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Interview with Tim
Neumark
by
Edward Weiss
Tim's music is a blend of new
age, classical and inspirational styles. He has been influenced
by artists such as David Lanz, John Tesh, Yanni, Kostia, and
Antonin Dvorak. His inspiration comes from his feelings and thoughts
about the world and people around him. More info
below.
Edward: How Did
You Get Started Playing New Age Piano?
Tim: I started playing the
piano around age 17. I had always been interested in the piano, but
it wasn't until 17 that I finally had my parents by me a keyboard
(only 61 keys!) and I finally started playing. We did not have a
piano in our house. The first New Age CDs I owned were
Yanni Live at the Acropolis and a couple David Lanz CDs. I
learned to play the pieces by ear, using the sheet music when I
couldn't quite figure out what I was hearing. The David
Lanz Christmas Eve CD was a great album to learn --
not only did I have pieces to play, but I had a reason to play them
publicly! I played his pieces during advent season at
churches for a couple years, then I moved on to playing my own
compositions!
Edward: What Inspires and
Informs Your Music?
Tim: My music is primarily
inspired by people and places, and also by other music (typically
classical). I have trouble writing music "just to write it"; I can
easily write music when it characterizes something or someone. For
example, I'm able to think of a person or place and write a song
about it, but it is harder to just come up with some chords and a
melody and then try to find a title! My debut CD Biography
has liner notes describing the events that led to the composition of
each song. I think these notes help explain the song to the
listeners -- it really tells the listener that the song is more than
a title with a pretty melody.
Edward: What Is
Your Method for Composing a Piano Piece?
Tim: To compose, I do a lot
of "doodling" on the piano, randomly playing harmonies and melodies
until something clicks (or until the sound makes me think of a
person or place). Sometimes I'll sit down and think "what can I play
in B-flat?" or "I wonder what these chords will sound like in F#
minor".
Then I may hear
something and just improvise on it until I find something worth
developing into a song. It's always helpful to record while
"doodling" so that I don't lose something after I've created it!
After finding a basic tune, I try to find some sort of accompanying
melody or melodies, and then I work on the structure of the piece.
To me, the structure of a piece is just as important as the music
itself. A listener should understand the direction of the song, be
it ABCBA or more of the pop-style
verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-verse-end.
I always want my pieces
to be familiar in sound and shape. There are some pieces -- even
those by composers who I like a lot -- where I'll say "why is this
being played now" or "how did the song get here?" It is important
for me to keep the audience understanding the shape of the piece.
Another important point is to keep things simple -- every bar
doesn't have to be brilliant, and not every piece has to be a
masterpiece. I learned many David Lanz pieces because they were
relatively easy for me to play, even though I had very little
experience.
On my Biography
album, every piece has been described to me as someone's
favorite. This is very telling -- some of the pieces are quite
simple to play and compose, and some are more complex! You don't
have to write incredibly challenging music to make it wonderful for
your audience.
Edward: Do You
Get Blocked Creatively, and If So, How Do You Get Past
It?
Tim: I think everyone gets
writer's block at some point. For me, I get past it by listening to
classical music -- especially Dvorak. Usually, I avoid piano music,
and focus more on orchestral or chamber pieces. I'll take
some small part of a melody and develop it into something that
is my own work. For the most part, I don't use more than a few notes
or measures, because I'm not trying to create an arrangement of the
work, I'm just trying to get an idea or two from it. For example,
the song Twilight on my CD Biography uses a small
but beautiful part of Dvorak's 9th
Symphony.
Edward: What
Advice Would You Give To Aspiring New Age
Pianists?
Tim: For
new pianists, I would say to focus on what interests you. For me,
composing was always my first interest, and music lessons were not
(I still haven't had one!). While I think I would have some
"more refined" technique if I had lessons, I think focusing too much
on lessons can impede creativity. I also recommend
patience. One piece that I still love to play is Yanni's
In the Mirror, which is very syncopated. It probably took
me about two weeks to learn the first couple measures because it was
so hard to get the rhythm right. But once I got it, I flew through
the rest of the piece and I still remember it today, some 10 years
since I've looked at the
music!
Tim's music is a blend of new
age, classical and inspirational styles. He has been influenced
by artists such as David Lanz, John Tesh, Yanni, Kostia, and
Antonin Dvorak. His inspiration comes from his feelings and thoughts
about the world and people around him. He also enjoys arranging
music that was originally orchestral, creatively mimicking the
instrumental combinations and recreating the feeling of the piece.
Learn more at http://neumarkmusic.com
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