Institute of Art Design + Technology
Dún Laoghaire

Joey O'Gorman (Joseph O'Gorman) 

BA [Hons] Creative Music Production

Music producer from Cork, Ireland. Recently released the debut EP 'Weight Of The World EP' with rappers and singers from the USA, UK and Ireland. 4th Year Project is a pop/rock EP influenced by The Beatles, a research project into the positive impact of limitations on creativity. The Beatles' workflow was copied as much as possible, replicating the four-track recording format with limited editing.

Exploring creativity in music production using constraints with inspiration from The Beatles’ production process.

This project is an exploration of creativity using constraints with inspiration from The Beatles’ production process. Modern music production offers an abundance of choices which could be viewed as inhibiting the creative process by removing obstacles of problem solving and decision making which could lead to creative exploration. Research suggests that creativity thrives when constraints are present. The Beatles operated in a limited recording environment in comparison to modern production, with four-track tape recording and limited editing capabilities the predominant format for most of their career. Creative outcomes were a continuous result despite these limitations or perhaps because of them. The current project used The Beatles’ recording process as inspiration and methodology for incorporating limitations while producing three original songs. All stages of the production followed a constrained workflow through composition, demo, recording and mixing phases. The result was a rewarding and engaging creative process due to the performance nature and commitment involved.