Over the years, I have mainly focused on writing and producing music for artist albums. I always preferred working on music albums to doing live music because albums allow me the time to polish and refine the music until I am satisfied. I felt that albums allow for precision, refinement, as well as endless creative possibilities, thanks to modern technology that allows us to manipulate and create sounds. Through writing, I am also given the space to capture what moves me personally as well as the opportunity to create new and exciting music with my co-writers.
But in recent years, I have had the opportunity to work on artist concerts as music director and it gave me a new perspective on live music. Though music concerts might not have the same precision or "polish" that albums have, they create an opportunity for the audience to connect with each other and with the artist. It is such an amazing feeling to hear 10,000 people sing a song that I wrote in the studio by myself on a piano. It showed me how music can resonate with and move so many people. It gets me even more excited to want to write a new song that will foster such a connection again. Moreover, that anticipation and excitement when the lights dim and the crowd roars at the start of a music concert is something that listening to music on your headphones just doesn't have.
Music albums and concerts. I love them both.
我一路都是專注於製作歌手專輯的音樂。也一直覺得比起做現場的音樂,我比較喜歡製作專輯。因為做專輯讓我有時間去慢慢把音樂弄到自己覺得完美的地步。製作音樂的過程也可以讓音樂很準確,很精緻,亦可以利用現代的科技製造及改變音源,提供無限的創作上的可能性。透過寫歌,我也可以有空間表達內心的感動,以及跟其他作者合寫出全新的音樂。
但最近幾年,我有幸有機會為歌手的演唱會做音樂製作及擔任音樂總監,而這些機會也同時給了我對現場音樂有新的體會。雖然演唱會的音樂未必在準確度跟精緻度上比得過專輯的音樂,但演唱會提供了一個給聽眾彼此之間及跟歌手的連結的機會。聽到一萬個人一起唱一首我曾經一個人在鋼琴上作的曲實在是一個非常棒的體驗。它給我看到音樂可以感動並讓很多人產生共鳴。它也鼓勵我儘快寫新的歌,讓聽眾可以再次產生連結及共鳴。另外,當演唱會開始時,燈光漸漸變暗,觀眾一起尖叫的那份興奮跟期待,是一個人用耳機聽音樂時不會感受到的。
做專輯跟演唱會,我兩樣都喜歡。