Think of music-making as a problem-solving practice.
I love solving problems. They might be crosswords, or the algebra and geometry problems that show up in my social media feeds, or a tricky spreadsheet equation, or figuring out how to rearrange a room.
The problems I love solving most of all are musical problems.
How do you convey this text melodically? How do you get yourself out of the harmonic corner you painted yourself in? How do you ensure the alto line is interesting to sing while still completing the vertical harmony? How do you get singers to tune chords faster and more accurately?
Every musical act I take is a problem-solving act. And framed in those terms, I find it incredibly satisfying to sit with the problems.
Just as with a crossword, the journey is the fun. While I’m always proud it’s done, I’m more fixated on the journey to completion. The problem-solving.