Sup mate? Vincent here.
Why would you want to leave your mark in the course of existence? Here I’ll only be talking about artistic landscapes but I assume the followings could apply to a large variety of fields involving creation ex nihilo.
So, whaddup? At first you’d say presumably because of something genuinely instinctive. After all, why did we find prehistoric paintings in caves?
The idea of creating something basically helps us finding sense in ourselves and the world around us. We are prone to experimenting and making complex things that didn’t exist before or, at least, improve what has already been done before us, which can be the starting point of some sort of fundamental human social awareness.
« The general consensus is that as a prominent characteristic of human intelligence, creativity is a fundamental activity of human information processing. A primary difference between our brains and those of other animals is our capacity to engage in cognitive abilities such as reasoning, representation, association, working memory, and self-reflection. » — Mónica López-González, Ph.D. and Charles J. Limb, M.D. (Musical Creativity and the Brain)
Besides this, at some point, also considering the instant satisfaction that we feel when we’ve just finished to shape something, some might even say it allows us to play God’s game. Which is kind of a mood enhancer, isn’t it? POWER.
As far as I’m concerned, I do feel anchored in one of the coolest concepts I know: cultural heritage. This is precisely why we keep on training ourselves and chasing knowledge; to improve the game.
When you’re advancing in your field, you have the opportunity to remain in all future generations of people’s mind, I’d call it the ego side, that’s also a fact. We all want to leave a golden poop of our own that may eventually impact history. So yeah, not only is creation the one gate to posterity, but it’s also one sheer of a contribution in its most commendable appreciation.
Think about future generations that are granted to learn on better ressources than their elders/ancestors who used to struggle building what is now at our fingertips. I’m so glad and truly cheerful for I had the chance to start learning music with guitar heroes such as Malmsteen, Steve Vai, John Petrucci while my parents’ generation only had Jimi Hendrix as a reference (no offense bro).
You may ask yourself from time to time; « well yeah thanks but what do I have that could interest or even influence the future? »
That’s a very good question, keep questioning yourself.
That’s all, i’m out.
Thanks for reading me.
Stay resilient.
…
Ok just kidding.
Keep seeking improvement, we are all allowed to contribute. Do not listen to people who never express constructive critics of your deeds and always try to put you in the dirt. These people are nasty and toxic. If you want to know why I NEVER pay attention to trolls and haters, check out my previous post about Time VS Downlifters.
On the other side, you may want to stay open minded regarding what you’re doing, nobody’s perfect and everyone has to learn something. If you’ve chosen the way of self-exposure, you gotta be prepared for people who won’t be into your thing AT ALL. But it doesn’t mean what they have to say isn’t worth your attention.
What makes me really enthusiastic about the creation field is that if you decide to play the game just like you’d play any MMORPG, you can basically learn new things everyday. We all have flaws but, from my perspective, that is the best way to shape your art to the next level in about a year. Think about what could happen in 10 years following this simple guilde line: learn at least one new thing every day.
Back to references: I can’t wait to see what the youth is gonna put on the table considering they’re starting their musical journey with high talented people such as Animals as Leaders, Periphery, Guthrie Govan, Rick Grahams, etc. I mean, I’m already starting to acknowledge that it is gonna be massive and that was made possible because of past generations who’s been building and creating, improving and shaping new concepts and ways of playing.
Check out these guys:
Sometimes the process won’t be involving creation but ‘only’ small witty modifications. Apart from music, we have a lot of other examples of inspirational / influential people in a shitload of fields of expression / practice. For example, that ones concerns sports but it does the job: every high jumpers used to perform in the same manner before Dick Fosbury came in the place and revolutionized the game with his back-first technique. His move was controversial and judges had to decide whether or not it was an acceptable way of doing it but soon after the technique was adopted by almost all athletes and still is today.
“Every human is an artist. The dream of your life is to make beautiful art.” ― Miguel Ruiz, The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom
Alright, imma conclude here now. If you weren’t aware of the fact that when you’re expressing yourself, you’re not only expressif yourself, now I hope you are. Intellectual property is not an end in itself. You sow particles of spiritual matter that will occupy time and space and extend global advancement. People will reuse it, tweak it, improve it and so the legacy goes on.
Keep creating, stay resilient.
- Uplifting song of the week: Monuments – I, the Creator
- Yo! I’m also accepting requests & suggestions on Twitter! Did you like this article? What should I write on next? Send your tweets to @haarasnc with hashtag #StayResilient
The Resilient Musician 