Throwing Paper At The Wall

Most of my presentation was of me expressing what I felt in the there and then, which makes it hard to type it up. However, I will do my best from memory and apologize for and words written that were not said or ones said that were not written.

[Stand before class and ripped paper out of notebook]

Who was I? [Hold blank side of paper for class to see]

This was me. I was like this blank sheet of paper. [Crumble up notebook paper and hold it out for class to see]

This is who I was. No one knew me. No one saw what was inside. They tossed me aside thinking I was trash. [Toss paper angrily aside]

No one cared to see what was inside. [Pick up piece of paper. Laugh a little and sigh]

They don’t know what I’ll become. [Open piece of paper, smooth it out and turn it over to reveal the drawing]

This is me. [Show to the class]

This is me. I’m not going to hide behind a PowerPoint or some video. I’m not going to even show you the pieces I have composed… because they’re not me. They may contain a part of me, but I am so much more than a simple song. I am so much more than that one ensemble, that one cello part, that one melody line. [Briefly pause]

This is me. [Emphasize the picture as well as yourself].

I’m rough around the edges. No, part of my life is easy going, but really whose is? I’m straight forward, or at least, I like to be.  I’m shy as hell. Standing before you- I’m shaking. Ask me anything about myself and I’ll tell you. I hold no secrets about myself. I make mistakes. I have fallen flat on my face. [Drop piece of paper]

The important thing is that I can pick myself up again. [Pick up piece of paper and pause again briefly]

But this, this is just a piece of notebook paper with my attempts at drawing on it.  A picture representing me. However, one day I hope my picture transcends the boundaries of something as insignificant as a piece of notebook. [Pause for the last time while looking at the class]

This is me. I am what you see no more no less. [Smile and walk away] 

      

                   

What's a Zomition?

Traditions? How about no pants Friday? Or Harry Potter Mondays? If I could start a new tradition it would be to have a Quidditch matches just like in the wonderful world of Harry Potter. We could divide the classes in to four houses and go at it. 

What I think would be even better would be to take the zombie assassin game even further. First, take away any safe zones. Then we use the buildings like if the zombie apocalypse was really happening. You might have a group of survivors camping out in Daniel Recital Hall or maybe in Hazel B. Each group would have to send for supplies and that’s when the zombies would get them or maybe the zombies out smart them and break into their "safe haven". The last human group wins.

I guess that would only work if you count zombies as a Converse tradition.

     

Future?...*sigh* Do I Have Too?

Besides becoming an everlasting god among people, I would like to conduct symphonies in space. Somewhere on a giant spaceship for rich people or maybe become a blue alien diva that tours all over the galaxy (The Fifth Element composed by Eric Serra)… but that’s a just dream. In reality, I want to compose music for movies video games, and animation TV shows. Why? Well, why not? If I had to answer I would ask what moves you more the battle scene from Narnia(Composed by Harry Gregson-Williams) or a Taylor Swift song (composed by Taylor Swift)? What do you remember more after listening once: the feelings of battle for justice or Taylor’s lyrics? I’m not sure about you, but my battle cry has been “For Aslan and For Narnia” ever since that movie.

My dream reality takes place Japan actually where I compose music for movies, games, and anime. If I had a role model it would be a woman named Yoko Kanno who has already done what I want in life and is in high demand for composing anime scores. I would one day like to meet her either as a colleague or a crazed fan, hopefully a colleague.

Pros or advantages of this excellent life is no more complex than the “C” scale: Fun and a magical conductor’s wand. I know that I’ll make many mistakes, but the important thing is that I will not have any regrets and will have fun with it. Also good thing about being a musician is I can cast Stupefy with a baton if someone is misbehaving in the studio. Cons are probably more numerous than my fingers, which is as high as I want to count. Mostly it’s that I have to talk to people, mainly the directors.

It’s hard to say what I need to do to set me on the right path. I thought going to college was it. I already immerse myself in every score I can think of that relates to what I want to compose, but I guess it wouldn’t hurt if I did more research and started to build a more concrete portfolio.          

For all those who have been living under a rock and don't know what an Aslan is or the cheesiest sci-fi movie of all time. 

Mastering the Jedi Mind Trick

College is like fighting The Galactic Empire in Star Wars. You’re a Jedi Padawan in The Rebel Alliance trying so desperately to gain independence from the Empire deviously controlled by The Sith. All you and the Jedi Order want is peace. Unfortunately, your father is second in command to the Galactic Empire and on top of that sold his soul to the Dark side of the Force.  Yes, I believe that this is college in a nutshell.

