About Learning

The process of writing Sound Chronicle has brought me back to being a student as an adult, leading me to reflect on “learning.” A decade ago, I progressed to university aimlessly. In my senior year, I questioned the meaning of graduating but eventually did since a degree was crucial for acquiring a visa in a foreign country. 

After countless part-time and two full-time jobs, I felt comfortable living in Japan. Nothing was going particularly great, nor bad. Everything was just normal, and I needed a change. Despite dedicating my lunch and before-after work to self-studies, I was frustrated with my progress in obtaining the technical knowledge of sound. In this vast field, I needed structure, facility, and surrounded by passionate people.

Here I am, participating in a program that brings together twenty musicians or sound practitioners worldwide; almost everyone is from a different country and background, from architecture to chemistry. Not a competitive environment, everyone is open, curious and supportive to each other. A non-musician in a conservatory, a glimpse into the lives of musicians. 

With access to piano, I am self-studying with the support of experienced musicians. Playing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, feeling ashamed that people passing by will hear me. I often question myself, why did I not put more effort into music and math when I was younger? I did not understand why. I discovered and attended a freshman music theory course; people ten years younger than me are faster learners. In contrast to Japan, students ask questions frantically until they understand. At my own pace, I began to understand it slowly. I realised that to learn is not to be afraid of embarrassment. 

The first week, Terry Riley and Akio Suzuki, the people I documented in Sound Chronicle, appeared in the teacher’s presentation. It felt strange. Our close interactions in the past two years have made me forget how influential they are. Without these experiences, the two slides would have been another reference that we are overflowed in schools. Also, through work experience, I learned the importance of specific technologies or keywords, which allowed me to attend the most challenging classes while others gave up. 

For someone who cannot sit still, sometimes I feel constrained inside a classroom. While the courses tend to be theoretical, in the first month, I already craved hands-on experiences. I instantly reached out to a studio in Berlin with 24.1 multi-channel systems. I began to realise the bad habit I have, I have not made any efforts with the eight channel system around me before making a rash action. Learning does not merely exist inside classrooms but extends to lunchtime when musicians talk about rhythms, structure, or forms. I thought about the smallest step I could do – booking the studio in school, or reaching out to composers around me, and one leads to another.


Learning multiple subjects all at once, the progress is slow. The more I learn, the more I think I learned nothing. With limited energy and time, it’s vital to have an end goal in mind and learn to let go to achieve quality work. Learning is a continuous process of trying out and extending. Using all of my savings to become a student in Europe for the remaining five months, I need to make the most of it.