Sunday, November 2, 2014
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Music Can Heal Humanity
Music Can Heal Humanity
In the early 21st century, much of the world has opted for the insanity of war, race hatred, religious intolerance, materialism, nationalism, a thirst for power, class dominance, obsession with celebrity and corporate greed. Humanity sorely needs a return to ideals of peace, brotherhood, tolerance and spirituality. My forty-plus years of experience in music composition and performance have convinced me that music can heal humanity of this pathology. Music can heal the consciousness of humanity. This music should not provide any easy answers, or facile solutions, but should dig deep into human consciousness and provide original solutions to big ideas. Music lacking in conviction or made in the spirit of materialism will not work in this arena. The example of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony makes perfect sense in this respect. Not only does it provide a musical setting for Schiller’s poem depicting universal brotherhood through joy, it also embodies all the creativity, humor, energy and spirituality that make its appeal nearly universal.
I don’t mean to imply that all we need to do to solve our problems as a human race is listen to Beethoven’s Ninth, although that would be a step in the right direction. What I am suggesting is that we make new music in this spirit of creativity and humor using the musical languages of today. Many of the ideas contained in this work are implicit in today’s music: e.g. 1.) the acceptance of all sounds as being worthy of exploration and musical development (the “universal brotherhood” of sounds); 2.) the fascination with process which is implicit in the interactions of people; 3.) the joy of discovery inherent in the exploration of new ideas and perceptions. As Schiller’s text makes clear, joy is a clear basis for universal friendship.
Freude, schöner Götterfunken
Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken,
Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder
Was die Mode streng geteilt;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder,
Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.
Joy, beautiful spark of God
Daughter of Elysium,
We enter your sanctuary, drunk with fire,
Heavenly one!
Your magic binds again
What custom sternly parts.
All men become brothers,
Where your gentle wing rests.
Translation adapted from Wikipedia.com
There is only one human race and all people respond to music. Music is a cultural universal. A brain engaged in musical activity is a happy brain. The patterns of neural activity involved in musical behavior take place in many different areas of the brain and indicate a deep involvement of the mind as well as very pleasurable emotional states. Recent discoveries in the field of neuroscience bear this out. See below.
In order to do this, we need to make a music in which the spirit of creativity and universal brotherhood takes precedence over the spirit of materialism and territoriality. Musicians who aspire to spread this spirit need to think first of the needs of the human race and their career moves second. This music should not be used as to display wealth and power, to establish racial or class dominance or act as a nationalistic call to arms. This is no easy task: musicians have material needs as well as everyone else and the ego dies hard, but the very survival of the human race may be at stake. This task requires people to act in selfless ways, which may run counter to much of what they have been taught since childhood. The music which can accomplish this task will be the equivalent of speaking truth to power and the very force of its conviction will sweep away all opposition.
The conflict and struggle of much human endeavor can be worked out in music rather than in war and unbridled competition. Creative solutions can be found in which everyone wins. When musicians make music together, they can’t fight. When people listen and sing together, they can’t fight. This is so true as to sound simplistic, yet it is so obvious as to be constantly overlooked. Musicians must work together in order to create a coherent result, and some may need to work in a heroic manner to master the technical and musical complexities of new works, in a belief that they are pushing the boundaries of what is humanly possible in music.
The glorification of war and militarism, which is so much a part of the commercial psychology of corporate news media reporting can slant the consciousness of human perception today to the point of pathology. In the internet age, where the communication of information is so fast, this psychology is almost meaningless anyway. Much of this “news” reporting is little more than pandering to politicians (they may control access to some information) and nationalistic propaganda of the worst sort. Much more important is investigative reporting and writing of history. The power of music to touch and move people deeply is generally unquestioned by most rational thinkers, yet many musicians continue with business as usual, putting commercial concerns above service to humanity.
The United States contains about 5% of the world population, yet consumes over 40% of the world’s resources annually. The violence and repression necessary to preserve that level of inequality taints almost all the values of our national mythology and dialog. We must strive to be an equal member of the world community of people with no superiority of position. This innocent sentence is so contrary to conventional American wisdom in the 21st century as to sound subversive. When musicians explore the aspects of different cultural values in a context of respect and tolerance, a spirit of love arises spontaneously in listeners and artists alike. Music that incorporates techniques and sound worlds from different cultural traditions, provided these techniques are well understood and mastered through serious study (not mere exoticism) can make a true integration of consciousness between cultural ideals and transcend the psychological gaps between people of different cultures and technological stages just as learning foreign languages can lead to understanding other cultural viewpoints.
Contemporary experimental music with the listening strategy of welcoming every sound with fascination or the strategy of exploration of the sense perceptions and cognition of musical process provide further paradigms for healing the human race of narrow closed-mindedness and intolerance. The fearless exploration of new performance rituals, electronic, instrumental and vocal techniques and states of consciousness by contemporary performers can provide a paradigm for people of good will who want to make peace with former enemies, who may still harbor memories of past wrongs, resentments and fears of communication. At another level, all musics are equally valid and it is important to approach them all with fascination and in a spirit of tolerance. Cultural snobbery doesn’t work and separates the listener from valuable new learning experiences. We all have our preferences, but they should be liberating rather than narrowing.
