Voices Festival 2018

The Voices Festival 2018

Recently on August 15th, I was one of the members of Voices with Soul that attended The Voices Festival, which is a New Zealand Pops Choir Festival aimed at providing students in years 7-13 with the chance to perform contemporary music at a high level and to inspire great performance. Featuring over 25 schools and nearly 40 groups, it is the largest vocal festival for schools in Canterbury!!

Since I've been at Hornby High School, I have been to this festival twice. My first time was in 2016, which I thought was such an awesome year! But Voices with Soul then compared to now just amazes me because of how much we have grown and our sound has developed so nicely that we now blend like a true whānau!! 

This year, I was super excited to goto the festival as we were unable to go last year due to some technical difficulties with getting the dates wrong.... But this year we were onto it and organised! There was also a new venue this year, at the YMCA in town opposite the Botanical Gardens.. and I thought it was actually a really cool venue with lots of beautifully big studios where we spent the day preparing for our performance in some really cool workshops!! Personally my favourite was the acapella one we did with Jullian Hay who is apart of Voices Co, I really enjoyed that and have actually now considered joining one of their open youth acapella groups!! After the workshops we had some spare time to get ready before soundcheck and so us girls got ourselves looking all dollied up, but after the soundcheck nerves started to kick in, I don't know why but it doesn't matter how many times I go on stage every time feels like the first time again and I get really nervous. But the atmosphere was so  positive that when the show started and we actually got up there, I felt at home and in a complete state of flow. The stage felt like my home, where I belonged. And afterwards I was just so happy and overwhelmed with how well our performance went, and I was so grateful for the awards we received. Overall I think it was definitely a highlight to my year for sure, and I can not wait for next years one now!!!!

Design 2018

31/10/18

So I finished my Folio today!!! Technically I actually finished it yesterday, but after a malfunction with the paper, we had to quickly get paper couriered to the school and it arrived today... and I ended up with completely different paper to what I used for Panel 1. So I have finished it all now, but if there is enough ink after printing the level 3 folios then Mrs said I could reprint Panel 1. So this will not be my last blog post. I will do another one in the next few days just to do a wee reflection on this year like I did with my level 1 folio!



28/10/18

So I have been doing some hard work over the weekend to get my Panel 2 of my folio finished as it was supposed to be handed in on Friday for marking. However, Mrs is really kind and gave me a few extra days to finish them off.. so I thought I would do an update and say that I am quite happy with my poster designs! I think I will leave them as they are unless Mrs says otherwise... I'm just really happy with that final poster so yeah hopefully the first thing I do in class tomorrow is to print my poster work off. Then hopefully I can finish my t-shirt designs during that class also, if not overnight so that on Tuesday I get it printed of and stuck on my board before it is sent away Wednesday!!! Ahhh it's just so scary and cool to have that feeling again of almost relief that everything you have been working towards has come together but then the fear of how people are going to view it and grade you


21/10/18

So we had today off for Labour day and so I did some brainstorming for Panel 2 today. I will be re developing "We are all equal" and it kind of sparked a thought of my work from last year. So I was looking at my Level 1 folio to see if anything could be useful in my t-shirt or poster designs, and I think I could definitly pull some inspiration from it and develop it to generate something out it!

I'm also going to be looking at Shanti Sparrow for some inspiration of my layout for the poster as well as Barbara Kruger to play around with grayscale and bold red but instead using a bold pink and layering that with Paula Scher as my influence for the Typography throughout Panel 2. But for tomorrow when I get back to school I really need to work on the t-shirt and get more sketches and concepts done for that! And i really just need to crack down on everything this week, and spent intervals/lunches, after school even and any free periods I have to get it done!



18/10/18

So I have been trying to update my blog this week but it keeps on freezing like every time when I am halfway through writing it and I am starting to get really frustrated.. it has been another whole month since my last blog post and so I wanted to update it with some good news. As shown on the left I HAVE FINALLY FINISHED PANEL 1 which shows my brief, mood board, colour palette, logo design and phone case designs!!



But bad news is I only have one more week to finish the entire folio so I only have this week to get Panel 2 finished (worried emoji) and so I decided to only do two more mini briefs on Panel 2, being a t-shirt and poster. This is because I did not think I had the time to finish 3 mini briefs in 1 week.... so I had to adjust my original brief and re-print it but yeah now I have decided how I would like to layout Panel 2, I just need to get designing away now. I will do an update blog post earlier on next week.

03/09/18

Okay not trying to panic but we only have 22 days until our folios are due (after all this time I also just realised folio was spelled with only one 'l') and I am starting to stress. It is currently the holidays and I am still working on my Phone Case development at the moment and hopefully plan to have that all done by the end of this week. So I am just quickly updating my blog because it has yet again almost been a month since updating it. I am really happy with how the development is going and I think I just need to make it a bit stronger concept wise and then yeah just keep developing until I get something that I am happy to work with for my final phone case. I did try to retake some photos and develop the hand (with my skin care cleanser as the outline lol) to hold the megaphone but that did not turn out as I had planned so I decided to scrap that idea and go back to the drawing board.



15/09/18

Last week went super quick, and there was actually a lot of progress in my design and surprisingly it was the week when my friends were not in class... lol. So I have now officially, finally finished logo designs!!!!!! Although I probably won't be printing them and getting them onto my folio for a few more weeks to come... But that's okay... So after taking in everyone's feedback on my poll of which ones/aspects of the logos they liked etc; I decided to combine all of their perspectives and opinions into my final logo. And honestly I know that it took a while but I am happy with the end result and I am glad Mrs kept pushing me to keep developing because I really do love it.

So today I started looking at concepts for phone-cases because it is getting really late in the term. But I think now it will just flow on really easy since finishing my logo. So for the phone case when sketching I came back to an original idea I had for the logo with the speakerphone... and then I also decided to incorporate that with one of the says I used for my logo "We are all equal".... so I wanted to play around with this idea when digitalising it I didn't know if I wanted it in the same font as my logo... So I actually did a combination of two different fonts, and I might that I might just continue more to play around with the harsh/sharpness of the edges so I might just smooth them out a bit, then I will look at the colours and see which is most effective on black and white space etc;

But other than that I'm just going to keep sketching and then digitalising etc; over the weekend and then take these ideas to school and see what Mrs thinks.. But so far this year I know that I have neglected my design work,  and it makes me sad because I love design... So I have made my goal have this case conceptions finished by this week and getting onto developing. Then the last week of term can be done finalising the case and then during the holidays I need to be planning concepts for my t-shirt merch, as there is not a lot of time left in the year... Although, I can not and will not let the stress get to me this year. Positive thoughts make for positive outcomes so I am just going to keep pushing forward and hope for the best outcome.


07/09/18

So I want to be able to finalise my logo this week so I have decided to print off some rough paper copies of my logo concepts, development and final logos just to check out how the layout looks on my board. Then I am also going run a poll to see which one my friends/ teachers like and then I guess I will just choose one.





