Who are The Synthetic Dream Foundation?
It is essentially comprised of composer, Brett Branning. I am, however, beginning to collaborate more and more frequently with a wide range of guest vocalists on my newer material. On my most recent cd, "mechanical serpent" I worked with the talent of Susan Siren, Marcela Bovio, Summer Bowman, and Tamara Kent.
How did you come up with the name?
I essentially wanted to create a name for the project that would give a suggestion to the uninitiatied listener, what my project would sound like. It is music that is filled with fantasy laiden dream like passages yet those dreams can linger in very dark and brooding atmospheres. I aim to create a balance between the organic and the artificial, the light and the dark, the beautiful and the ugly. I wanted a name that would symbolize that expanse and that dichotomy. Hopefully it succeeds in that.
What is the main drive behind TSDF? What spurs you to write the music you create?
I have always been drawn to the arts and music. I have been playing one instrument or another since early childhood. I firmly believe there is a natural magnetism between myself and sound. I am drawn to it. I am drawn to explore its inner intricacies and my fondness and love of it, has made it my most powerful weapon of expression. I no longer know how I would possibly be able to express my most complex ideas and thoughts without composing music. I am reliant upon it.
You were mostly a solo based project for a long time, why did you decide to collaborate with different vocalists?
It has been a long and experimental process of allowing others into my artistic world. It took a long trial of gaining trust and acceptance, on my part, which was not an easy road for me to travel. I never grew up playing in bands or music groups so I had a very long history of making music by myself. However, once I got accustomed to the nuances of working with others I find that the artistic reward of allowing others' creativity to merge with my own is undeniable. It allows me to be a part of composing and creating music I would have never been able to come up with on my own. I appreciate and admire the extra dimensions and shades the collaborators I work with are able to bring to my music. I am deeply humbled and appreciative of their talents and beauty.
Are there any musicians you would love to collaberate with in the future?
Sure! I listen to an incredibly wide range of music and therefore have a litany of musicians/composers I admire. It is almost mind numbing how much talent exists in the world.
Working "for hire" is inherently different than working for yourself. When doing music for film/tv/games you are working under someone else's ultimate vision and have to be humble enough to be able to take direction, change compositions under their guidelines and work very
proficiently under timelines. Both systems of operation are pleasurable and rewarding, but they certainly operate under different mechanics. Ultimately, composing music without any rules-timelines-guidance is more personally gratifying.
How does it feel knowing your music is reaching worldwide and not just in America?
It’s incredibly amazing. I'm always happy when I receive emails from fans in other cultures and countries that I would not think my music would have been able to penetrate to. I think is a testament to the fact that music is truly a universal language and is able to convey abstract ideas and content which eludes the spoken/written languages.
Do you feel it's important to put a piece of yourself if you like in your music?
Not only is important, I feel it is impossible to create music without doing so. Any time I write a new composition it is a direct reflection of my internal workings at a specific moment in time. It’s like a photograph of my soul, and single moment of my inner turmoil or joys caught in a frame forever.
Your music has quite a contrast, how do you find the balance between keeping it light and keeping a track on the more aggressive side?
I believe it is an inherent byproduct of my personality. I am a rather complex individual and the tendency to work within one emotional spectrum is quickly overwhelmed by the need to work within a differing emotional color. This fluctuation can happen rapidly and often fluctuates multiple times during the course of writing a single song, but definitely fluctuates countless times throughout the course of writing an entire album.
Does your music influence your personal life and vice versa?
Yes, definitely. Music really is my life. I don't know what I would do without it.
Who have been your musical influences? Who made you the musician you are today?
The broad palette of my life's experiences are essentially who made me the musician I am today. Without all of my struggles and opportunities for growth I would not be in the position I am at the moment. I deeply look forward to all of the new experience I have yet to obtain and hope that I am able to continue my growth process as both an individual and as a composer.
Musical loves of mine have shifted throughout the years but some all time favorites include Danny Elfman, Frontline assembly, Loreena Mckennitt, Future sound of london, Tori Amos, Mahler, Autechre, and the list could go on and on.
I pull inspiration from every fabric of life, but am also deeply drawn to fantasy/science fiction as inspiration as well.
What's next in store for the future of TSDF?
Your guess is as good as mine! The only absolute is that there will definitely be a lot more music to come.
Any last words for our readers?
Thank you very much for taking the time to learn a bit more about me and my work. I hope that you enjoyed it!
www.myspace.com/thesyntheticdreamfoundation
www.tsdf.net