Much of our art, being place-based, celebrates Indianapolis as a city and as an experience. Many musicians have created place-based pieces inspired by their time in the city, whether they have a few days or a lifetime in Indy to draw from. The musicians at the Harrison Center participate in a 48-Hour Songwriting Residency, meant to support traveling musicians or those with other jobs. For the first 24 hours, the musician explores the city and the specific subject they’ll be writing about. The next 24 hours are spent writing and creating the song. This brevity lends itself to simple and honest interpretations of Indy and showcases the musicians’ abilities to create a work of art so quickly.

Levi Schrumpf, who releases music under the name Levi Matthan, is a musician who has lived in Indy for years. He completed a songwriting residency this winter and wrote “Finding,” which was included in this week’s episode of Music in Place, with the theme “Celebrating the City.” The song was written, recorded, and produced in one day, all by Levi himself. The unique constraints of the residency, and Levi’s choice to limit himself to the use of his OP-1 synthesizer, meant he had to commit to certain sounds and keep his lyrics straightforward, while giving himself freedom to embrace the fun and simplicity in songwriting and arranging.

I spoke with him about the residency and the personal journey described in his song. “Finding” is as much about the process of discovering yourself as it is discovering your place in a city. Indianapolis went from a place he couldn’t wait to leave to a home, in large part because of the community he found here that showed him there were more possibilities than limitations.

He began the writing process for this song outside, as part of a plein air experiment on Monument Circle. Photo by Heather Harper.

Levi’s initial perception of Indianapolis was an average Midwestern city with an unimpressive art scene. He was looking for somewhere more stimulating, more exciting, and further away from Lafayette, where he grew up. Over time, he built his home here by approaching the city and its offerings with an open mind, seeking out community in unexpected ways, and letting the domino effect of networking happen naturally. Indianapolis, he believes, has all the right conditions for fostering community. The size and pace of Indy allow you to establish routines and see the same people repeatedly, while its unassuming nature lets you put your attention on people rather than be pulled into the rush of latest trends.

Every city affects its citizens, but those with a size and nature similar to Indianapolis seem to allow for reciprocal influence. Part of making a home somewhere is seeing where your gifts and connections meet a city’s needs and filling in the gaps of potential that leads to mutual flourishing.

Indianapolis and its creative community needs and is, in many ways, prepared for creatives and creative thinkers to enrich its culture. It needs personal and social investment that somewhere like Brooklyn, perhaps, does not. As Levi said, “No place becomes great if everyone that achieves something thinks they outgrow the place and then moves.”

Indianapolis has a lot to give, and it needs what you have to give, too.

It’s an interesting time to reflect on city life, as many of the experiences and advantages of living in an urban area are unavailable, or at least, significantly changed. One such feature is being surrounded by people— strangers, especially. Past artists at the Harrison Center have recorded soundscapes, blending the mundane elements, the construction, and the movement inherent in any urban environment, with the voices, church bells, and sounds recognizable and particular to Indy.

“Downtown Conversations,” by Chad Caroland, which was featured in Episode 4 of Music in Place, consists of conversations with passersby about the impact of art in the public sphere. While in the city for a 48-Hour Residency, Sam Miller, from Vero Beach, FL, recorded a long-form soundscape around Indianapolis. It was installed in one of our galleries for a First Friday and is available for listening and reminiscing on our Soundcloud page.

Listen to Episode 4 of Music in Place to hear music celebrating urban Indy!

Or listen to our city playlist below!

Celebrating Urban Indianapolis