17/08/18

I know I only blogged yesterday, but it's better than a whole month ago right? So I wanted to post a little update because I have had quite a huge development in one day that I thought I would compare with the photo to the right--> to the one in the blogpost below. And like I said yesterday I was coming into school today and that's where I managed to get lots of mahi done FOR ONCE!!! Because I don't know for some reason when I'm at school I don't actually feel like I'm in the creative flow anymore, which could actually be because of all my extra pressures n things this year? and I'm just always to stressed and thinking about so many different things that I'm not in the right mood to be in a creative design flow. So I was really quite proud of myself actually because it is hard to try get myself into that flow but Mrs Cairns was such a big help and gave me a good kick start with helping me develop the fist further than what I had done. As well as Mr Collins, whom I actually haven't spoke much to before and he gave me some really lovely feedback on all the ideas he liked and could see I was trying to play on!!! And yeah he just gave me a really positive boost! So talking a little more about the development so yous can understand what I have done since yesterday  -  I know the photos a little blurry but as you can see their are 5 different A4 sized artboards there where I've kinda just put different bits all over the place for now. But that will be the layout for the rest of the 1st panel below the brief and moodboard. I will do a sketch within the next few days and upload it so it makes more sense but for the top 3 boards that will be my Logo concepts, developments and then I will have 2 final logos. Then the bottom 2 will be my where I will put my Phone Case Designs - so the left one will be split in half of concepts and developments and then on the right will be 2x final designs for the case and because I'm thinking either like at the event you will get the option of two instead of just limited to one....or I might do an iPhone and Samsung which is thinking of my target audience.... so yeah I'll talk to Mrs about that... But I think 2 will fit nicely on the page as well. So within the next week I'm going to try organise the logos out so laying the out in each section the belong in eg. Concepts & Development then hopefully I would have finished my final logos and then finished Logos so I can move onto phone cases!!!!!!


16/08/18

So I just thought that I would do a quick blogpost update while it is Senior Assessment Week and I actually have time to do some posts, and my Art class is scheduled for tomorrow. So I'm just trying to get as much stuff done as I can because it is becoming such a slow process and I am getting really worried... But here is the development on my Logo, I decided to take a photo of a fist and photoshopped it and layered the lighting strike on top. But I still need to work on it and play around with a few more different things first. But I honestly hope that I can finish it by the end of Week 6.


14/08/18

Today I took a photo of Lavisha's fist because me and Mrs agreed that my logo just needed that bit more pizazz I guess (that was definitely not the word that was used though hahah) but anyway I thought that I blog this as it is the original photo and I am going to be playing around with the colours and probably going to image trace it etc;

07/08/18

Before I forget I am going to post this onto my blog. So I was looking at some Paula Scher work because Mrs wanted me to look at her typography for my Logo and I came across this photo... I think it kind of reflects what angle I was going with to start with which was like the megaphone thing I sketched for a logo design. Although I did not follow through with this design I would like to incorporate this with maybe my poster?? Or yeah I don't know I just thought it would be something cool to pull inspiration from.

I also thought that I would take this opportunity to post some of my logo development as well (YES I AM STILL WORKING ON IT SADLY) because I have not posted any of that progress for a few months as I realised that I have not updated it in a very long time! I hope to have this finished by week 5. Because I feel as if the rest will just flow once I have finished I will have the base of my event done - The logo - so I know that the rest will be a lot easier to finish. 

06/08/18

So I have now (I think) finished all of my Art History assessments now!!! They are ready for Mrs to mark so now I can just focus on practical work from now on.








23/07/18

Wow it's the first day back of Term 3 and I realised it's been a whole other month since my last blogpost and I'm low key disappointed in myself because I used to religiously blog last year, I LOVED TO BLOG! But this year I just haven't found the time to do it, and it's been so frustrating because it is challenging my time management skills, and I feel like I have all this time to do everything, when I don't and I'm like burning out.  But since my last post I finished my Art History essay on Shanti Sparrow and Mrs is yet to confirm if she wants me to add anything ect; but I just went straight ahead and got a start on my last one which is on Paula Scher. I have asked Mrs Clemence to choose a piece of work for Paula Scher as I am still unsure on which one to do, but I have got all of my background information ready. I will admit I have not made much progress practically, and I honestly don't even have an excuse I just haven't had the motivation to do be practical because I am so worried about everything else going on in my school and personal life. I've just been very drained but I just don't want to continue thinking negatively because I am really bad for thinking negatively about myself... I am really my own worse critic, but I really need to buckle down because I only have this term to do it all......


20/06/18

It has been a little while since I did my last blog post. I do plan to try do them at least every 2nd Friday otherwise just whenever I can update them. However it's been a little while now because last week sadly my grandad passed away so if I'm going to be honest school work was not a priority for me. Although, I have had more development that I thought I would post about incase it looks like I've been doing now work for the last 2 weeks...

So I have now digitalised the 5 logo concepts I chose out of the 15 rough paper copies I had. And so I just played around with different things like the pen tool, shapes, brush marks, text and expanding ect; and I somehow managed to get that done at home within what would be 2 period at school and I was actually really pleased with how it turned out!! They all look like how I'd imagined them to when I sketched them out the first time. So like the "Leading Female Futures" Logo Concept in my last blogposts were developed from the top 2 Logo Concepts in the left image. The lightning bolt/Equal Power concept wasn't actually my original one though, it was developed so when I put it on my board I think I will need to use the original one and the other for development. So then in the right image is some more development on that one particular logo concept with the lightning bolt. I will continue to do for the others as well.  I hopefully plan to have all of Logo stuff done by the end of Term - End of Holidays. I have also almost finished my Art History on Shanti Sparrow. Hopefully by next week I can start my final Art History which I am hoping to get finished by the end of Holidays which in a way could be stressful as the first week I am in Auckland for Te Wero Pakihi. However the last week of holidays I will balance the workload with getting enough rest and energy to start Term 3!!!!





08/06/18

For the last 2 lesson I have been working on some more logo developments and I have really been getting in the flow with it.

So my next steps will be using the other logo ideas I have about "Equal Power" over the weekend and see what I can come up with design wise and then on Monday I would like to work on my Art History....



06/06/18

So within the last 2 days I have actually had so much more development and progress in my logo designs which I am so happy with!!!

At first I was a little scared of the Macs but I am starting to really get into the flow more so that's good, I think from now on I'm going to get things done a little quicker now I know what I am sort of doing. I am feeling more comfortable with my Mac and I am really loving Illustrator even though I still know so little about it... So today what I did was took my rough sketches and made a finished sketch to scan and start digitalising. So this is the start of my first logo concept and now I am just going to continue developing it further, doing some more design ideas and then making those  digital as well.



04/06/18

We are now in week 6 with 4 weeks left of the term and so I'm pretty sure Mrs was going to start going through our boards and discussing what level she thinks were at... and so for the last week I've just been working at developing my logos further out of the 5 I choose (finally).

So I'm just going to continue that this week, as well as do some work on my Art History, it's a bummer because we had today off school for Queens birthday so we missed out on a lesson for this week. But I think I might start coming in during intervals and lunches that I am free to continue working away at things.

27/05/18

So since last posting on my blog I got my brief and mood board onto my follio. And now over the weekend I have completed my first rough 15 sketch generations for my logo (technically 18 but more the better) Tomorrow I will show Mrs to see what she thinks and then I guess I have to choose 5 to continue developing, but I will be spending tomorrows period on my Art History. I would like to finish the Shanti Sparrow one as soon as I can but preferably by week 7. So the more I work at it the faster I will get it done and can start the last one in week 7 and then hopefully I can finish it by end of term if not theres always the holidays.


13/05/18

I thought it was about time I did another blog post while I have the spare time to write it because it's just been hard trying to find time to do things. So since the last time that I blogged on here I believe I have made some very good progress.

We are now about to enter week 3 of term 2 and I have now completed my first Art History essay on Barbra Kruger which Mrs said is at the level of Excellence so it is now my mission to get the other 2 finished by the start of Term 3. I have started on my next artist Shanti Sparrow and am currently researching for some information about her and a little bit about her personal background, education history etc;

 

And last week I got the right software on my Macbook for Design and since then I have been in the flow just doing my thing and working at getting a mood board made for my board (which I have completed), finalising my brief and starting logo concepts.

