On GirlTalk, Andrew Bird, and music

After discussing music in class, I was left with a bunch of opinions on what the music calls creative. First, I think that there are two types of creativity. Performance being the first, because it does take a certain level of skill to be able to produce music that has already been done, such as people who do symphonies and tribute bands. But, they are not as creative as the people who originally created that sound, that beat, or that flow. The Grateful Dead probably has four thousand tribute bands dedicated to them, but they none of them get as much recognition as the original. Yet, orchestras and symphonies are praised for their works. I think its so odd that these two types are not equated in stylistic approach at all (not to say that they are at all the same or relative at all, but they are serving the same purpose).
In the same sense, I was thinking to this as I listened to one of my favorite CDs. The artist is Gregg Gillis, more formerly known as "GirlTalk." He is a mashup DJ that is pure genius when it comes to taking thousands of songs and blending them into one track that is full of energy and flawless transitions. I find this to be extremely creative and combines both the performance and composition aspect by the blending and editting of tracks both for CDs and concerts. Not only does he combine typical party songs, he combines tracks from several different genres..in one song he moves from The Cure to Soulja Boy. Typically each track in includes 15 - 20 different songs and beats. If you click the ''more information'' for any of the songs, it will display the songs in each track as they come in.

Some examples:

GirlTalk - Feed the Animals : What its All About
GirlTalk - Feed the Animals : Hands In the Air
GirlTalk - Feed the Animals : Don't Stop

In the same respect, I also find artists like Keller Williams and Andrew Bird to be exceptionally creative, though Keller Williams is a tribute artist. He is also a one man band, and plays all parts of the music by himself. Likewise, Andrew Bird mixes classical with contemporary as he plays all instruments himself. With all of this said, I really don't think music can be specificied enough that one can say certain types of music are not creative. All of this is mind-bogglingly Big-C creative. Just in terms of the reading and discussions being applicable to our everyday lives, these are some great examples of musicians that might not be fitting the traditional mold of what a creative artist is, but because of the risks they take I also would classify them as more creative. PS, Andrew Bird is BEAST live...it is fantastic.

Andrew Bird - Anonanimal - Live

Kate Lawrence