For all those who are not strong in the Force, I’ll clarify. I prefer to think of everyone as special in some way, therefore instead calling you a random Alliance Soldier I’ll call you a Jedi. Next, think of the decision of going to college as the decision of joining the Rebel Alliance. By joining the Alliance, or college, you have a new freedom you’ve never had before.  There’s no Jedi Master over you to tell you when you need to go to class.  However, don’t be mistaken, you’re not completely free. Hence, The Galactic Empire or the massive amounts of homework you have to fight against. Every time you think you killed that Sith Apprentice another one pops up. Hint: due dates never die.  I know that all you want to do is chill and have everlasting peace in the Republic, but the fights not even close to beginning.  You can’t forget that your daddy has a membership to club Evil, which means: that really awesome professor you started networking with, is a part of The Galactic Empire. That’s right he’s a Sith Lord giving you a bunch of Sith apprentices to Lightsaber up. But it’s not just him, it’s all of your professors at the same time giving you the lovely gift of homework. So much to do, but so little time. . .

Remember to just breathe. Use the force and stretch out with your feelings. Which means, don’t forget that there are many people on campus to help you. Even your professors are there to help you. Being shy is a luxury you can’t afford. Talk to whatever or whoever you need to, so that you can succeed in college. This is just the first step towards the real world. Getting behind now will just make the next step even harder. Hint: work to success never dies.

Continuing from that last hint, The Republic isn’t going to save itself. Translation: Your good future isn’t going to come on its own. You have to make it happen.  Remember to breathe and to space things out. Everyone knows that they need to recharge with the three basic “F’s”:  friends, facebook, and food. However, this doesn’t mean to push all your homework to the night before. That’s how the Dark side wins.

 I will say it for the last time, remember to breathe. Breathing is good for you.

 May the Force be with you.        

Time and I? *pfft* Don't get me started

Time and I go way back. There was that one moment where I was late to my first class in high school. I just missed him by a few minutes. There was also the moment when Time forgot my birthday in 6th grade; talk about a 80s movie flashback. It seems that no matter where we are, we miss each other by a hair. It’s just a hair, but that's still enough to shift our relationship out of balance. Even when I'm with Time I just end up losing track of him. Just like any other man, Time, is hard to manage.     

Sometimes, when we’re hitting a rough spot, I think we should see a professional. There are days where I know we can work this out and then there are days when I just want to let him go. The latter, is usually when we’re trying to do a duet in music. He just can’t get those dotted rhythm and don’t get me started on when the song changes time. It’s as if the note values don’t mean anything to him. I always feel embarrassed when people ask us to play together, but it’s not like I can leave him behind. When we start playing music we decided we would play together, always. Hopefully going to the same college will help him improve.

Another burden I have to deal with is that Time likes to sleep in. He’ll even turn the snooze button on several times before he gets up in the morning. It drives me insane because than I’ll wake up late and miss breakfast.  We enjoy taking naps occasionally before class in the afternoon, but every time we do he’ll turn off the alarm so we’ll miss the first few minutes of class. If it wasn’t for me, we would never get to class at all.

Although Time has his weaknesses he does do well with certain things. For example, he and I never really liked Facebook. We get on to see some old friends, but other than that we never get on. He still doesn’t really know how to use it. He can also juggle family and homework fairly well towards the beginning of the year, but towards the end is when he starts to have meltdowns. There’s really not much I can do to help.  I’ll try and write down everything that needs to be done and he’ll get around to it… eventually.

Do I have any advice on Time? Hmm well, I’d focus on his cousins Present and Future. Honestly, just forget about Past. All he ever does is ponder on what has happened in his life. A big waste if you ask me. Yes, Present and Future, they seem the most reliable.     

I came to college for one reason and one reason only... to party. Just kidding. I wanted to come to college to learn more. Isn't that why most people want to come to college? I want to be a better a learner . I want to be a better musician. And in the end I want to be a better person. There shouldn't be anything wrong with wanting to be better than what you are as along as you accept who you are. 

Converse is a shoe. Did anyone else know that is was a college? I didn't until a few months ago. Even now when I tell people where I go to school they say, "You mean the shoe, right?". I honestly didn't want to come to Converse. I saw it as that place that gave me junk mail every week. It looked nice, but I never wanted to be a shoe major. That's what I felt until, my audition. I saw campus and thought that I could really get use to this place. The rich like buildings, the ballroom dining hall, the good food, and those people in the purple polo shirts that seem to cater to everything (I honestly thought they were maids when I first saw them). Yes, it's safe to say I am glad I came here.  

I knew I wanted to go to college. I knew I wanted to go to Converse. The only thing left was the major. I looked at the list of majors and crossed out the ones I was not good at. Turns out the only one left was music. Funny, how that worked out.... Again, just kidding. I choose Converse because I knew it was the place where I personally would succeed. I knew the professors would help me along my way and actually care if I got the material or not. I knew, and still know that soon I won't just be a face in the crowd. 

If I could be a Muppet I would be the most funny one. The kind with a little dry humor. If I had to choose one, probably Miss Piggy or that blue one with the hook nose and came from outer space. I would completely play the banjo. My Dad use to play and I have fiddled with it too.