On Composition: Parameters

A lot of people who have composed or who want to compose often find themselves having trouble with beginning a new piece.

Where to begin?

Imagine you have a big canvas in front of you, totally blank.  You have brushes and paint and pens; you can create anything you want.  Go!

...hmm, where to start?  What color, what pattern, what brush, where on the canvas?  So many choices!

And that's where a lot of people get stuck.

Now imagine you come to the canvas and someone has drawn a couple of things.  What those things are doesn't really matter.  It could be two large circles on top of each other, a series of jagged lines across the page, or something like a hand print.

Is it easier now to start creating?  Your mind takes the basic shapes and starts creating around them.  It's like cloud-watching; we interpret abstracts and flesh them out in our heads.

So if you want to write something but can't figure out how to start, put some parameters in place and see what happens.  These don't have to just be visual, they can be anything that gives you a starting idea.

• Use only one taiko, the rest is non-drum percussion (cowbell, shekere, kane, etc.)
• Set up is in a certain shape, like a T or X or something abstract
• Everyone plays while kneeling
• Mirror images - either split down the middle or pairs or what-have-you
• Fast and/or dense patterns but sections or solos that are sparse and/or full of movement
• More people than instruments - what do they do/where do they go?

This was just 6 ideas off the top of my head, some are definitely better than others, heh.  The point is that having a jumping-off point often makes it easier to start something.  And if you have trouble coming up with parameters yourself, ask a friend!