Interview: Westheart - Damhsa
Based in the Scottish Highlands the composer W E S T H E A R T explores an ambient soundscape which searches for clarity and peacefulness in a world full of chaos.
What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
I don’t see myself as a great musician, I gave up on piano lessons pretty quickly as a youngster, have a natural ability to get a tune out of things, I put it down to genetics as my family history is full of pipers, violin players, piano players and singers so I grew up with music everywhere.
What is the biggest challenge of being an artist?
I’d say the main challenge for most is deciding what they want to do early on, if you want to be music artist you really need to dedicate your time to that and don’t burden yourself with financial constraints like mortgages, debt, relationships, yes you can have all these things, but life becomes more difficult if you have financial constraints – the music industry isn’t going to give you a big earning salary unless you are selling loads of merch, selling out stadiums etc. For me it’s about loving the fact I can create music – it’s not about financial reward, it’s about getting my music out to people and hoping they get some kind of pleasure from what they hear, social media has made that much more accessible now compared to when I started which involved sending demo cassette’s /cd’s to A&R people etc.
Your debut release is 'Damhsa'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation
Damhsa (meaning Dance in Gaelic) began as a simple idea based around an old music box that had a ballerina on top – I wanted to create a repetitive phrase that replicated the opening of a music box. It was created by running two sampled piano lines through a multi-panning digital delay in order to create a melodic musical conversation that builds with the aid of some minimal strings and unintrusive downtempo drums.
Where do you see your musical career in 10 years?
The aim is to get as much of my music out there and hopefully perform some live shows during late 2022 whether that’s virtual shows, or venue performances. I’d love to look back on the music I’m now creating and be able to say, that represents what I’m about and what I’ve dedicated my life to and hopefully leave a legacy, who knows, maybe some futuristic musician will want to perform my music with an Orchestra on Mars.
What is the most surprising fact you’ve learnt about yourself?
I guess it would be that I’m surprised that I’m still doing this and loving every minute of it, I’ve spent the bulk of my life playing music in some shape or form, and at times I’ve taken breaks away from it to rest – but I’m in a really good place musically at the moment and enjoying the fact it’s a solo project and I’m not having to rely on other people or put anyone under pressure to deliver.
Do you think that education is important?
Yes very much so, but it’s also important that where music is concerned that people explore what is natural and think outside the box.
What would you be doing right now, if it wasn’t for your music career?
Music is everything to me, I’m not sure what I’d do without music – I’d maybe have studied harder in school or found a trade, maybe a carpenter. I’m also married to a wonderful human being who is very patient with me when I hide away in the music room, I also work full-time in IT so I guess music is my release and the thing that gives me peace of mind.
How do you structure your week?
I tend to spend most of my time in the music room noodling on the piano and coming up with melodies. Writing melodies has always been my strong point. I played guitar for years which involved writing melodies and hooks so I guess that gave me a good grounding. When I’m not writing new ideas, I’m trying to work on older ideas and progress them. Tthe rest of the time is spent trying to promote and keep all my social media channels and website updated. I try to split my time evenly so both writing and promoting are both taking up my time – but the latter has only really taken shape this year.
What are your plans for the future?
I’d like to continue writing music whether it’s for my own releases or for media projects which I’ve been doing a bit of recently. The overall plan is to get an album out this year if the material is good enough, I’m very critical of my own work, and if I don’t think it’s good enough it won’t go out. Hopefully by the fall this year I’ll have enough tracks that I’m happy with for my debut album.
1,2,3, Flow
Flow - A state of heightened focus
Have you ever found yourself so engaged in an activity that time just slips and you enter another zone? You may well be experiencing a state known as Flow.
To enter a state of flow we need to engage in activities that are challenging enough to fully engage but not so difficult that they trigger a stress response.
A flow inducing pastime is among the best weapons we have against burnout.
Climbers experience flow and climbing has proven beneficial for treating depression as well as providing physical benefits.
Drummers experience flow too. A drumming program run by the Royal College of Music measured reduced levels of depression and anxiety of up to 38% during their ten weeks of research.
Musicians can experience flow when they enter the creative zone and for them it can have many terms; going with the flow, letting the music come, jamming, channelling, making it up as you go along.
Entering the state of flow helps the mind to disengage with sources of stress and anxiety.
The psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s wrote the book Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
"What makes a life worth living?" Noting that money cannot make us happy, he looks to those who find pleasure and lasting satisfaction in activities that bring about a state of "flow." - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
View Csikszentmihalyi’s famous TED talk, “Flow, the secret to happiness”
Upcoming Releases - June/July 2022
17th June - Signal Source Unknown - Such is Light
1st July - Westheart - The Night Lights