Tomorrow I will need to sit down and talk to Mrs Clemence about my brief because last term she said I should refine it a little bit more so we'll have a discussion then I would like to get my brief finalised and finished by the end of this week, and as you would've seen in my last post I have started ideas for my Logo but will need to start getting more in-depth and have sketched logo concepts done by this week to have my concepts ready to go onto my board by the end of week 4. So what I have done so far is finished my mood board which consists of research - to do with feminism, and then my Artist Models and some of their work that inspired me for my own designs and then colour palettes. And I used the honeycomb shapes because I thought they were cool and would like to use that shape throughout my designs. I have also made a layout plan of my board. Which has my current brief and finished mood board on it. Then I have also done the layout of each of the things I am designing and they're divided in sections structured as "concepts, development, final design"



1/05/18


School is back and I feel super refreshed and ready for another Term! On the first day back the first thing I did was make a board layout plan and it might change but not likely. For the first 2 days of being back, I've been working on developing ideas for my Logo because Mrs has been away.  I think so far I'm definitely on track with that because we have only been back for 2 days, and my ideas have been flowing and I'm both really surprised and happy about it. In the photo on the right on I've done some rough drawing ideas, inspired by some that I seen online with on the better copy of paper I've started to put ideas together for certain purposes and create an overall meaning. So for the rest of the week I am going to continue working on those Logo concepts.

Then once Mrs Clemence is back I would love to sit down and have a catch up with her and talk about my theme as she still thinks it needs refining, my art history and what needs to be on my mood board. Then after talking with her I will spend the next 2-3 weeks putting together my mood board, finishing my first Art History and finishing my brief. But by week 4 I need to have my brief, mood board, and first logo generations done. I also want to finish my Art History by Week 5 at the latest as well, I thought I would be done quicker but the truth is that's just not possible for me with a lot of other assessments to do.
I think so far I'm definitely on track with that because we have only been back for 2 days, and my ideas have been flowing and I'm both really surprised and happy about it. In the photo on the right on I've done some rough drawing ideas, inspired by some that I seen online with on the better copy of paper I've started to put ideas together for certain purposes and create an overall meaning. So for the rest of the week I am going to continue working on those Logo concepts. Then once Mrs Clemence is back I would love to sit down and have a catch up with her and talk about my theme as she still thinks it needs refining, my art history and what needs to be on my mood board. Then after talking with her I will spend the next 2-3 weeks putting together my mood board, finishing my first Art History and finishing my brief. But by week 4 I need to have my brief, mood board, and first logo generations done. I also want to finish my Art History by Week 5 at the latest as well, I thought I would be done quicker but the truth is that's just not possible for me with a lot of other assessments to do.


22/04/18

Forgot about blogging. Again. But it's the the first week of holidays so I thought why not do a blog post to discuss the progress I made this last term and my goals for Term 2 to keep me on track. Overall I think I did reasonably well last term considering I had some time off school, and a lot of other times out of class due to public holidays and simply just being a busy year with Year 12's always having opportunities like Mai Biz, UC Discovery Days, and Music Workshops ect; but I am still happy where I am at.

So this term I focused on developing a concept/theme, structure of my brief and researched some artist models to start my Art History Assessment. The artist models I have decided to study this year are Barbra Kruger, Shanti Sparrow, Paula Scher and Julien Pacaud and as you would have seen in a previous blog post I am currently doing my first Art History essay on Barbra Kruger's "Who's the fairest of them all" photographic silkscreen print. I think I would be more than half way through but no where near finished at the same time. I am just waiting for Mrs to make some more comments on what I could further develop on, and/or add to it. I would hope to finish it by the start of the second week back of term. I would also like to finish the other 2 Art History essays by the end of Term 2, or first week of Term 3 at the latest.

On the other hand I managed to develop a good concept and theme that is what I believe in and have a strong opinion for as well as structuring a good foundation for a brief, I did narrow it down a bit more but Mrs thinks it still needs more refining to it so I think that is something we will need to discuss in the first week of term. There is a lot I would like to talk to her about so I'll make a little list of things and then ask her for her time to go over at least some of the things within the first week back so I can plan what I need to do for the following weeks. I also would like to start playing around with designing on the macs during the first week because I need to have my first generation of logos onto my board by I think week 4. So if I'm not discussing with Mrs or planning for the next few weeks then I think I should be on the macs playing around with it and get familiar with it because I used it once last year briefly and I didn't really get it at all so I'm going to have to be very patient with it.

By week 4 next term my brief, mood board and first generations for my logo should be on my board. That will be my main priority, so I will spend 3/4 periods on practical so that will mean either discussing things with Mrs first, designing logos, working on the brief, or putting together the mood board (since I altered my theme I will take things from my original mood board and add other things to suit my theme now) then the other period will be spent doing Art History, and I will also work on them both in my own time.


30/03/18

So it's now the end of March and I haven't done a blog post since half way through the month...
A lot has been going on and I just spent the last 3 days at Mai Biz,  and I'm just not feeling as on top of things as I did this time last year..... However, I think because of my injury at the beginning of the year and being sick a few times I have been feeling very stressed because of it, and it has made me put a lot of pressure on myself. So a lot has happened that I haven't blogged about.

First thing is that I slightly adjusted my theme. So instead of focusing on sexual assault and domestic violence for my event I thought it would be a little to heavy and when it comes to designing it could be too complicated. Therefore instead I have decided to make it an event to empower females and address equity and equality. Its more simple, but still a strong theme where I could really create some cool designs! I can already visualise things in my head already! So I have made some really good progress with constructing a good foundation for my brief that I'm pretty happy with. Throughout the year I will probably add bits and pieces to it, but I think for now it covers a lot of what the event is about and all the specific details at this very moment.

I'm also half way through Art History which is due at the end of the Term... This is more of what I'm stressing a little about, but I'll check in with Mrs Clemence on Wednesday and see if she can give me a few comments on it because honestly this year for Art History has so much harder than it was last year!! I need to have finished 3 Artist Model Researches before the end on Term 2! So yeah I'm starting to get anxious about that because talking about design med ia has been difficult for me. However I'll eventually get through it... but I think because I've finished my brief I can focus the rest of the term on to my Art History to get that finished! Then I will be able to get a rough start on my second one during the holidays.... So that means I only have 5 periods left to get that finished because of Easter and the UC day I'm attending so there is a lot of effort I'll need to put in at school and in my own time to get this finished to an Excellence standard.

15/03/18

It's been 2 weeks since the last time I blogged because I've been really busy trying to catch up with everything in all of my other classes and I feel like I haven't prioritised this class like I should of. But I have actually made some good progress, I'm just not exactly where I would like to be this far on in the term. However I have created a mood board that is really going to help me with creating my brief and having a solid idea on my direction and focus for this year. It took me like 4 periods to get it done but I like to take my time with things and get it right! I've also started my art history and decided to choose Barbara Kruger. I chose her untitled who's the fairest of them all because I think it says a lot about  gender inequality and the perception of women having to be beautiful. I guess in a way it does tie in with my theme so it could contribute to me figuring out how I want to design this year. So I've done a few paragraphs on some of her background information, and a bit about the piece itself. My goal is to have finished this by the end of Week 9 so I'm going to really try focus on this and get it done!! As well as obviously still working on constructing a brief because I'd also like to have a finalised brief by the end of term.



28/02/18

Since being back at school it has been a little stressful having to catch up in each class but I think I've made a good start to the year so far in terms of knowing what I want to design and working on a brief! I have a lot of ideas but I'm still working on narrowing it down on specifics and more detail. I do want to create a mood board for all of my ideas and to get really specific on the where, time, date, colours, guest speakers and music for the event and really get to the detail!

For the last few days I've been focusing on my Art History. Last year I got an Excellence on this assessment so I'm hoping for that this year as well! On Mrs site there was a slideshow to go through about Art History, showing some exemplars, criteria ect; so I just wrote down some notes from that so I can remember and bare in mind some of those things while doing this assessment because like I mentioned I really want to get an Excellence!

I only have 2/3 of my artist models decided. I'm going to be using Shanti Sparrow as one of them which I've already talked about in a previous blog post! And Barbra Kruger who was a feminist
artist who I'm really interested in! A lot of her work uses typography and she mainly uses the grey scale and the colour red in her work which is is bold, clear and in a way is confronting. I came across her work today when I was going in to a more depth research on the history of feminism and while doing some research on feminism I found her! So now I just have to find a 3rd artist model! Also while learning about the history of feminism and learning about the different waves and movements I think it helped me gain a stronger understanding on my 'why' and the direction of where I want to head!!

