Every once in a while, I have this strange feeling of not being a real person with relevant stories to tell, and consequently, no ability to write emotional music with actual meaning. I’m wondering if all I’m really doing is cobbling random fragments together, and whenever it comes out alright, that’s just a result of luck and a bit of intuitive “music theory.”
Some sort of impostor syndrome, if you will…
“I’m not like real composers and songwriters, who actually have things to communicate and express.”
Then again, so much of the music listening experience is subjective and personal, that I’m not even sure it matters all that much if it’s art or science. There are some general rules, rooted in human instincts, and culture, but beyond that, it seems to become more and more “dumb luck” if something actually resonates with people in exactly the way the composer intended. What it really comes down to then, is having a “relatable ear,” and being able to stand back and get enough perspective to tell if what you’ve done will at least have the intended effect on people who experience music in about the same way you do.
And… Now I don’t really remember where I was going with this, if I even know in the first place. “Do you need to be human to write music for humans?” or something.