Music as Emotional Storytelling

Music as Emotional Storytelling is a two-part, in-person, participatory workshop series exploring our emotional responses to simple musical concepts.

Overview

Designed for artists of any discipline who are curious about using music to support storytelling, this workshop will give participants the tools and understanding to identify why and how musical sounds affect us emotionally the way they do.

Through listening and analyzing examples from well-known songs and film scores, we will explore how musical pitch, speed, tone/timbre, order, melody and harmony can be used to spark emotional reactions for the listener. We’ll discuss the ways that musical sounds can trigger instinctual human reactions to our surroundings. Moving beyond traditional concepts of musical genre, these two workshops will explore the ways that simple and clear musical ideas can convey emotion and support storytelling in visual media. Each participant will have the opportunity to begin a project creating their own short recorded musical sounds for 2-3 different emotional moods.

No theoretical music background knowledge required. Demonstrations will be given in Ableton Live. Participants are welcome to use any recording software (digital audio workstation) that they are comfortable with. If you have a phone or tablet with free recording software, that will work too. Several desktop computers with Ableton Live will be provided for participants who wish to participate but do not have a device with recording software.

Outline

Session 1:

How do our brains interpret different kinds of musical information and why?

Overview of music recording, multitracking and editing

Creating sounds that evoke specific emotions

Musical storyline project to develop for next week

Session 2:

Emotional impact of melody and harmony

Emotional expressivity of the human voice

Review and expand on project from previous week

Sharing and discussing participants’ musical storyline projects

Registration

Session 1: Tuesday, August 13, 6pm-8pm

Session 2: Tuesday, August 20, 6pm-8pm

Participants will need access to:

Laptop or computer with Ableton Live installed (Trial available here)

Headphones (will be provided)

Any additional materials will be sent in advance via email

Note: If you don’t have access to software and prefer to work on your own device, please contact [email protected] and we’ll see what we can do.

Instructor

Jack Hui Litster is a music performer, composer and producer, who, over the past two decades, has composed and recorded over 75 songs in many genres. His music has been featured in videos, podcasts, and in performance. As Composer-in-Residence for OperOttawa, Jack has composed two operas: The Day You Were Born (2021) which deals with the range of emotions that accompany pregnancy, childbirth, and parenthood; and What Is Love?, which sets to music the poetry from Kahlil Gibran’s beloved book The Prophet.

Jack holds an MA in Music and Culture from Carleton University, a Bachelor of Social Science from the University of Ottawa, a Professional Certificate from Berklee College of Music (music business and film scoring), and a Diploma in Jazz Performance from St. Francis Xavier University. From 2010-2020, Jack worked in nonprofit organizations as a fundraiser and community organizer, most recently with Ottawa-based social justice organization Inter Pares.

Workshop Pricing

This workshop is $50 for Members and $100 for Non-Members. Access to a desktop computer and Ableton Live software is included with this registration option. You may bring your own laptop to receive a discounted workshop rate if you prefer (promo code: Laptop). To access our member pricing, join our membership at https://digitalartsresourcecentre.ca/joinus/.

Fees for this workshop can be waived if access to funds is a barrier to participation. For more information please email [email protected].

Accessibility

All doors at DARC have accessibility buttons to press for automatic entry. DARC is located on the main floor (one story above ground) of the Arts Court building. DARC’s main entrance is located at 67 Nicholas Street which is fully wheelchair accessible. Alternate wheelchair-accessible entry is available through 2 Daly Ave at the Arts Court main entrance or the Ottawa Art Gallery. Elevator access is available from 9AM – 11PM.

DARC staff are available and happy to assist with all inquiries and requests regarding physical access. We also welcome inquiry, feedback, and resources regarding accessibility and accessibility improvement by phone (613.238.7648 x. 6) or by email at [email protected].

Cancellation Policy

DARC is unable to provide course attendee refunds for cancellations. DARC reserves the right to cancel or reschedule courses if necessary.