Meet Cassidy Swanson | Freelance Composer and Music Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cassidy Swanson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cassidy, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I pursued a career in the arts, in part because I felt it fit one of my biggest goals, which was to be a sorta modern renaissance man. I disliked the notion that if I pursued another field I might have to specialize drastically in a particular field. I was a bit of a book worm growing up so instead I wanted to find ways tocontinue to learn multiple fields and incorporate them in something I felt was meaningful both to a community and to myself.

I’m happy to say that since I work in freelance and teaching that I kinda do both. I get to teach history, math, science, and the arts to young and old people who want to see the same passion I do, and I also get to create works from nothing, allowing others to experience mediums like visual arts in totally new or different ways.

That, to me, is one of the great powers of the arts, as it can allow us to communicate with others in ways words sometimes fail to. I think being a bit of a loner in my adolescence, this is special in its own way!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art is, I think, a result of my kinda general love of music and appreciation of all forms of music. California is a very multicultural place and I think I took a lot of that into my music. I joined a Chinese ensemble and played Er Hu, I learned about French Gypsy Jazz from Rowan Robertson (The guitarist of Dio) at Greyson’s Music shop, a local music shop at Montrose. I’m also super into anime and game music in no small part thanks to my time spent in little Tokyo haha.

So I think I’m excited to say, since I work as a media composer I get a lot of chances to make use of these influences and passions, creating music that emulates or embraces these musics.

Since I studied composition at CalArts I was able to learn a lot of the tools required to make use of these influences, which took a lot of work. Heck, I’m still working on it!
The toughest challenge so far has probably been networking, it’s tough when you’re just one artist in a sea and you have to kinda prove your worth as you go. I’d say I get little freelance jobs more often now but certainly it’s still the part of the game I’m trying to overcome the hardest.

Lessons I’ve learned: Stick to what you love. Don’t feel the need to compromise TOO much. Obviously the director/manager/customer is always right don’t go out of your way to be difficult, but have faith in what you love and try to stick to that, don’t feel you need to compromise your vision for others. It can be a balancing act but it’s worth keeping, and will reduce your stress in the long run.

What I want the world to know about my brand: Whether it’s under the name Cassidy Swanson or Kettako, I want my works to tell stories, to express emotion and growth in characters, settings, or sounds. I think the future of my music is one of synthesis between traditional forms (orchestral/acoustic/folk) and electronic music (house, future funk, EDM).
I write works that, paraphrasing one of my professors at my final review, “understand the core of what makes a genre tick, without relying on cliches”.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So long as driving the 5 or hitting the Orange crush isn’t too much of an issue haha. -Manhattan beach is a must for me. Great shops inland and on the coast, gorgeous views and not as packed as other beaches like Venice beach

-Little Tokyo and Chinatown are great stops to take, besides the awesome shops there is a lot of good food, cultural icons, the Museum of Japanese American history, and some fun anime shops to check out. With plenty of local artist works displayed.

-Disney concert hall (REDCAT) and the LA Phil have some amazing music performances to check out. Some of the best music in the world. Looking forward to it opening back up.

-the Getty museum!

-We have some great hiking trails in most cities, one of note being by the Hollywood sign

-Honorable mentions go to Big Bear and Anaheim. Not technically LA County, but if you’re used to LA traffic, the drive isn’t too bad for a bit of snow and Disney Land!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Lucas Smarker. A California based artist and one of the chillest dudes you’ll ever meet. I met Lucas at CSUF and in a lot of ways, he helped reinvigorate my passion in the arts and my desire to actually make art. Prior, I was a guitarist who worked hard to get good at the craft, but he really opened up the path to becoming a composer I think, in many ways because I wanted to write music for his animations!

Lucas is a freelance animator who has experience in the industry but recently took some time off to work on his own series of animations and shorts. He currently specializes in 3d animation and rigging, often creating modern and aesthetic settings that demonstrate a love and appreciation of the SoCal beach culture.

Incredibly talented and loving, Lucas reps the SoCal landscape like no other!

Website: http://cassidyswanson.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kettako/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassidy-swanson/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kettakon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cassidy.swanson1

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe_HN7xyCK0Z7TmNpbOecRw