 I also really found The Riot Grrrl Movement Art was really cool and I loved the style of the designs!! I think they are going to have a lot of influence and impact on my designs this year I might use them as my 3rd artist model. I'll look into it.



21/02/18

Today was my first day back at school for a while so I wasn't really sure what was going on. Although I did then manage to make a start on ideas and plans for my brief going more in depth on my 'why' and 'things I care about'. So I would call myself a feminist and one of the things I feel really strongly about is equal rights for females because we seem to have the short end of the stick in life. I love talking about all the issues surrounding females like their equal rights, having a voice, speaking out about sexual abuse and domestic violence ect; and I don't love talking about it because they're really funny to laugh at or gossip about, I love talking about it because it isn't talked about often and people don't feel comfortable talking about it. And I think it would be cool to confront people with that and when I think about people not wanting to address issues like these I constantly ask myself why? Because we need to talk about it, because nothing will change if we can't even simply talk about it. A perfect example of this is Donald Trump, he recently tweeted that it was too early to talk about gun violence, but nothing will be done if it is not spoken out about. So now I have a strong idea on what my theme is for this year I'm going to spend the rest of the week looking at the exemplars online of the Excellent and Merit grades and I'll write down some notes comparing the 2 grades just to know the difference between the level that's expected and to understand why they got the grades they did because that's definitely what I'm aiming for this year! Then next week I want to focus 2 periods on my Art History paper because I have barley got a start on it, I've only chosen 2 Artist Models (in last blogpost) but I think I will do the actual assessment on Shanti Sparrow because there a lot more information on her.

13/02/18

Last week I was looking at some artist models to reasearch and I was really interested in Shanti Sparrow and Kellyn Walker. They have both been named as one of 33 Women Doing Amazing Things in Graphic Design. They have completely different design styles, however I really like them both!! I would love to incorporate some of their design styles into my work this year!

Shanti Sparrow is an award winning Australian designer and illustrator. Like myself she dreams of living and creating in New York. Her engaging posters and brochures catch the eyes of many with her vibrant and bold approach to design. She creates brands filled with individuality and personality. Her expressive typography and well thought out colour palettes create memorable and iconic branding. She collaborates with many people to create awareness and raise funds for important humanitarian, environmental and research based causes without profiting from it herself. She loves animals and the environment which is reflected much through her designs and illustrations in the children books she writes. The layout to her work is simple but effective and all the details are right there in front of you to get the point across straight away. I think her work is very intriguing and when I look at some of her work I would  really like to use this kind of style in designing posters, specifically for a teenage festival and I think this style of design would be the kind of design that would catch a teenagers attention - it's colourful, appealing and nothing to complex, simple but really well thought out.

It was really hard to find any information on Kellyn Walker as her website is currently under construction. Although personally as soon as I seen her work I felt like i had an instant connection to her design style. The summery/earthly vibe in her design is really interesting and although her colour palette is significantly different to Shanti Sparrow's I think the greyscale and odd use of other colour such as army greens and brownish golds are really lovely and they all seem to compliment each other and work really well. When thinking of her design style I can imagine incorporating her style into designing clothing and websites. I would even like to use the nature element to her work with all the leaves, branches and maybe adding kowhaiwhai designs would be cool. I'm not sure if the pentagon image in the right corner of the collage is her work or not and I'm not even actually sure what it is but when I was trying to find some of Kellyn's work I came across it and I don't know I just really like it and I want to incorporate cool shapes like that in my work this year.

02/02/18

Oh how I missed blogging. Today was officially the first day back at school and my first day in Design! I'm so excited for this course and I hope that maybe this year will be less stressful because I kinda have my head around NCEA now but I probably shouldn't say that so early on in the year.... But for the next week were going to be brainstorming ideas for a concept so today I got started on some ideas and started with things I care about...

Music 2018

Welcome to my Music Blog for 2018!!

Group Performances:

Song Choice: Any Man of Mine
Artist: Shania Twain 
Composer: Robert John "Mutt" Lange and Shania Twain
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N2k-gv6xNE
Other Group Members: Lavisha and Anna.

What is this song about?

This song was a new form of feminism, pretty much saying that any man of hers has to be proud of her and better tell her that her dress fits right even when it doesn't, and he just has to agree with her and support her! She combined country songs with pop style production and marketing, using video to create a dynamic image, injecting country with a more uptown style, and taking control of her career like no female had ever done in Nashville before. Shania set new benchmarks for everybody in country music. 

What do I think of the song?
I'll admit it took me awhile to warm up to the idea of this song. I love country and I like a few of Shania Twain songs. However I hadn't heard this song before and so I didn't have much of a connection with it. But in the last month I've started to really love it! I also I think it appeals to me more because of the sassy and assertive tone of the lyrics and it's just such a catchy song and the lyrics are actually quite genius! I think It's also a good song for us girls to sing because it's good to change it up and explore different genres of music. Which this year is actually what I want to explore as a solo artist as well.

Final Grade: Excellence



Solo Performances:

1st Song Choice: A Million Dreams

Artist: Hugh Jackman and Ziv Zaifman from The Greatest Showman 

Composer/s: Benj Pasek & Justin Paul
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSQk-4fddDI

Grade: Excellence 

What is this song about?
This song is about young mans future wife and he tells her of his dreams for the future and explains his confidence that if they work hard for it, they will come true. In the first verse he talks about closing his eyes and yet being able to see, displaying his ability to ignore reality and open not his eyes but his imagination to a whole new world of possibilities, and through the darkest of times, and “the door” meaning the new stuff you have not encountered before. He believes that his world will be a world full of things unimaginable, things that are new, hence the term “opening a new door” and he welcomes people who were not traditionally welcome as they were different. Then then adult version of himself recounts the same dreams.

What do I think about this song? 
I love this song, it's so sweet. When I first listened to it it reminded me of "Eternal Flame" by the Bangles for some reason but I think it's a really good song and in a way very unique and diffrent for me as well. I also love The Greatest Showman and thought I would like to do my own rendition of it. 

2nd Song Choice: Black Velvet 

Artist: Alannah Myles
Composer/s: David Tyson & Christopher Ward
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkXNEmtf9tk
Grade: Excellence 

What is this song about?
This song is about Elvis Presley form his looks to his music. Some lyric analysis: "Jimmy Rogers on the Victrola up high" - Jimmy Rogers, an early blues singer, influencing Elvis (the baby) at an early age. The Victrola is the record player, played loudly. "Mama's dancin' with baby on her shoulder" - Gladys Presley dancing with the infant Elvis. "Black velvet and that little boy's smile" - You can buy a black velvet Elvis painting at any respectable yard sale. Early female fans were drawn to his "Little boy smile." "Black velvet with that slow southern style" - Elvis delivered some of his songs with slow, undulating hips. "Black velvet with that slow southern style" - Elvis delivered some of his songs with slow, undulating hips. Check out "Steamroller Blues" live.

What do I think about this song? 
I love this song! It's got a rocky edge to it that I think is different for me and I like it! I wanted to mix it up this year and pick a range of different songs and the reasons behind why I picked this song are 1. because it reminds of being at my grandparents house as a child and listening to all kinds of music with them 2. I loved Elvis Presley as child and I still do now thanks to my grandparents because they introduced me to so much music! I really want to loosen up for this song and have fun with it and bring the sass and edge to it!!

