The Soundtrack of our Lives: An Interview with Timmy, Ring Tone Composer Prodigy, Age 3 &1/2

(In an effort to be more inclusive of other people COI is initiating an interview series that will decisively demonstrate that Justin is concerned with people other than himself.)

Q. It is a pleasure to meet with you. I know we are cutting into your play time, and so I am all the more appreciative that I’m meeting with someone who is responsible for creating more of the ring tones out there, than any single person.
A. (Claps hand together) Yeah!

Q. Western music is filled with young composers, but I don’t know if anyone comes as close to you for such an economically successfully start. At the age of one and a half, you had already been composing for a year.
A. (Giggles) I make noises. Mommy poofs my belly if I noisy. After bed time no more noises.

Q. Your work is said to capture the many voices that make up contemporary life. Where do you find these voices? That is talk to me about some of your raw influences.

A. I hit metal Bang, bang.. My toy goes Whirrrrrrrl. Trains go Cho-Cho-Cho. Froggies, ribbit, ribbit. Comprrh.

Q. Do you ever collaborate on a piece? Do you have plans to collaborate in the future?
A. My ringy phone! Not yours.

Q. Mahler once said, “If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music.” I understand the reluctance of musicians to comment on their music. But loosely speaking, let’s say for someone who is new to your work, do you have any words of guidance for someone trying to acclimate themselvesto your work? What are you trying to say?
A. Pick up phone. Talk on the phones. Talk to Mommy. (Clapping) Talk to Daddy.

Q. I’d like to play one of your recent works . It is reminiscent of a fog horn. If any of your works just say, “Pick up the phone”, it is this piece. I want to talk about, that is I’d like you to talk about, your more aggressive nature.
A. Mom can’t hear the phone when the TV is on. Noisy! I like noisy. Noisy go WHHHOOOOMP-WHOOOOOMPAH

Q. You’ve written several pieces which evoke the phone rings of the
1900’s. Talk to me about how your sense of history has contributed to your compositions.
A. Grammy’s phone goes rrrrrring. I like rrrrring

Q. Do you ever feel confined by the formal limitations of Ring Tones?
A. NO! NO! I like noises soft, noises loud. Long noises, short noises.

Q. Do you think, you will ever compose outside of the Ring Tones?
A. Someday, I want to make noises for brakes on cars. SCCRREEECH.

Q. More than any artist working today, one gets the sense that you are not only expressing the mind of a generation, but also shaping their future tastes. Can you share some of your sense of what will be next?
A. Pffffffth. Pffffffth.

Q. Did you just make a stinky?
A. {Giggles.}
ECH.

Q. More than any artist working today, one gets the sense that you are not only expressing the mind of a generation, but also shaping their future tastes. Can you share some of your sense of what will be next?
A. Pffffffth. Pffffffth.

Q. Did you just make a stinky?
A. {Giggles.}