# Creating gets harder the more you learn?



## Samuel Kristopher (Nov 4, 2015)

I remember at University having a creative crisis, because writing had been so easy back when I knew nothing, and when I actually started learning the craft and exposing myself to more literature, I noticed that writing became exponentially harder. My professors said this was a completely normal step in becoming a creative artist and that the best thing to do at that point was just to write as much as possible. 

Then one day, seemingly overnight, I discovered that writing wasn't difficult anymore. 

Now I'm facing the same problem with composition - that writing amateur works was really easy for me once, but now that I've been learning for a while, it's getting really difficult even to write simple harmonies or motifs. Everything seems to come out so awful, even more awful than some of the amateur stuff that I wrote, and the closest thing I've come to finishing anything lately was to basically copy+paste the baseline of a nocturne I like and write a new melody over the top. 

I'm sure others must have or still experience this. Do you think it will pass eventually, like my writing? Should I just keep writing stuff even if I feel it's awful, or should I make sure even the smallest things I write sound perfect before moving on?


----------



## Chordalrock (Jan 21, 2014)

It gets harder the more you try to ape someone or to fulfil some sort of arbitrary set of criteria. You should only care about inspiration, not rules, and about what it sounds like to you. The other stuff should give tools for your tool-box, not take them away.

Honestly, I'm a little puzzled that you can describe all of your compositions as "awful". Either you never wrote a single passage when inspired or you have become prejudiced when trying to become erudite (it's easy to conflate the two).


----------



## Samuel Kristopher (Nov 4, 2015)

Well as far as inspiration goes, I learned not to rely on it as a writer, because inspiration is an unpredictable source of creative energy and writing happens to be a part of my income. Sure, I love it when it happens, but I'm also comfortable writing without it, however I've come to manage it. Inspiration usually provides me with initial ideas and concepts which I write down, then I apply a more disciplined and rigorous approach to putting word after word and finishing the piece. 

I'm still not sure yet how similar the experience of creating literature and creating music is similar in that regard.

Maybe "awful" wasn't the best word - dissatisfied, I guess. I hear beautiful music in my head that wants to come out, but getting the product out is very difficult. That's why I feel like I need deeper understanding of theory and rules, to make the transfer from brain to page easier, but at the moment it seems to doing the opposite. I'll keep it up - I mean, I enjoy the learning almost as much as the composing. Just wanted to know if others were feeling any frustration about it.


----------



## Chordalrock (Jan 21, 2014)

As far as I've been able to figure out, you can do two things when setting out to compose a new piece: (1) wait for a nice passage to pop into your head and then transcribe it, or (2) go through phrases and passages either in your mind or on an instrument until the end result satisfies you (then notate it).

Perhaps it's just me, but if you already have music in your mind that you want to notate, then I can't really see how theory is relevant to that at all. Notating something is a question of recognising the intervals and chords that you hear in your mind; this is about musical memory and being able to put labels to sounds like words to objects, it's not about theory of composition. I believe it's something that develops best in childhood when you play an instrument and think about the intervals and chords you're playing. Anyone who started that as an adult would be like someone who started learning their first language as an adult, and would be at a serious disadvantage. You could learn all the theory in the world and it won't help you recognise the sounds in your mind any better.

If the above is a problem for you, you should probably do (2) with an instrument rather than your mind, so you can see what chords and intervals you're playing. The downside is that it's incredibly slow compared with doing things with your mind only.


----------



## Truckload (Feb 15, 2012)

I have never had a similar experience. I compose whenever I get the chance, perhaps 4 to 6 hours per week. Since I am strictly an amateur and have no aspirations of ever making money with music, I just write what pleases me. 

I have found that writing goes fastest when I have a very specific concept or goal. For example I decided I wanted to write a brass quintet, and I wanted the first movement to be a classical sonata form, as a fun challenge for myself. I had the entire movement written in about two weeks. Usually for me, setting a challenge for myself helps me stay focused.


----------



## Samuel Kristopher (Nov 4, 2015)

Thanks, both of you. My first experience with music was violin/choir for four years in high school - so I guess about halfway (a mild disadvantage?). 

I think I do need to turn off my hangups a little bit, though. After all, it's not like I have to demonstrate these pieces in front of a panel of critics, right? Yes, this is basically the same problem I had with writing :lol:


----------



## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

When you first learn things about theory or style, you initially may perceive them very inflexibly. As time goes on, you learn how to mess with each new thing that initially seemed so restrictive.


----------



## david johnson (Jun 25, 2007)

I guess you could write what you wish, then analyze it with the theory techniques you know of. If you find items that texts claim are a no-no revise a little and see it you like it better. Ever see Beethoven's sketch books? He had some many-repeated efforts to find what he wanted.


----------



## Rhombic (Oct 28, 2013)

I assure you, it's perfectly normal. Do not give up especially at this stage. The epiphany of realising how your old compositions had too many flaws, and how your somewhat recent ones are not entirely how you would like, is a perfectly normal stage.
Try to create at least a couple of pieces, slowly, attempting to really explore the sounds/structures that you want without falling back to apathy or "that-will-suffice" behaviour. After that, you will be able to define a new way to compose that will be both fulfilling for you and of a much higher quality.


----------

