We recently connected with Michael Ouchakof and have shared our conversation below.

Michael, appreciate you joining us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

Hands down, I can say that I am happier as an artist. Having been in the creative design space for a couple of decades, I’ve experienced what it is like to be a creative within the structure of an organization. Prior to my current artistic incarnation, I was in the landscape architecture industry. I think the key word there is “industry.” When I first came to design, back in my 20s, I saw it as an opportunity to express myself through a design medium, affect the world and be able to earn a living wage. The design school process is wonderful, and somewhat misleading. While students are (most often) given artistic and creative license, they may find that once they are released into the wild, the environment is not as free and wide open as one might imagine. These memories flash through every now and again, especially when I suddenly shift gears to a new project without any rhyme or reason. Not having someone standing over my shoulder is the freedom and bliss I’ve always dreamt about having.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

This is one of the areas I struggle with, defining what I am doing. I think it might have to do with the fear or resistance of being hemmed in or categorized, which is something that runs much deeper than we can probably get into here.
Having said that, where I see myself right now is existing as a musician. I express and share my story of sound in some ways different than what might be considered mainstream. With a variety of instruments, many of which I build myself, I offer folx meditative sound journeys. The nature of this offering is completely organic and improvised, which brings me great joy and satisfaction as an artist, but also allows the process to truly be a co-creation between the sound and the journeyer.
From an energetic standpoint, in a sound journey I open myself to the wider Universe, offering myself as the conduit to the frequencies which the journeyer is calling in subconsciously. I am guided to different instruments at different points. These instruments might include didgeridoo, monochords, chimes, flutes, gongs, drums, etc. During the journey, I am not necessarily “playing” the instrument so much as it is using me to provide the means to create the sounds. It is something to be experienced as a journeyer. People come away from a journey with all kinds of insights and experiences. To witness someone transform or receive a missing answer through sound is one of the greatest gifts I can possibly imagine.
Along with composing meditation and experimental musical pieces, I also craft instruments for folx. I offer custom crafted didgeridoo, monochords, chimes and shakers. Each instrument is unique to the individual who commissions it. This aspect of my offerings is incredibly satisfying.
I came to this practice through ecstatic dance. Following one of the dances, someone played the didgeridoo. The sound resonated with me deeply. I found an intro class to the didgeridoo and the moment I put my lips on the instrument, my world completely changed, I see it more as a reawakening and return to my purpose in this life more than anything else.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

As I see it, my mission is my life’s purpose. To share and connect people with the sounds permeating and creating our Universe, our reality. It sounds grandiose, yet I understand that the way I perceive and express sound is meant to reach those who need it, to provide for them what they need in that moment. When I create a piece, that part is for me. Once that piece or instrument is released into the world, I no longer have any claim to it. It becomes something for someone somewhere.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The process is the most rewarding part for me, which is sort of a broad answer. The way I see the process is it includes every moment of my existence, whether I am awake or in a dream state. Absorbing everything around me in this fascinating existence fuels and informs the whole creative process. As Rick Rubin writes in his book The Creative Act: A Way of Being, “Creativity is a way of moving through the world, every minute, every day.” Being open to that truth, that I AM creative, always, not just when someone is attempting to define me in terms of business and industry, allows for each moment to be truly inspiring, informative and emotionally engaging. This carries through in the act of creation, during which there is so much exploration, which for me is so fulfilling.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sogumusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sogumusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sogumusic
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/sogumusic
• Other: open.spotify.com/artist/1KWw6HYMd4KkZHidsJFggM
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Image Credits

Burning Love Media