When's the last time you REALLY listened? 🎧
How long since you've done nothing but sit and listen to music for longer than five minutes?
- 📲 No phone or book in hand.
- 🚗 No car ride or public transport to keep you busy.
- 🧹 No cleaning the house, taking a walk, or getting work done.
Just simply sitting and listening.
Believe it or not, until recently, it had been a long time for me, too.
(And I used to do it all the time.)
I remember when my Dad first introduced me to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon back when I was in middle school.
“You've got to listen to this album from start to finish - preferably in a dark room with no distractions.”
I did as he suggested.
Man, what an experience. 🤯
It was like I could practically SEE the music - shapes and colors danced in the dark as each track merged into the next seamlessly.
The pure focus onto the music itself was that powerful.
I was so inspired that I'd follow the same practice with other artists I loved - Rachmaninov, Radiohead, Dream Theater, and Brad Mehldau.
Back then, listening without distractions felt easy.
But things have changed.
With the rise in shiny new tech, an endless barrage of new shows and games to binge, and a shortening global attention span from short-form content, we’re all forgetting how to do just one thing at a time.
So if you're like me, these days you're rarely just listening to music.
But you can change that.
Here's how. 👇
Start by carving out just five minutes each day to sit, undistracted, and listen to a single piece of music with your undivided attention.
(I like to do this in the evening just before bed.)
At first, this will be more difficult than you think.
You'll probably be tempted to pull up the score, or take notes, hop over to your instrument, or play a mobile app on mute.
Resist those urges.
Over time, you'll rebuild the muscle of focus and learn to sit undistracted.
I've been doing this exercise regularly, and honestly, it's awoken a part of my artist brain that has been dormant for a while.
I feel reconnected to why I compose for a living.
And coolest of all…
It makes me feel like a kid again. 🤗
Now, if you're an action-oriented composer like me, you might be curious about whether to consider this time “recreation” or “learning”.
Here's my take.
Creatively, your subconscious brain is soaking up the experience of listening - both the story of the music and the emotions you’re feeling - which will in turn inform the music you write.
This subsconscious learning process is 100% automatic.
(There's no "doing" necessary.)
So resist the urge to actively analyze, and let your subconscious do the work for now.
In short…
Make time to nurture your relationship with music. ❤️
Listen to the music that inspired you when you first began - before you began actively trying to improve or go pro.
Remember why you started, and use it as your fuel to keep you passionate and driven forward.
👋 Ready for more?
When you're ready, here's 4 ways I can help:
- 🎥 My YouTube. Watch 350+ videos including music tutorials, career tips, and more.
- 🗞️ The Newsletter Archive. Read articles from previous weeks of this newsletter.
- 🎬 Composing Career Bootcamp. Join my 6-week cohort-based course to learn how to land paid composing work from anywhere in the world. (100+ students, 5 stars)
- 👋 Work Directly with Me. I'm offering private mentorship to a handful of select media composers. If you're interested, click the link to apply.
That's all for now!
Leave a reply to share your thoughts, questions, or just to say hi.
(I love hearing from my readers. 🙂)
Otherwise, happy music-making and I'll see you next Tuesday!
- Zach
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