You Have to Live Life First: Why Composers Need More Than Just Music
A professor once said something that stuck with me: you have to live life first. Heartbreak, success, boredom—whatever it is, you need experiences outside the studio to express something real in your music.
It’s easy to stay in the composing room, constantly working, constantly trying to improve, and even regurgitating whatever music school/score study might teach you. But at a certain point, if everything comes from the same place, the music can start to feel disconnected. Not because of a lack of skill, but because of a lack of lived experience.
What I’ve realized over time is that “living life” doesn’t have to mean chasing big, dramatic moments. It can be quiet, uneventful, even frustrating. Those moments shape how you understand emotion, and that understanding eventually finds its way into your work.
And if you feel like you’re not “living enough,” that’s okay too. That, in itself, is part of life.
The goal isn’t to force experiences—it’s to remain open to them, and trust that they’ll show up in the music when it matters.
Besides all this, however, I am a curious man.
Tell me, what’s an experience—big or small—that’s shaped the way you see or express emotion?