This Full Lesson on Soundfly

Maria Sherman: “Boy bands are not a genre — they are a force to be reckoned with.”

Switching gears, Mahea Lee’s The Music of Boy Bands covers the musical and production trends that dominate the Boy Band phenomenon. Here, expert/author Maria Sherman details the origins of how they came about.

Check Out This Full Lesson on Soundfly

Kiefer: “Growing up, I played with the quiet pedal on almost exclusively.”

In one of the most unique lessons across all of Soundfly’s courses, Kiefer analyzes and breaks down his own piano sound, dissecting what makes him unique and why he chooses to use a limited palette of sounds.

Check Out This Full Lesson on Soundfly

Kimbra: “I unlocked this nerdy side of my brain…production is like an instrument unto itself.”

Even as a world class singer, songwriter, and arranger, Kimbra got her start in music early on just by playing around with simple recording software to discover the ways that processing can change the feel of a song.

Check Out This Full Lesson on Soundfly