3rd Song Choice: Sober 
Artist: Demi Lovato

Composer/s: Demi Lovato, Mark Landon, Tushar Apt and Sam Roman

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=XQCo9dpz4LY
Grade: Excellence

What is this song about?
This song is about Demi Lovato admitting her drug and alcohol addiction that she has struggled with since a young age, dating way back to when she was on Disney Channel. Demi is ultimately sorry that she is not sober which is emphasised throughout the entire song, and specifically says sorry to her mum, father, friends and fans. She doesn't know why she does it every it time but it's only when she's feeling lonely that triggers her and she promises to get help because it wasn't her intention to relapse.

What do I think about this song? 

This song really hits me hard. I love it even though it makes me cry. It's so beautiful and raw. I have looked up to Demi for so long, and knowing that she suffered this addiction while she made me feel such joy and happiness while at home sitting in front of my TV screen really hits me. And it's so confronting, and so sad. I feel so bad for it. As I've grown older and seen how open she is with all of her struggles with mental health, her weight and drug and alcohol addictions she's become so much more of an idol to me, because she is such a real and relatable person. And unlike others who judge her, I believe that people don't choose to be addicted to anything and that's why this song resonates with me. I've known many people with different addictions.

4th Song Choice: Blown Away
Artist: Carrie Underwood

Composer/s: Chris Tompkins & Josh Year

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJgoHgpsb9I

Grade: Unassessed 

What is this song about?
This song is about the chilling, vengeful tale of a young girl with an abusive, alcoholic father. The song describes him as a mean old mister. The daughter can feel a storm coming, and she just wishes it could wash her past away, and in doing so, you know, take her father along. So it's a very, deep, dark story and so visual, when you hear the words and you hear the music, you can just see it all happening in your head. The tornado represents growing up, leaving your past behind. "Til theres nothing else standing", "nothing left of yesterday", "all blown away.."The girl had a traumatic and difficult childhood, and she needs to overcome it. 

What do I think about this song? 
I have loved this song since it came out in 2012! It is so emotional and powerful, and is one song that I have always dreamed of being able to pull off! This year I'm so excited that I can sing this song for one of my solos, and I would really love to do this song justice and portray it as the beautiful and emotional song it is

Final Grade: Excellence 

Composition:

07/02/18

I'm so excited for composition this year that I thought I would get started as soon as I could and then surely slowly get things done at a steady pace so I thought I would do a blog post! I feel as if I have definitely gained some experience over the last year when it comes to composition and I'd really like to continue the same sort of style. I guess I really kinda need to actually figure out what my style even is and figure out how to express myself through my music without caring about feeling vulnerable because that's how you write music. You have to truly connect to it and feel it for others to relate and be able to connect to it too. I think the main thing I do want to improve though is my playing. I think I definitely am better than when I came into Level 1. However, I know that I could be better if I just practiced a bit more and had the patience to kinda just sit down for 30 minutes - 1 hour to just figure out my way to getting better and better. Because I honestly would love to make a career out of this and share my voice with the world. I used to think it was embarrassing to want that because a lot of people say it's hard to become successful in that business let alone in New Zealand. But I know that whatever I set my mind to, I will achieve it and I will get there. I am determined to accomplish all of my goals. I am aiming for the lofty mountain and I will continue to fill my basket with knowledge! I wonder what this year will bring, and I wonder what kind of songs I will produce. I'm really excited to see what happens!!!


31/03/18

We are currently on break for Easter and I thought thought I would do a blogpost because I've been thinking of what kind of songs I am going to be composing this year. I would love to write a song about learning to accept your self because it's something that I've been trying to do over the last year and I want to actually start writing songs that make me vulnerable and emotional because that's what I love about music and so I'd like to do that myself with my own songs.. Similar to 'This is Me" from the Greatest Showman, I want it to uplift people and inspire them to be true to themselves and to be who they are! I want to take people on a journey of discovering yourself and who you are and I think that's the kind of song people need to hear. So I'm really excited to see what I can come up with and I might start looking at different chords and start thinking on lyrics ect; and really start thinking about that one because I want to make it perfect!!! For a second composition I'm not sure what I would do but I definitely know I want it to be something different and unique as well.


25/05/18

For the last month I've been writing ideas down for lyrics and I think that for my first composition I am going to be talking about insecurities and how they can affect you and how people don't necessarily see you for who you truly are inside and they think the real you is the physical you like on things like social media platforms or when they see you walk past them at school etc;  and I really wanted to do a song about this because I have struggled so much with my anxiety and insecurities and learning to accept myself.


04/06/18


So I've decided that my first composition is definitely going to be tackling insecurities like how I mentioned in my previous blog post. I want this to be my first composition because insecurities are something that I have always struggled with and think some people will find it relatable as well which is the kind of music I want to make and share with people. I've come up with a good starting point for lyrics which I'm going to continue developing and I'm leaning towards having for the chorus as "Insecurities have got the best of me, looking at Instagram so anxiously, Do I look to big? and how about my skin? I'm so tired of feeling this away" because now they kinda just give me those vibes so this week I'm just going to start playing around with melodies and chords and so I'm making Monday and Friday my composition days. So because we had today off for Queens Birthday, I know on Friday I will need to figure out the kind of sound I want to have to it and play around with chords and melodies.


8/06/18

Today I worked more on my composition and started playing around with some chords like B major, C# Major, Bb Major and E Major.

11/06/18

Today I continued developing the chords for my compsition and decided to change it a little by using the same B major chord throughout it just changing the singular notes.

18/06/18

Today I started playing around with lyrics and the chords to try make the melody to the chorus. And then I continued onto adding single notes in the chords to create a rhythm to it.

23/07/18

Wow it's been awhile since I've blogged and I feel really guilty about it. Last year I would religiously blog and just do it, but this year has been so crazy that I really have not had the time to do it and I feel as If I have neglected my compositions. But it is day 1 of Term 3 and I am setting a goal for myself now to get my first composition done by the end of Week 4, which is plently of time I think to finish it because I have the core done (the chorus) so I just need to piece together some versus and a bridge.  I also have decided that my second composition is going to be about my Grandad passing away... he passed away last month now and it has just been something I have had a lot to say about... but I just feel like I want to write a song for him but I'm just not sure yet what exactly I'm going to write. But I plan to have this composition finished by the end of Term or week 1 of Term 4 at the latest!!!


30/07/18

Since my last blogpost I have actually been motivated to get things done for this composition because I know that I write a song faster than I have done.. but so I have actually made some progress!!! So first of all I wanted to really focus on getting the beginning of the song fully sorted before I even thought of the verses so as I was playing around with the chords, I managed to come up with a really nice chord progression that I am going to use for the opening of the song to go into the first verse... and then once I had wrote that I was coming up with heaps of different things lyric wise and it kinda just flowed and at the time all the scribbles make 0 sense so I just made a good copy of them for the blog but yeah I came up with pre chorus lyrics and verse 1... so now I just have to do verse 2 and a bridge then polish it all up hopefully within 2 weeks.

03/08/18

I would really like to get my composition finished by the time I go to camp next Thursday because that is what I did last year. And I will feel like I am really falling behind if I leave it any later!! So that is the plan for that one! But so for the last 2 days in music I have been brainstorming lyrics for the second chorus and was going to try figure out to end the song... Although I think I need to learn to take one thing at a time cause I am bad for trying to take heaps of different things on board.. But so the progress for the second chorus went good. First thing I thought when writing the 2nd verse was if I was to introduce positive vibes or keep tracking with the feeling of insecurities and then what people say about you.. So those were my options for the verse and first thing that popped into my mind was "Stick and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me" and I wanted too reference that because that's what the try to tell you as a kid, but you know what? It still hurts so I made the verse  "The saying goes sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me, but when I was 13 I couldn't wait to leave High School because of the things they said and thought about me" and so after putting that with the other part of the song it had a really nice flow to it. So I think that I should be finished by the time I goto camp because all I really need to sort out now is the ending of the song.


