Mike Einziger from Incubus and I are going to teach a course on inspiration and creativity for amateur musicians at Harvard’s January Term (J-Term). We look at a lot of contemporary music and have students apply the inspiration that comes from studying those works to their songs and arrangements. Here is our course description:

During this 4 day seminar (Jan 18 – 21), students will be examining a variety of compositional methodologies, discussing their historical contexts (with respect to related movements in the history of Classical Music) and utilizing them to create their own recordings using the GarageBand software on their own computers. Materials for this course will be based on a series of interviews, conducted by Grammy-nominated songwriter/Incubus guitarist Michael Einziger, with members of: The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arcade Fire, Vampire Weekend, and Film Composers Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman. Lessons will include musical examples from the artists who were interviewed, and will also feature a special guest lecture by the Senior Program Manager of Presentations at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Johanna Reese.

Enrollment to this course is limited to ten students. All interested students should apply by submitting a short statement of their motivation as well as a short bio/resume. These materials should be sent via email to Matthias Röder (roeder@fas.harvard.edu) before January 5, 2011