a color story: ableton grey

I opened the Digital Audio Workstation (DAW), Ableton. The possibilities were limitless with this software but that’s the problem — you just don’t where to start. I found myself in a situation — oh so familiar resistance in the clutches of my mind — and I realized that I’d prefer to write. Was it possible to add the music writing on top of my “literature” writing in my day to day? From my long pause from music production, should I enter the Ableton world with things I know or go into a whole different rabbit hole while my beginner’s mind still remained intact?

After a humbling attempt at “producing” a hip-hop beat, I took the time to appreciate the grey background on Ableton’s workstation. My memories alluded to version 9 where the shade of gray leaned more on the lighter side in contrast to the newer update. I preferred the lighter tone — and the choice of gray — because the pursuit of sublime music quality would fit in the realm of grey. From a different perspective, silver would shine in the outer bounds of the sublime.

Let us not freight too quickly on this insight; there was always a duality. It could easily be turned into a nightmare like a writer facing a blank sheet of paper -staring out into the void and letting resistance constrict their flow. On my way to the airport along the country roads, I faced danger in the fog even with the headlights on. The safety feature of turning on the high beam seemed to exaggerate the forms of a lighter grey on the roads. To the extent that the headlights were the safer choice on the foggy roads. Who knew a lighter gray could be so blinding?

Again, I returned to Ableton with version 10. The darker grey background felt oddly welcoming. I wondered whether my interpretation of the different shades of grey will cycle? But for the time being, I should head back and fail while my beginner mind was still intact — enough background talk and more producing.