07/08/18

Today I was trying so hard to get the ending of my song sussed. And eventually after about 20 minutes of internally screaming I came up with the perfect lyrics to end on a positive note because I have obviously overcome a lot of the fears and feelings I felt as a 12 -14 year old. And clearly I'm not bulletproof so I know there will be things that hurt me from time to time but I'm happy and that is what I wanted to end the song on and give hope to others who are struggling to overcome their own... So I did finish that and recorded my first draft for my composition! I'm going to try record this tomorrow before I go on camp so when I get back my 2nd composition is my focus. The photo on the left is also all of the paper I gathered from lyrics and chords ect;


09/10/18

It is the second week of the holidays and I thought I really needed to do a blog post because I have not blogged about my second composition at all since last time.. So for a quick update on that I have been writing lyrics for my second composition as well as some keys and melody since the last week of school and so yeah I'll upload a progress update when we go back to school.


Final Grade:

Music 2017

Music 2017

Welcome to my Music Blog 

Everything I do in Music will be posted onto this exact post. I like to keep things connected together rather than on a separate blog post, to me it looks a lot tidier.  

Achievement Standard and Number	As 91091 1.2 Group Performance	As 91090 1.1 Solo Performance	As 91092 1.3 Composition
What do you have to do…	Demonstrate ensemble skills through performing a piece of music convincingly as a member of a group.	Perform two pieces of music convincingly as a featured soloist.	Compose two convincing original pieces of music.
How many credits?	4 credits	6 credits	6 credits
When are the assessments?	Term 1	Term 3	Term 3
Grade: (A / M / E)	E	E	E

1.2 - Group Performance 

Other Group Members: Lavisha, Anna.

Song Choice: Seasons of Love
Artist: Johnathan Larson - a musical writer for the Broadway show "Rent"

What do I think of the song?
When I first heard this song I honestly didn't really like it, but overtime I grew to like it. It reminded me of times with good friends who were alongside me. I watched the film this was from and it is what made me love this song even more. It give this song so much more meaning about friends and love, so it became a lot easier to understand the lyrics and connect to the song.

Final Grade: Excellence

1.1 - Solo Performance

Top Ideas: 

• Skin - Raga bone
• Titanium - Sia 
• Grand Piano - Nicki Minaj
• Say You Won't Let Go - James Arthur 
• Make It To Me - Sam Smith 

1st Song Choice: Titanium

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UlRIbpYTwk

Artist: Sia 

Composer/s: Sia and David Guetta
Grade: Excellence 

What is this song about?
This song is mainly about being strong even when the world is throwing its worse at you. The lyrics in this song contain metaphors, imagery, and symbols to portray the message. The first lyrics in the song talk about ignoring people who will shout at us and yell at us to put us down. It also uses guns and bullets to symbolise the hateful words that people say. In the chorus she sings about being bullet proof, which means that when we are shot down with bullets, all the bullets ricochet, or bounce off because we should not worry about the things people say about us.  In verse two, they talk about how people can continue to shoot us down but its not us who will be hurt more if we stand our ground. As the song states, we must be "Titanium" which means to be strong hearted and strong willed. When bad things happen we must stand strong and not fall.

What do I think about this song? 
I think this song was incredibly written and has so many elements to it that shape it to what it is. The song itself draws you in and makes you more curious about it, because the tempo and dynamics of the song kinda take away the true meaning of the lyrics. However this song has a very empowering message to those who are bullied. Not just teens or kids but adults too, in fact the entire world. Although the song's style of pop and techno music might draw a person away from the meaningful words, it has a very strong moral that more people should learn about.

2nd Song Choice: The One That Got Away 

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahha3Cqe_fk

Artist: Katy Perry

Composer/s: Katy Perry, Max Martin &Dr Luke
Grade: Excellence

What is this song about?
This song was about your first love which is why this song sounds so deep, as you never forget your first love. The first verse is about the relationship and the little things that shaped it - meeting the summer after high school, making out in his mustang, getting matching tattoos, and climbing up to the roof with their parents liquor talking about what their future would be like - but they didnt plan it to end so soon, something in their relationship went wrong  In the chorus it gives us hints as to what happened - "In another life, we'd keep all our promises, I'd make you stay, so I don't have to say you were the one that got away". I think he promised her that he'd always be hers, then tried to leave her, and she let him - but later regrets doing so. Verse two refers to the fact that they used to be inseparable, and where he's at now - he's moved on (someone said you had your tattoo removed) and the realization that he has finally hit her (it's time to face to music; I'm no longer your muse) Verse three says that she's famous now, making slot of money, but no amount of anything could replace how she feels for him, and she can't go back in time to fix what she regrets doing. It also gives another hint as to what happened : "I should've told you what you meant to me; cause now I've paid the price" means that she should've, when he told her that he didn't want to be with her, said that he meant slot to her, and maybe he would've stayed, but she didn't and now shell have to pay the consequences.

What do I think about this song? 
I personally love this song to bits and I have since it was released when I was 8 years old, hence why I know the lyrics already!! I've also started to feel a lot more connected to this song over the last few years as I've experienced having my first heartbreak before and it is an unforgettable pain that you'll always remember. Even though I'm a lot younger and obviously didn't experience the same relationship as Katy's first love but it does hurt. However I also believe this song is a song of reflecting on a relationship that's gone wrong and you can acknowledged that and be at peace with it. This song is beautiful and my faviourite lyrics in this song would be "I was June and you were my Johnny Cash, never one without the other we made a pact"

Final Grade: Excellence

1.3 - Composition 

Diary Entries 

04/05/17 

To start with today in Music Mrs Beer asked us to write down what we thought the purpose of music in a film was. I think it is to manipulate the viewers emotions and it sets a certain mood in that scene.  

We also started talking about the different types of ways to compose music. Then did an exercise on listening to 4 songs from different films. We had to write down which genre we thought they were from, why we thought that and try guess what the film  actually was.  

05/05/17

Matt Barus is a Christchurch based musician from the band "The Dukes" came into school today and ran a musical composition workshop from periods 1-3. 

As someone who aspires to write their own music and share it with the world, I personally thought that this experience was very useful and inspiring to me. I would love to be able to do something like this again, because I feel like it helped me to develop so much more of a better idea on what I want to compose.

I learnt that Matt only really started writing and performing music when he was started at University, so that instantly gave me hope that because I'm young and I'm already so passionate about pursuing this, that maybe I'll have a chance of making it somewhere one day.

During the workshop we came up with our own lyrics to combine with each others and write a class song. I got really stuck into this and my mind exploded with ideas, that I would actually like to use with my composition! Matt gave us the title "As I lay dying" and we then had to somehow incorporate that into a chorus. Matt picked the lyrics he felt fitted best, and they were mine!


"Time is running out, life is slipping thorough my fingers, as I lay here dying." 

I felt so over the moon about Matt choosing mine because someone actually liked and appreciated what I was writing, and because these lyrics actually meant something to me. Recently I've had a lot of family members in and out of hospital, some facing life or death situations and I've started to really think about life. I mean life is pretty much like an hour glass and your time does eventually run out, and life can just slip right through your fingers. I know it's probably a little deep for some people but I think it's something that's worth talking about. So I'm already confident and feel like this is going to be the theme for my first composition.


11/05/17

Today in Music Mrs Beer gave us 20 minutes of class to get into a group and create a chorus for a rap about an object within the classroom. We chose the chain hanging from the ceiling partly because we thought it'd be funny and interesting. We weren't really sure what to write about the actual chain itself but we kinda went along our own story and perception of the chain.....

"Thought you were my bae, but you're just a Christian Grey,
Never gave me the time of day, but you tied my up in chains, 
You stole my heart and chained me down,
Left me alone, I'm so distant now 
I gave you my all, but you broke my trust, 
Now I'm imprisoned by your lust" 

We also have to decide our Theme/Style for composition, chose a title and think about doing it in a group or solo by Monday. 

