Date of Submission

Spring 2015

Academic Programs and Concentrations

Music

Project Advisor 1

Robert Bielecki

Abstract/Artist's Statement

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College.

In the age of our lives. Constantly humans speak of what has happened in the distant past, the recent past, even the future. What will become, and what has already come to pass. We don’t stop to realize that NOW is what is most important. NOW is the time that should be worshipped and constantly regarded.

Throughout my time at Bard College I’ve worried about the future. What will happen to me after I leave, what will my life turn out to be? However I also have forced myself to think of the present, staying in this moment. When I arrived four years ago I knew I wanted to play music, but I didn’t know how interested I would become in recording and producing music.

Bob Bielecki introduced me to music electronics, and the class I had taken with Bob was the first time I had ever soldered anything musical. I ended up playing with my homemade synth for hours. Even though I didn’t end up pursuing electronics, it was still a huge influence for me in my senior project, as I used my synth I had created two years ago. I also have taken pyschoacoustics and a music as sculpture class with Bob. So throughout my college career Bob Bielecki has been a huge inspiration, and a huge help as my senior project advisor.

Whereas Bob helped me with the more obscure parts of music, Thurman helped me with the more tangible and literal parts of music. I’ve taken jazz class after jazz with Thurman, and his enthusiasm has always driven me to progress in what I believe in. My studies in jazz bass improved significantly, and also inspired some of the jazzier parts in my senior project, which is for the most part, a progressive psych-rock epic. Thurman has always been there when you needed him, with a big smile on his face, ready to let you know how excited he is to see your last concert at Bard College.

Peter Laki has been my advisor since day one, and his quiet and caring nature has really helped me in these past four years. Peter listened to my project as it was just being born, and his input and knowledge blossomed the piece into what it is now. These three professors, Peter Laki, Thurman Barker, and Bob Bielecki made up my board, and each of them has been as helpful as they possibly could be.

The entire senior project was split up into two different projects. The first project being a recorded version of the piece, and the second a live performance, with some tweaks and changes to provide a different listening experience. The recorded project is in 4 parts, each part being about 7-10 minutes. Each part is a reflection of my time, and my studies at Bard College. Part one, “Aspiration/Opening” is my arrival at Bard, and what I expected/hoped for during my time here. Part two, “Uncertainty” is the time at Bard where I wasn’t fully confident in myself, or what the future holds. Part three, “Originality” is the time in which I started to understand who I was, and what my sound was. Part four, “Regret/Closing” is what I wish I could have accomplished at Bard, and the countless mistakes that have transpired. It also reflects the positive aspects of my time, and leaving Bard. The accomplishments and knowledge I have acquired, the people I’ve met, the time I’ve had, the time I still have, and the future that awaits me.

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