The Obelisk Questionnaire: Rod Rodrigues
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Rod Rodrigues
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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I’m a solo artist and music teacher. Teaching is one of my biggest passions in life, I have been teaching for 25 years. I was not intentional, I knew since very early that I wanted to be an artist. I began doing oil painting when I was 10 years old, I was surrounded by art. My mom used to sing all the time at home, my sister was very into art too.
Describe your first musical memory.
I had my first stage experience when I was around 5/6 years old. My mom took me to sing with a professional singer at a rodeo festival in my hometown. That was a terrifying experience, but I had fun.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
When I got an answer from Alex Lifeson from Rush watching one of my videos. That was completely unexpected. I did a few collaboration videos with people from different parts of the world In the middle of the pandemic. That video was a version that I did with some friends of Rush’s “Leave that thing alone”. One of my students’ Dad watched my video, and I didn’t know that he’s Alex’s friend. He messaged me asking me if he could send that video to Alex . Then Alex answered my student’s Dad saying really nice things about my playing. I’m a huge Rush fan, that meant a lot for me.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
Personal and professional fulfillment.
How do you define success?
Being happy with what you do.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
How cruel the social media has been these days. People criticize absolutely everything. If your hair is not the way that they think it should be, if your video is not in the way that they wanted to see, if your clothes are not the colour they wanted. They criticize you if you do or don’t post regularly on your social media. It’s an exhausting job, trying to please everyone all the time. I know people who got really depressed because of social media. It’s getting more dangerous than ever.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
I would love to write music for movies or video games.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
How art can touch your heart and your soul. That’s one of the most interesting things about art in general. How you can describe an abstract picture, how that can touch you and the feelings that you get it from it. How the music can give you chills, how that can touch you to the point that makes you cry. Nothing else can give you such mixed feelings but art.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
End of all wars.
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