Musician Spotlight- Cylindrian Rutabaga: Grace's Unique Style in SL -Sandy Demina Reporting...

Staff Reporter • Monday, May 17, 2010

Monday, May 17, 2010

 

Known as a pioneer of virtual music, Cylindrian’s performances carry the listener on a journey guided by lyric and melody. Though, she likes to perform various cover songs that have inspired and moved her, she prefers to perform her own original material.
The woman behind the avatar, Grace Buford began her musical adventure at the tender age of 4 years old while listening to her older brother practice piano. That was the spark that ignited her desire to make music. Passion, perseverance, and determination have always been present in her music from that early age. Her desire to hone her craft continues even today as she attempts to impart some of that same ethic on her music students.  

Interview

SANDY:First of all some words about you:where are you from?CYLINDRIAN:I am from the metro Atlanta, Ga area.

SANDY:How long have you been playing music?CYLINDRIAN:I have been playing music since I was about 4 years old when I started piano lessons. I have only been songwriting and performing original compositions since 2004, so I am still very "green" and have a lot to learn.

SANDY:What instruments do you play? CYLINDRIAN:I play guitar and piano, but dabble with the violin, mandolin, and mountain dulcimer. Those instruments I dabble in are in no way ready to be played in public yet.

SANDY:How would you describe your style? CYLINDRIAN:My songwriting style changes depending on which instrument I am playing. On guitar my music tends to have a southern rock rhythm and picking style is more along the lines of Americana. My piano songs vary between an easy listening laid back feel and theatrical cabaret-esque style. Piano is where I try to experiment more with chord changes & arrangements because its the instrument I am more familiar with.

SANDY:You are a composer too,how long does it take to write a song/piece of music? CYLINDRIAN:That depends on the inspiration really. I can sometimes write a song in a couple of hours given the right environment and time. Generally, though, it takes me months to craft a song to the point where I will sing it in public.

SANDY:How prolific are you?Prolific, hmmm, I suppose that is a really subjective question and I am not quite sure how to answer it. So I will take a pass on this one, shrug my shoulders and say I have no idea how prolific I am.

SANDY:What do you spend the most time on; music or lyrics? CYLINDRIAN:When I write songs, the lyric influences the melody. I tend to do them both at the same time and tweak them as I go. I would venture to say that I spend equal amounts of time on both.

SANDY:Which acts have most inspired you? CYLINDRIAN:Tori Amos awakened my passion for piano, Amanda Palmer tapped into the part of me that is full of angst and whimsy, Patty Griffin showed me that its never to late to follow your heart & simply express yourself, Damien Rice taught me how to feel, Radiohead inspired me to think outside the box and take chances and Danny Elfman introduced me to the amazing sounds and workings of diminished chords.

SANDY:Where do you get ideas for songs/pieces of music?CYLINDRIAN:In the most simple terms...Life

SANDY:Except for other musicians what else inspires you?CYLINDRIAN:Nature inspires me with its seasons, its destructive forces, its ability to adapt to environment, its incredible and ever changing beauty, its life giving energy, and its ability to regenerate.

SANDY:What has influenced you to get your to where you are today musically? The overwhelming desire for self expression and making a real personal & valid connection with other people.

SANDY:Which song have you liked to write most?Coin Operated Boy by The Dresden Dolls I absolutely love the humor in that song.

SANDY: How did you discover SL?CYLINDRIAN:Through friends of mine in another social network who came inworld: Russell Eponym, Mel Cheeky, and Neil Morrison with Frogg Marlow and Jaycatt Nico helping me get started streaming and Circe Broom providing the stream. It was a great little family of people and I am so thankful for all of them for getting me started.

SANDY:what brought you inworld?CYLINDRIAN:The idea of reaching a whole new audience from around the world from the convenience of my own home.

SANDY:Did you ever think to use your real name for what you usually do in Second Life?CYLINDRIAN:Absolutely. From day 1 I introduced myself by my real name because that is the one I use when performing in Real Life.

SANDY:What do you like to do here in Second Life when you are not playing?CYLINDRIAN:I used to do a lot of exploring in SL, unfortunately now I do not have time for it anymore. I am a full time college student again and that takes up all my free time. Some of my favorite places to explore involve education and art. I also used to attend a number of musical shows too. I enjoyed listening to other artists performing and appreciating the wealth of talent in second life from all over the world in all sorts of genres.

SANDY:Do you like shopping or going to music concerts or art exhibits?CYLINDRIAN:Ha ha. See the answer above.

SANDY:Do you think SL can be a valid showcase for your RL works?
CYLINDRIAN:Of course it can be. Its the RL without limits. You can most certainly launch a career and start building a fan base and make real world connections with people who you can network, gig swap, or perform with in the RL. There is so much possiblity that its staggering.

SANDY:Do you use other kind of digital promotions? CYLINDRIAN:I use ping.fm to promote my sl shows on all my social networks: Myspace, Facebook, twitter, plurk. I have my site, you can buy my cd here



SANDY:Where do you see yourself a year from now? Will Second Life still exist?CYLINDRIAN:oh certainly SL will still exist. I am not sure quite where I will be a year from now. Hopefully busy promoting my 4th album and basking in the satisfaction that my education is complete. I want to be a viable part of the music community insl and look forward to having more time to spend meeting people and building relationships. There is so much incredible talent in SL now and I am so pleased to be one player among them. I enjoy being able to collaborate with other musicians and I hope to get back to doing that once I am finished with school.
I also hope to begin working on a project with Stories without Borders. Composing music that heals the wounded soul and helps give a bit of hope to people who may be in hopeless situations. Music is a passion of mine and I like for that passion to come across in my performances.

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Sandy
http://showcaseliveinsecondlife.blogspot.com