My song will definitely have lyrics - 2 verses, 3 chorus repeated twice - and it may even include a rap, because it's something you wouldn't expect. Although that is yet to be decided, we'll see how things go. I'm thinking of the title "Praying" or "Time is Running Out" because it seems appropriate. After all you pray that you get to live another day because time is running out and you need to cherish each moment. I think I would like to ride solo for this one but maybe my second composition could be in a group with the girls but Lavisha doesn't really like "depressing vibes" and I think those are the best songs I can write and connect too. 


22/05/17

My composition is inspired by life, my life. But at the same time it feels so scary because I know once I'm open about it, it makes me vulnerable and everyone will know the true me, how I feel and what my biggest fears are...  I think to myself constantly that I want to live a life how I want to without feeling like I'm being judged, yet every corner in life I turn there's always something that knocks me down. So I'm just not 100% sure on how open and honest I want to be because I know I'll be putting myself out there, which scares me too death. I'm also still not sure what part of my life I want to base this around, I mean I could write a whole novel if it was about general life so I want to break it down to one thing in particular but it's hard to choose one thing when there are so many things you could do. Maybe I could even write about "the perfect life" that doesn't exist... Ugh, decisions, decisions, decisions.

27/05/17

Today I was just playing around with chords and humming along to myself. I think I'm gong to be using the chords - A Major, E Major, D Major, F# Major. But I'm not sure which order yet.. I think the first thing I need to do is write some lyrics! Once I have the lyrics that I can start playing more around with chords and melody's!

31/05/17

Today I focused on trying to make the chords a little more interesting and not so boring I guess. The reliever we had was really nice and told me to not give up every time I doubted myself and said it sounded bad, and in the end I came up with the start of a pretty good chord progression!!

05/06/17

For the last few days I've chopped and changed on the lyrics and chords for the chorus... I wanted to get the chorus sorted before I started the verses.. I finally decided on the final chords and chorus lyrics: "Time is running out, Life is slipping through my fingers, As I lay here dying. Life ain't slowing down, Time just keeps on moving with, or without you breathing. ( I'll pray, I'll pray, I'll pray for better days x 2 )".

I'm still trying to learn to play and sing at the same time so that will be something I need to work on and get better at, for the future especially. However personally I think I'm going well so far, and I've done better than I initially thought I would. Considering I really don't know anything about the piano besides the things I've picked up on watching YouTube clips, I'm proud of myself and have hope that there will be a successful outcome to this song!

12/06/18

This week I'm going to focus on writing lyrics for my verses. So first thing I'll need to decided is what am I basing these verses around? The way things used to be or the way I'd want them to be? I don't know aye.. I'll give myself this week to have a rough idea on lyrics for both verse to focus on chords and melody's next week!


13/06/17

Today I wasn't on the right vibes because it was Period 1 and my lyrics weren't really flowing. So instead I drew up a little chord sheet for my chorus, for future reference if need be! I think there has been progress over the last two weeks especially! I think maybe I could be more productive in class, like pick up the paste and work a little harder but so far so good! Our first draft for composition is coming up in week 9 I think so by then I'd like to have at least a rough copy of the lyrics and definite chords!


15/06/17

While trying to come up with lyrics for my first composition I came up with ideas for my second one. I've decided to base it around the world being a dark and evil place. How people constantly judge you because they're jealous. So the lyrics I came up with were "This world is full of darkness, consumed by jealously, and hatred it burns judging everyone they see. Why can't we just be happy and free? Cause life is made of so much more, than what they seek"


18/06/17

Over the weekend I've been thinking about my first composition and thought about basing it around a specific thing in my life.. Like obviously this song is about time running out and life not slowing down and that makes me feel like I'm metaphorically dying.. but I want to make it about something that specifically has hurt me. Something I can draw from and pour my heart into.. So a past relationship that has turned wrong that made me feel like I was dying.. and after awhile I realised I wasted too long on it because time wasn't slowing down... So I came up with some lyrics "We were only kids, we thought the world was ours. Suddenly after awhile, our flame blew out. I loved you then even when it hurt, and I still care even though you want her. I waited for you, but I waited a lifetime too long. And now I know that - (Chorus starts) I've also decided that the title is definitely going to be "Time is running out"


19/06/17

Today I wrote the first verse out on paper of the chords I'm going to play it and I'm pretty happy with it!

I'm also pretty sold on a melody for it too but I'm still exploring possibility's.. in case a genius idea is yet to come.. But I'll work more on that on Thursday, because tomorrow we have our first solo assessments.

I also kinda need to start thinking about 2nd verse lyrics and if I'll play it different from the 1st verse? And I thought maybe I could add a rap?


27/06/17

Today I was practicing the first verse and chorus over and over again so when I play it, it'll eventually just come natural and I wont even need to question what I'm doing because sometimes I can tend to get caught up in the moment and play completely different chords from the ones I'm supposed to be doing haha.

Anyway,  I recorded the first verse and I just wanna note that I've decided to add the pre chorus which is the part where the key and tempo of the whole song kinda changes and builds it up to the chorus.

( Also I realised I haven't actually posted the melody of the chorus either so I'll have to record & upload that tomorrow! Then I'll do a post of both of them together once I've had more practice. )

06/07/17
I haven't done a post in ages but today I sent my draft to Mrs Beer for some feedback (first verse and chorus) It's clearly not my best vocally but It's just my draft so I'm not too worried. Holidays are coming up and I need to write the second verse/decide on progression for the chords and finish the song before the first week back's deadline.

  

10/07/17

Today I've been writing some lyric ideas for the second verse.. This verse is more about the present moment and whats happening now... When the first verse was kinda like the flashback that feeds the rest of the song if that makes sense... I'm liking the lyrics I'm coming up with but I won't finalise them just yet.. I also think my chord progression is going to stay the same, using the same chords from the first verse obviously.

16/07/17

I decided that I did like the lyrics for the second so I'm definitely going to use them! So over the last few days for like 30 minutes I just go over and over what I've got so far to practice it constantly so it soon just comes naturally like I've talked about earlier in my blog posts! I'm just not too sure on how I'm going to end it.. That's what I have to work on but anyway I'll get a recording done of the song so far but it probably won't sound as good on my keyboard, as it does on the piano at school.


24/07/17

Today was the first day back of term so I was still in holiday mode if I'm going to be honest so I just practiced what I've got so far which is pretty much my whole song but I just haven't figured out the end yet.. So I didn't worry about that I just went over and over the song.

25/07/17

Today reality kicked in and I was picking at my brain trying to find a good ending to the song and I'm still not even 100% sure how to end it but I am improving on my playing skills.. I've decided to change the melody for the verses last minute to suit the chorus because it just didn't flow... But I'm also just really mad at my voice for having laryngitis because my vocals aren't on point lately, which could effect my grade..

26/17/17

Today I've just been going over and over the song and decided the ending is just going to be the chorus twice and then the 2nd chorus will only be the single chords and sang softer to end it.. So I wrote it down all on a piece of paper in case I had a blonde moment and forgot..

27/07/17

Today Mrs kinda gave me some feedback on my draft copy, about like the way I play the music.. I can't remember her exact words but I understood what she was saying and I agree. I definitely need a lot more practice at just getting used to it so it flows better! I do feel like since the draft I've had more practice and I have improved since then but I still need to practice over the weekend... Because deadline is Monday to get our recordings done!!!!

31/07/17

Today I recorded my composition but the audio was really crappy so were going do it another day with the mics in the auditorium so it's better sound.

03/08/17

Today I started on my second composition. I was brainstorming some ideas and have decided that for this one I want to write about my fears of losing someone I care about. I have a few people close to me whom I know are sick or old and i fear to lose them before my lives really even begun.. I'm scared they won't get to see me when I'm 18 or 21 and it scares me and I want to express that through music.... And I've also lost people to suicide which is also something that hurts deeply. So I'm going to think on some ideas for lyrics and look at some different chords.

