Speak Your Music
Artist Focus on Clay Ross
Lesson Three: A Life of Its Own
Clay explores how “All For You” evolved into new shapes as Ranky Tanky collaborated with other artists.
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Your Assignment
- Watch the video in which Clay Ross talks about the evolution of the Ranky Tanky song “All For You.”
- Note how Clay describes the contributions from each of his bandmates as they write their own parts for the song.
- Note how “All For You” takes on a life of its own as it is performed by different guest artists, such as Bobby McFerrin.
- Find a friend, family member, or teacher, and share your song with them. Ask for constructive feedback:
- What is working with the song?
- How can you try to hear this song in a different way?
- What changes might make the song even more exciting, interesting, or meaningful?
- Once you have feedback from your friends and family, make any changes or adjustments to your song based on what they said.
- Make a recording of the final version of your song using your phone recorder, or any digital audio workstation (DAW) software you might have available. SoundTrap is a good option that is free through the internet.
Explore Other Parts of Speak Your Music
Introduction | Express Yourself
Mazz Swift, Clay Ross, and Sarah Elizabeth Charles share their backgrounds and processes for creating music.
Artist Focus on Mazz Swift | Lesson One: Finding a Theme
Mazz shares her distinct approach to using improvisation as a way of generating musical ideas to use in composition.
Artist Focus on Mazz Swift | Lesson Two: Tweaking, Tinkering, and Messing with Your Music
Mazz shares her recommendations for manipulating and organizing basic musical ideas in order to explore different compositional approaches.
Artist Focus on Mazz Swift | Lesson Three: Finished! For Now …
This video features the questions that Mazz uses to determine whether a piece of music is done or requires further editing.
Artist Focus on Clay Ross | Lesson One: Building a Frame
Clay introduces his band Ranky Tanky and talks about the origins of their song “All For You.”
Artist Focus on Clay Ross | Lesson Two: Making It Yours
Clay breaks down how he used source material from the Gullah tradition and West African music to create his original song.
Artist Focus on Sarah Elizabeth Charles | Lesson One: My Big Idea
Sarah describes how she uses a big question to spark the idea for a new song that explores the relationship between all human beings.
Artist Focus on Sarah Elizabeth Charles | Lesson Two: My Musical Brainstorm
Sarah demonstrates how she creates a musical foundation for her new piece, and then shapes a melody on top of that foundation.
Artist Focus on Sarah Elizabeth Charles | Lesson Three: Growing My Idea
Sarah explains how her collaboration with a musical friend helped to shape the final version of her new piece.