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"Still Dreaming"

00:00 / 01:43

For my aural mode composition, I decided to record myself performing a poem and create an accompanying instrumental. I created this piece using FL Studio and started by recording myself performing the poem several times. After I got a recording that I liked, I moved on to arranging the instrumental. Initially, I just listened to the recording to map out where the kicks and snares would go. I then started adding some kicks, leaving some room for the snares. After a while, I looked for a sample that I could use as a base for the instrumental. When I found one that I felt matched the tone, I reworked the arrangement of the kicks and snares to fit the sample. At a point, I played the poem for a friend so I could get some feedback. They said that the instrumental was good but that my delivery could be more intense. I went back to re-record the poem, making sure that my tone matched the anger expressed towards the subject matter of the poem. Afterwards, I changed the kicks to sound more like a heartbeat and adjusted the snares. To finalize the piece, I added a recording from when I performed the poem for a poetry club that I am in.

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I chose to use FL Studio to make this composition because, I have been using the program for a couple years now and am fairly familiar with its capabilities, such as vocal modification and integration of external sources. I initially recorded multiple takes to experiment with my voice inflection to see how I wanted to deliver the poem. In crafting the instrumental, I decided to work around my vocals because the piece is, at its core, spoken word poetry. As such, I wanted to emphasize my words and maintain clarity. I added a sample to the instrumental because I felt like it sounded too empty with just the kick and snare. After getting feedback from my friend and recording the poem with more intensity, I made the kicks mimic a heartbeat because I wanted them to represent the speaker’s heart, beating increasingly faster as their frustration builds up over the course of the poem. I added the clip of me performing the poem live because the club members reacted very strongly to the poem, sharing the sentiments it presents, which validates the seriousness of the topic.

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I believe that my vocal inflection and intonation, once I re-recorded, were successful in helping establish the mood of the piece. Having my voice build in intensity helped present my frustration towards the issues I address much better than when my voice remained more consistent in previous versions. I think that the instrumental was effective in adding to the overall atmosphere, reflecting the intensity conveyed in the vocals. Having the kicks replicate a heartbeat contributed to this by accenting the major points of the poem. The clip from when I performed the poem at the start of the piece was also effective because the reactions of the club members shows that this issue is important to them and creates intrigue for the listener before the piece actually begins.

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Using FL Studio provided me with a familiar base to work from and allowed me to focus more time on the actual composition and smaller details, which I believe contributed to the quality and dynamism of the final product. Because I practiced the poem so many times, I memorized its flow, which made recording it simple. Having my friend listen to the piece also helped immensely because it becomes harder to notice flaws after listening to the same thing repeatedly. Unfortunately, spoken word poetry is something that I’m new to, especially in a music sense. Arranging an instrumental around vocals was something I was even less familiar with, which resulted in me having to started over a few times to ensure all of the elements blended well with one another. As well, because I didn’t have a consistent cadence in my performance of the poem, I was not able to use the systems FL Studio has to help stay on beat.

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The aural mode plays into this piece by allowing the emotions of the poem to be expressed verbally, which has a greater impact on listeners. This impact is greater because, as a pure soundscape, listeners are able to focus solely on the words being spoken and their meaning. As well, if the poem was read quietly or aloud, it would still have a serious message but the emotion that people feel would vary depending on how they read it. By utilizing the aural mode, I was able to ensure that listeners experience the poem as I envisioned.

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Listening to the final piece, I like the atmosphere that the instrumental adds. While I think an a cappella version would still be strong, the instrumental makes the composition feel complete. However, I am not sure if this is a shared sentiment. Does the instrumental strengthen the poem or could it be removed?

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This piece is valuable to my exploration of the African American experience because the poem addresses discrimination towards African Americans in the US. Although the poem is delivered from my perspective, discrimination is something that all African Americans are forced to deal with. Creating this piece allowed me to address an unfortunate truth about the reality that African Americans live in while also incorporating my passion for making music.

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