Ghost Train RadioThe Cacaphony in Photography and Music
The more I write songs and practice playing guitar, bass, cello, mandolin, piano / organ, lap steel, violin and dulcimer, the more I get this feeling that music and photography share some things and parallel other things.
This could be just me loving these two things so much that its wishful thinking. It also could be that because I get ideas lyrically from photography and sometimes get photo ideas from my lyrics that they sort of act as models for each other.
It could also be that its a pattern thing – my photos always have structure to them and so does my music. There is a logic to these, especially since I write silly 3 minute pop songs. When I use Cubase to record each track looks like a sort of piano roll that shows the sound waveforms being digitally recorded in realtime. There are only so many patterns you can follow, unless you delve into Jazz or some avant garde music. That’s where my photography is similar. I have always chosen simple scenes, many times with just one person or thing. That is also why for the longest time I didn’t “get” some of the more modern photographers, who to me, seemed to have busy or cluttered compositions. They almost seemed random and not focused on any one subject.
I have written songs with too many parts where too many parts play at the same time and it sounds cluttered. If it works – its purely by accident, not design. That might be a method to some photographers vision.
I think I better understand that these photographers are looking at relationships or maybe some want to show chaos and clutter. I mean NYC streets are packed with people and cars and many other things. Some music has only a few simple parts, others more complex.
Traffic jams and crowded sidewalks are “cacaphonies”.
I guess all art is related because all art is based on composition, patterns, objects and relationships. Digital art – using digital recording software and firmware capitalize on wave forms – and sound and light transmit in waves and have frequencies. So, there is time, space, patterns and how they affect the viewer or listener. From a tech perspective there is a very direct match.
Photography can be fine art, most photographs taken are not. I don’t even know if my photos qualify to be fine art and I don’t really know who gets to decide. Pop music is much easier to define.
I’ll stop now because I’m no philosopher, but in the end, if you are lucky to even attract attention to your music or photography, its what people think of it. I suppose if you have at least one other person who likes it, then that’s important, but in my older years this is how I entertain myself. And I’m having the best “art time” of my life right here and right now.
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