9. The Story of Musical Production

Joan Bflat

The Story of Musical Production

4:16

The Story of Musical Production

Joan Bflat

One day, I was on my way to Barceloneta Beach with my family by car. I must have been around 15 years old. At the time, I was slowly getting into music production, as music had always fascinated me, and I loved the idea of going from simply listening to it to actually creating it.

It was a long trip. During the ride, I had a very strange dream that I’ll never forget. I felt like some aliens were approaching the car; they fired some kind of weapon, and suddenly, I found myself witnessing one of the earliest percussion compositions in prehistory. I saw two handmade drums crafted with dinosaur skin and a type of wood arranged to resemble a modern bass drum—but with a primitive, ancient design. I experienced it for just a brief moment before I was suddenly transported to the next place.

That place was Chopin’s house (my favorite piano composer), on a stormy day. He was improvising on the piano, showcasing his skill and technique with each note. At one point, he entered a deep mental state of focus and decided to close the window so that the sound of the rain (which had once inspired him) would no longer distract him. At the very moment he shut the window—with the sound of it closing—I was taken to the final scene of the dream.

There, I saw Pharrell Williams producing a rap instrumental using samples. At the very end, a voice with an angelic tone said to me: "Music", and I returned to reality just as the car was parking at the beach.

Reflecting on the dream, I realized it was showing me three stages in the evolution of music—each one more complex than the last. It felt as if in prehistory I saw the 1D dimension of a square, then with Chopin’s compositions the second dimension, and finally with Pharrell, the third dimension. I’m not sure if I’m explaining it clearly, but that dream was deeply revealing to me.

The composition I’ve created uses this dream as a representation of the evolution of the process of making music: producing it, creating it, composing it, sharing it, and (most importantly) feeling it. The track includes a wide range of sonic details designed to make it as realistic and immersive as possible.

This composition uses the following sounds: