We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Luke Galloway a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Luke, appreciate you joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
Like many, I learned my first instrument with an instructor. But, also like many, most of my growth as a musician came when I was alone, exploring, tinkering, and experimenting. Now I realize there is not really a shortcut to becoming skilled at any craft. There are some who reach certain stages faster than others, but eventually there will be a moment where you have to strategize and practice diligently and deliberately to get where you want to be. It takes a lot of trial and error to figure out where that point is at first. Once you try and fail more frequently, you begin to understand where that point is, more quickly discovering what it is you don’t know or what is missing. That’s beautiful. A lot of the creative process happens during these trial and error moments. When I started out making music, a lot of my time was spent with imitation. That’s one of the beautiful things about art, we are constantly appraising what others are creating around us and adding little bits of ourselves. With each imitation, I would notice these little pieces that would slip through, that creative mistake or random moment to add a little spice. For a while, it feels like that has to be a random event, but in actuality, you can create a space and intention to be aware of these random feelings, these random events. Whether that is a rehearsal space or a studio, I get a lot of inspiration from being in the moment and practicing awareness.
Luke, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m Luke Galloway. I’m a physician and a musician. I’ve been writing, recording, and performing rock music in my local scene for over a decade. My most recent project is Novanauts, an epic alternative rock duo. We play shows frequently around the Atlanta regional area and try to release original music on a regular basis. We are essentially two friends who love playing music together, blending drums, guitars, vocals, and electronics to provide shared experiences for people. Our true north is writing good songs that feel great to play live. Whatever shape that takes, usually alternative rock with an electronic edge for us, is fair game.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
I can’t really speak for society as a whole, but I can say that I’ve noticed a watering down of local culture the more we become “connected” by technology. Think of the phenomenon we are seeing with American small towns. I’m all for connection and I’m a big fan of how technology can enhance our lives, but we shouldn’t turn our back on our local community, what makes it unique should be appreciated. So, I encourage everyone to learn about their local community and its arts scene. What is the story of the environment in which you live, its people, its music, its food, its culture? Those unique differences that happened over many years should be explored and appreciated for how they have added to the human experience. Also, I think there is an importance to being present in the moment we are in. I’m all for using the tools around us to enhance our experience in life, but we should be mindful of how a collective decreasing attention span may actually make our lives worse and tempt us to be less appreciative of the journey that a long form piece of art can take us on, and what we can learn from it.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect is the creative process of taking an idea or an inspiration, organizing it, developing it, bringing it to life with others, and then ultimately sharing it. When others connect with it, that’s an amazing feeling.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @thenovanauts
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/novanauts
Image Credits
Alexandra Troy