Garage Band

I love Garage Band. For the non-Mac users, Garage Band is an easy to use application where users choose pre-recorded background tracks or record their own instruments and vocals to create songs. While I've been a Mac user for four years now, I just started using Garage Band this past year.

I've enjoyed recording tunes that otherwise would only exist in my head unless I found someone who could transcribe the musical notes for me. Since I can't read and write music, but constantly have it playing in my head, Garage Band gives me a new way to express myself that I haven't had. I spend hours recording songs by using my voice to create background rhythms and sing the melody and harmony parts.

This last week was the first time I used the ready made tracks on Garage Band. The track library has pre-recorded instruments and styles that users put together to create songs. Blending the sounds of pianos, violins and an Indian tabla for the percussion, I was mesmerized. While I have a dream to be one of those people who can play a lot of instruments (namely guitar, piano, drums and bass--yeah I know I'm a little ambitious), I'll admit that I haven't been disciplined enough to get anywhere near that goal. So this moment of song creation using the Garage Band tracks was exhilarating. I suddenly had the power to create songs without having to play an instrument or getting anyone else involved in the process.

Even though I'm enjoying Garage Band, I wonder if I'm taking the easy way out in songwriting. Digital applications like Garage Band give ordinary people like me the chance to make and record music, but do they make it too easy? Do they give me the excuse to skip the creative process, since I don't have to write the musical notes or play any instruments?

What are your thoughts?

Mosaic Music Box-- Keri Noble

This week's artist: Keri Noble

I've been slacking on the once a week music features...Man this feels like being in school again with weekly assignments! Anyways...

It's rare that I instantly like a song when I first hear it. I have to let the lyrics and sound swirl through my head for a while before I officially declare that I like a song. Keri Noble's song "Ooh oh" is one of the exceptions. As soon as her song began playing on my Pandora I was captivated by the melody and mellow vibe of the song.

One of the habits I've gotten into since using Pandora is reading the biographies of new artists as they appear on one of my stations. I was interested to find out that Keri Noble is actually the daughter of a pastor, but from the biography it sounds like she wouldn't necessarily identify herself as a Christian.

Her song "Born Again" addresses her experiences with the church and what seems like a desire to distance herself from it. I appreciate her honesty in portraying her experiences with the church, and I'd be interest in learning more about her thoughts on the Christian church. Let me know what you think!