For some, being part of a band in college is a rite of passage. With the introduction of the Bowdoin Canon, a project that will compile the works of student bands, that experience could extend beyond one’s college days.
Andrew Roseman ’14 is working with the Bowdoin Music Collective (BMC) and many other students around campus to create a CD that will help students document their work and collaborate better.
Roseman and others are soliciting performers to submit their work through their request-to-record form, which can be used by non-musicians and musicians alike. Once they have received the request, a recording session is scheduled and the final composition is added to the compilation.
“[The CD] is an opportunity for people to record independently motivated, creative projects—whether it be music, spoken word or comedy standup,” Roseman said. “We’ll record it and produce it in the form of an album. At the end of the year, we’re going to produce and print a CD.”
“Yeah, we’re doing music, and yeah, we’re doing shows, and yeah I’m performing but if none of it is recorded or captured, did it really happen?” said Kevonte Anderson ’15, a member of the band Kilik McFLy and the Five Pillars, which is contributing to the compilation.
“The original aim was to promote collaboration among students,” said Roseman. “We want this to be an opportunity for people who have always said, ‘Oh we’ll make something’ but never have to just go out and do something.”
Roseman, who did an independent study on recording last year, said that the project is just in its first stage but has garnered a lot of interest thus far.
“I pitched this idea to [Sam Roberts ’14 and Tom Keefe ’14, the Presidents of BMC], and they were more than supportive and they said BMC will help out in any way, shape or form,” said Roseman. “At this point, we have put in all the groundwork to start facilitating recording.”
Roseman is trying to reinvigorate the BMC website by documenting the recording process.
“We’re going to have video footage of every tracking session, we’re going to have photos on the website, and we’re going to chronicle the recording process on the website,” said Roseman.
Roseman formed an audio recording team composed of fellow musicians to facilitate the recording process, and a separate visual arts team, which will increase transparency and give a face to the project.
“Everyone is pulling a lot of weight,” said Roseman.
Both Anderson and Roseman hope that this project will provide a model for future collections of Bowdoin work.
“If all of the avenues and channels are documented of how we got to the steps to do [the CD] this semester, it’s just a manual for people to use next year,” said Anderson.
“I think it’s definitely something that can sustain itself in the future,” said Roseman.
For now, those involved in the project are still working on getting it off the ground, which involves securing funding.
“In terms of printing the CD, we have legitimate proposals typed up for when we have to meet with the [Student Activities Funding Committee],” said Roseman. “I know that the interest is there...but the more groups that we can get involved will strengthen our chance for receiving the funding that we would like.”
Once the details are sorted out, Roseman says that he hopes that the CD can offer students a voice to share their work and collaborate with others.
“Among the creative outlet ecosystem at Bowdoin, there are a lot of things going on under the radar that you don’t know about,” he said.