04/08/17

Today I came up with some good lyrics that really hit home for me and I really like the sound of them even when I just say them in a sentence so I'm really feeling those lyrics.. "Why'd you have to leave? Why couldn't you just stay? You've left me feeling empty, now I'm staring at your grave. Why'd you have to leave? Why couldn't you just stay? Heavens seems too far away and this pain won't fade. Cause I'll miss you every minute of each day, and nothing will be the same cause you weren't here to stay. "  It's just literally negative thought and fear of losing those I love put into those few short simple sentences.. So because of the way it flows I'm going to use that for the chorus... Like my last song it's easier for me to focus on the core of the song first so everything else can fit in around that! So I think that this is a solid start now I'm just going to ply around with some different chords!

07/08/17

Today I did my final recording for my first composition and sent it to Mrs!!! So the waiting game will feel like forever but hopefully by the time we come back from camp they're all marked and I can stop stressing about it all and just put all my energy into this second composition! But I'd be happy with a Merit for this because writing your own material can be hard!

14/08/17

So I've only missed one lesson of music last week because of camp but it feels like I'm so behind! Anyway, today I got my grade back for my first composition and to my surprise it was Excellence!!!! So this song needs to be just as good (no pressure) I decided to really put my mind to it and today came up with a really nice flowing progression for the chorus using the chords B Major, A♭ Major, A Major, E Major

22/08/17

I have been super slack lately with blog posts because of assessment week and having to study for my exams. I have however been trying to come up with ideas for chords for the verses or wherever I think they may be useful but nothing is sticking in my head like "WOW THATS IT" if you get what I mean. Tomorrow I don't have any exams so i might sit down and take the time to dedicate it to coming up with lyrics or chords, just something useful for this composition. 

23/08/17

Today I came up with a good chord progression that I think sounds really nice and brings mood to the song.. I think may I could develop more on the mood of it but for now I think it's a good place to have a start!! Next I'll just have to make some definite lyrics for the verses or at least one!!

24/08/17

Today I decided to call this song "Why?" because this song itself is a question to why they had to leave and I still don't know that answer myself..  So at first this was going to be about the fear of losing someone but I wanted to write about something that I can draw more from my heart and that is suicide. I decided on that because it's something that has affected me throughout my life and I wanted to dedicate it to all of those who I've lost to suicide. It also goes with the title more like 'why did this happen?' 'why?' 'why? I just have so many questions' kinda thing, so yeah that changed. So the first verse is going to be about the times when that person was still around before they passed away and how they helped guide me through life, how they were my best friend when I was young and that they pretty were a pretty big influence in my life which has helped shape me into the person I am today. So I think this verse is very important to the song!! At this stage I'll be using majority of the same chords throughout the song except I'll be chucking a F♯ Major into the verses! Right now I haven't got a solid idea of the structure but I'm thinking Chorus, Verse 1, Pre Chorus, Chorus, Verse 2, Pre Chorus, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus. So the lyrics I came up lyrics for the first verse were "When I was little you were my best friend, and everyday I spent it looking up to you. You were always there for me and you never let me down, and I wouldn't be me if it wasn't for you being around. You've been a wise guide throughout my life, imagine it without you it would turn my whole word upside down

30/08/17

I still have laryngitis so I'm trying to take it easy on my voice and so sing so much because I have solo's coming up in two weeks, but I think it sounds alright and will sound better once my throats all cleared up. Next week I'm going to try focus more on getting the second verse lyrics done because the ones I came up with weren't really flowing as good as the first verse. Which actually I'm thinking of making the first verse actually my second verse and talk about having to deal with the process of their death first and the go in with how things used to be.. But yeah so that will be next weeks plan as well as deciding if I really want to include a bridge or not... Otherwise until the deadline I'll just try fine tweak things here and there, ask Mrs for her opinion and try make the chord progression a bit more interesting or change things up see if they work ect; maybe even add harmonies and get the girls to learn it to add to the overall sound to the song, because a little harmony in songs lifts the songs even more then on it's own. So we'll see how things go, hopefully I can get this finished by the end of the term so I can get the credits for this assessment. But I just thought I'd video the first verse so you can see how the process is so far.. `

10/09/17

A lot has changed since my last blog post. I've decided to change the chorus to something a little shorter and I'm thinking of using my old chorus for my bridge because I don't want it to go to waste. So my new and improved chorus is "So why did you have to go? Why'd you have to leave me here alone? Why? Why?" and that will be repeated twice. I'm also using slightly diffrent chords from the verses- E Major, F♯ Major, Ab Major and A Major. I've also added in a Pre Chorus which I haven't decided solid lyrics so far but I'm leaving towards "But now my worlds been torn apart, cause now your miles and miles afar" I might use that and change it for the 2nd pre-chorus? I'm not sure yet. I'm also in the middle of deciding if I want my first verse to be my second verse and wright a new first verse? Hmm decisions, decisions. Those are pretty much the same chords as the chorus just in different order (F♯ Major, Ab Major, A Major, B Major) And the other thing I've also changed is the order of the song. It will now go - Verse, Pre Chorus, Chorus, Verse, Pre Chorus, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus, Chorus. Tomorrow I'm going to work on the lyrics for the second/first verse still haven't decided If I'm going to change it I guess I'll decide that tomorrow too... So I already have the melody and chords so it shouldn't take too long.. Then once that is done I can add the bridge bit or if that doesn't fit right I'll just scrap it and fine tweak things and add little things here and there to make it better.

11/09/17

Today I recorded the chorus and outro for the song and I think it is kind of a nice touch but dramatic ish ending but not too dramatic that it's meaningless if you get what I mean. I really like my new and improved chorus, the old one just wasn't going to work and it was too wordy... And the whole reason for the song is too ask 'Why?' Even though you can't physically as someone why that felt like that enough to not want to be here you can still constantly ask yourself and others why? and thats why I feel like the chorus now is good because its questioning what's happened and why it happened which I think is important to think why someone would want to do something like this... Sometimes I feel like people don't truly understand why I write the songs I write and what they mean so I'm really excited to finish the rest of the song so everything comes together and hopefully people can understand where I'm coming from and what the message is for this song.

12/09/17 

So Today I went home because I wasn't feeling to flash and I've just had a really store stomach so I just did some work at home. I've now finally got all of my lyrics and melodies and the structure of the song!! So it's pretty much finished just between now and next week I'll make so some tweaking here and there, see if I can improve of change anything to make the song better ect; and I'm going to try get someone to learn it so they can harmonise. And I kinda want to make the chord progression more interesting but I don't want to change it too much...


14/09/17 

Today in class and at lunch time I just practiced the song over and over again to help improve my skills and maybe think bout things I could change or improve and trying to think of where I could add harmony and bits.

Then I also timed the song to see to see how long it was and if it wasn't too long because I don't want people to get bored. I do think it's a reasonable time for a song so I'm happy with that and I'm just going to continue practicing till next week and hopefully I'll be ready to record!


19/09/17

Today in music I just practiced my composition a few more times again and I feel like it's becoming more natural when I play it and my voice is slowly coming back to it's prime form thank the lord for that. Then for the rest of the period I went over my solo because this week my main focus is to get my solo done tomorrow over and done with so I can spend Thursday recording my composition to hand into Mrs!!


25/09/17

Today I recorded my second and final composition and sent it into Mrs for it too be marked!! I feel like my second composition was better than my first in a way but I really like both of the songs I've produced and I'd like to add on them and develop them better maybe a few years down the track and generate a better/improved version of these that I could use for the real world one day! Hopefully I'll get my grade back before the end of the term so I can be finished for the year in Music and focus on other subjects!! I'm also waiting for my solo results which I'll get back on Wednesday, so hopefully I get my composition grades back on Thursday or on Wednesday too!!! The video file was too big so I couldn't send it through too myself so I can't put my final recording on my blog.

Final Grade: Excellence