This essay will explore the importance and benefits of collaboration between musicians from different creative areas, all bringing different musical tendencies and influences. It will analyse and assess how these collaborative efforts can influence personal musical development and growth, as well as the skills require to improve this collaboration. I have chosen the first creative workshop project of the year ‘I can’t say’ as the main focus of this reflection.
At the beginning of this project, our ensemble divided into groups and began to develop lyrical ideas based on general conversation. From this exercise two main lyrical ideas developed, these being the ensemble vocals describing their plans for the week ahead “…what about Saturday…I can’t say” and the beginnings of the rap originated from one of the other pairs “Coltrane, bad omens, MF Doom…” as we brought these two ideas together it became clear that a hip-hop influenced song with punchy instrumentals was the right direction to go in. The piece opens by building from the drums holding a crotchet pulse on kick before the bass and guitar come in and being to build up and establish a vibe alongside the group vocals. I wrote the bassline initially as a guitar riff before we decided to transfer it to bass in order to support the low end of the song and to provide a solid bed for the vocalist and rappers to sing over.
Following the initial build up and introduction, everyone drops out apart from the drums keeping time on the high hats as the first verse begins before the drums kick into the main groove and I reinforce the bottom end with the main bassline. After this section, we return to the vocal harmony before a second verse and the saxophone eventually becoming more involved in the vocal harmonies and taking a solo. This saxophone solo really functions to grow the piece in intensity as the lines played sit above everything else before going into a call and response with the vocalists, both weaving around and directly mimicking each other as the song reaches its peak intensity before one final run of the vocal harmonies with another verse over the top of it as the rhythm section hang back and draw the piece to its conclusion.
Working on this project was a new experience for me mainly in the collaboration both lyrically and idea wise, rather than each individual vocalist writing their own verse. I had previously collaborated with rappers and vocalists in this sort of environment, bringing live instruments into more of a hip-hop setting however I had not been involved in the writing or overall direction of the songs, rather the focusing on the accompaniment and filling my own sonic ground. Throughout our lessons on this project, I got the opportunity to not only improve creatively in a genre I am somewhat unfamiliar with but to also work on vital communication skills when creating with others and to also improve my musical skills having switched to bass from my main instrument for this song. This piece has a simplistic bed, being built off a constant bassline that never deviates too far from the main theme. However, it also brings together stylistic and sonic elements of different genres that are not often combined. The inclusion of the simple yet effective saxophone solo and melodies contrasts greatly to the verses and raps provided by the two leading vocalists but also functions to bring the piece together and drive it to its peak when interacting with the 3-part vocal harmonies. The contrast and variation of main instrumentalists throughout this piece really allowed me to listen and interact with each one in a different way, almost completely dropping out and just holding down the basics during the first verse before growing in movement and intensity as the saxophone came in. This helped to reinforce the necessity of listening and reacting to collaborators in real time in order to have the best possible outcome for the group.
The creative workshop lessons in general have become a vital part of my studies and allowed me to push the boundaries when exploring the depths of my own creativity. The key part of this I have found is the importance of bringing half finished ideas to a group and working on them collectively rather than focusing on fully formed songs and sections like I previously had done, it also opened my eyes to the benefits of writing lyrics collaboratively which is something I hadn’t experimented with before. An article I recently read argued that collaboration “fosters learning and growth … working with others allows you to observe different workflows, techniques and approaches to music.” (Elizabeth Records, 2023) this I have learnt to be true through talking to my peers throughout each project, gaining a better understanding with regards to the direction of each project both musically and lyrically. It has also provided me with an important insight into understanding how differently everyone works and creates even when inside the same environment together.
In conclusion, being a part of the project “I can’t say” provided me with the first step in growing as a musician and creative. It has shown me the importance of collaboration across genre and influence at all stages of writing. I learnt to better communicate, interact with and support the ideas of myself and others throughout the development of a piece from its infancy to completed project and the real importance of collaboration in any environment, especially musical.
Bibliography:
- Elizabeth Records (2023) The Importance of Collaboration in Music. Available online: The Importance of Collaboration in Music — Elizabeth Records [accessed on 07/05/2025]
