Jason Landry's Blog, page 5
January 17, 2022
Quote of the Week ~ Andy Warhol
Photo Credit: Stephen Shore
Thoughts On Music & Art RSS
January 13, 2022
5 TED Talks That Will Change How You Listen To And Experience Music.
I spend a lot of my free time thinking. Mostly it has to do with art and music as they are the things that give me joy in life outside of my family, friends, traveling, and my dog.
When I was the director of a graduate program at a college a few years back, I use to teach a seminar called social media for artists. I would begin each class with a TED Talk as a springboard to educate, excite, and inform the class. I consider TED Talks as social media on the grandest scale as they are a way of sharing information and educating.
Today, I’d like to share with you these five TED Talks about music. I hope that they inspire you as much as they did for me.
Sting - How I Started Writing Songs Again
Having writer’s block is real, even for someone who fronted the popular band The Police for many years. This struggle not only happens to those who write lyrics, but others who become blocked or uninspired by just creating music in general.
The songs that Sting features in this talk stem back to his childhood and they’re about as personal as you can get. When I mentored artists through my gallery and at the college, I use to advise students to work on projects that are personal in nature. My philosophy was: The more personal the project, the better it will be embraced by the viewing public, and in the case of Sting, his listening audience. This has been my favorite TED Talk about music for a while.
Victor Wooten - Music as a Language
Wooten is an accomplished bass player and educator. His talk is down to earth, and he explains his thesis in very simple and inspiring terms, many of his examples are pulled straight from his upbringing.
David Byrne - How Architecture Helped Music Evolve
He is known for being the front man for the band Talking Heads. One of the main points in Byrne’s talk is about how the space you are in can transform and affect the music that you make.
Mark Ronson - How Sampling Transformed Music
As a DJ and highly desired producer for many of today’s musicians, Mark explores how sampling changed the music industry and then presents the audience with live examples. If you like this TED Talk, you should definitely see his series Watch The Sound. It’s one of the best series that I have seen on the evolution of music.
Anita Collins - What If Every Child Had Access To Music Education From Birth?
Anita makes a very convincing argument on the importance of music education. Art and music education is something that I’m very concerned about. It’s the first thing that schools remove from the curriculum when there are budgets to cut. I’m not sure where I’d be today without the art and music classes that I was lucky enough to have in grade school and through high school. They put me on an exciting path in life that still isn’t over.
Thoughts On Music & Art RSSJanuary 11, 2022
A Look Back: From Behind the Six String
One of the more enjoyable times in my life when it came to writing was when I was a contributor to The Huffington Post, now simply known as HuffPost. I had a segment from 2013-2017 called From Behind the Six String where I interviewed well-known guitar players and did a few music reviews. Luckily for me, they archived all of my interviews so that they can be accessible for future reading. Here are four interviews that were my favorites. Click on the images and enjoy!
[image error]Interview with Buddy Guy [image error]
Interview with Joe Satriani
Interview with Rick Nielsen
Interview with Zakk Wylde
January 10, 2022
Quote of the Week ~ Reid Hoffman
“Be resilient: when the naysayers are loud, turn up the music!”
A quote from the book, The Start-up of You by Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn.
(Photo Credit: Steve Steigman, Blown Away, 1978)
January 7, 2022
January 12, 2016
No Plan B
Inspirational Quote of the Day
“I don’t have a Plan B, just a lot of A’s that haven’t been fully realized yet.”
Thibault Roland, A different path. Twillingate, Newfoundland, Canada, 2011.
The post No Plan B appeared first on Instant Connections.
February 4, 2015
Recent Interview
Click on (this link) to read a recent interview that Elin Spring did with me.
We talk about the gallery, the photography industry, and #selfies.
Portrait of Jason Landry. Courtesy Gary Samson.
The post Recent Interview appeared first on Instant Connections.
February 1, 2015
Will it be memorable?
Inspirational Quote of the Day
“Of course you shine under a spotlight. But will it be memorable?”
Barbara Morgan, Martha Graham, “Letter to the World” (Kick), 1940
The post Will it be memorable? appeared first on Instant Connections.
November 6, 2014
Be the Sun
Inspirational Quote of the Day
Light up someone’s day as if you were their Sun.
Alexander Harding, Six Suns, 2010
The post Be the Sun appeared first on Instant Connections.
November 3, 2014
Back Bay at Night
Sometimes a photograph is just as poetic as a song. At least this is how I think of this image of the Back Bay in Boston.
Watch as the colors criss-cross the sky and enter your mind.
The post Back Bay at Night appeared first on Instant Connections.