In the early 21st century, much of the world has opted for the insanity of war, race hatred, religious intolerance, materialism, nationalism, a thirst for power, class dominance, obsession with celebrity and corporate greed. Humanity sorely needs a return to ideals of peace, brotherhood, tolerance and spirituality. My forty-plus years of experience in music composition and performance have convinced me that music can heal humanity of this pathology. Music can heal the consciousness of humanity. This music should not provide any easy answers, or facile solutions, but should dig deep into human consciousness and provide original solutions to big ideas. Music lacking in conviction or made in the spirit of materialism will not work in this arena. The example of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony makes perfect sense in this respect. Not only does it provide a musical setting for Schiller’s poem depicting universal brotherhood through joy, it also embodies all the creativity, humor, energy and spirituality that make its appeal nearly universal.
I don’t mean to imply that all we need to do to solve our problems as a human race is listen to Beethoven’s Ninth, although that would be a step in the right direction. What I am suggesting is that we make new music in this spirit of creativity and humor using the musical languages of today. Many of the ideas contained in this work are implicit in today’s music: e.g. 1.) the acceptance of all sounds as being worthy of exploration and musical development (the “universal brotherhood” of sounds); 2.) the fascination with process which is implicit in the interactions of people; 3.) the joy of discovery inherent in the exploration of new ideas and perceptions. As Schiller’s text makes clear, joy is a clear basis for universal friendship.
Freude, schöner Götterfunken
Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken,
Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder
Was die Mode streng geteilt;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder,
Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.
Joy, beautiful spark of God
Daughter of Elysium,
We enter your sanctuary, drunk with fire,
Heavenly one!
Your magic binds again
What custom sternly parts.
All men become brothers,
Where your gentle wing rests.
Translation adapted from Wikipedia.com
There is only one human race and all people respond to music. Music is a cultural universal. A brain engaged in musical activity is a happy brain. The patterns of neural activity involved in musical behavior take place in many different areas of the brain and indicate a deep involvement of the mind as well as very pleasurable emotional states. Recent discoveries in the field of neuroscience bear this out. See below.
In order to do this, we need to make a music in which the spirit of creativity and universal brotherhood takes precedence over the spirit of materialism and territoriality. Musicians who aspire to spread this spirit need to think first of the needs of the human race and their career moves second. This music should not be used as to display wealth and power, to establish racial or class dominance or act as a nationalistic call to arms. This is no easy task: musicians have material needs as well as everyone else and the ego dies hard, but the very survival of the human race may be at stake. This task requires people to act in selfless ways, which may run counter to much of what they have been taught since childhood. The music which can accomplish this task will be the equivalent of speaking truth to power and the very force of its conviction will sweep away all opposition.
The conflict and struggle of much human endeavor can be worked out in music rather than in war and unbridled competition. Creative solutions can be found in which everyone wins. When musicians make music together, they can’t fight. When people listen and sing together, they can’t fight. This is so true as to sound simplistic, yet it is so obvious as to be constantly overlooked. Musicians must work together in order to create a coherent result, and some may need to work in a heroic manner to master the technical and musical complexities of new works, in a belief that they are pushing the boundaries of what is humanly possible in music.
The glorification of war and militarism, which is so much a part of the commercial psychology of corporate news media reporting can slant the consciousness of human perception today to the point of pathology. In the internet age, where the communication of information is so fast, this psychology is almost meaningless anyway. Much of this “news” reporting is little more than pandering to politicians (they may control access to some information) and nationalistic propaganda of the worst sort. Much more important is investigative reporting and writing of history. The power of music to touch and move people deeply is generally unquestioned by most rational thinkers, yet many musicians continue with business as usual, putting commercial concerns above service to humanity.
The United States contains about 5% of the world population, yet consumes over 40% of the world’s resources annually. The violence and repression necessary to preserve that level of inequality taints almost all the values of our national mythology and dialog. We must strive to be an equal member of the world community of people with no superiority of position. This innocent sentence is so contrary to conventional American wisdom in the 21st century as to sound subversive. When musicians explore the aspects of different cultural values in a context of respect and tolerance, a spirit of love arises spontaneously in listeners and artists alike. Music that incorporates techniques and sound worlds from different cultural traditions, provided these techniques are well understood and mastered through serious study (not mere exoticism) can make a true integration of consciousness between cultural ideals and transcend the psychological gaps between people of different cultures and technological stages just as learning foreign languages can lead to understanding other cultural viewpoints.
Contemporary experimental music with the listening strategy of welcoming every sound with fascination or the strategy of exploration of the sense perceptions and cognition of musical process provide further paradigms for healing the human race of narrow closed-mindedness and intolerance. The fearless exploration of new performance rituals, electronic, instrumental and vocal techniques and states of consciousness by contemporary performers can provide a paradigm for people of good will who want to make peace with former enemies, who may still harbor memories of past wrongs, resentments and fears of communication. At another level, all musics are equally valid and it is important to approach them all with fascination and in a spirit of tolerance. Cultural snobbery doesn’t work and separates the listener from valuable new learning experiences. We all have our preferences, but they should be liberating rather than narrowing.
Friday, February 26, 2010
The Sacred Power of Music
The Sacred Power of Music is my contribution to John Zorn's new publication Arcana V. Please support John's Publication; I highly recommend it. There are articles from 32 different composers dealing with many aspects of magic, mysticism and the spiritual in music. http://tzadik.com
Friday, January 15, 2010
Here is some feedback from composer/conductor Joel Thome
Your blog is inspiring, articulate and profound. It should be read by every music student and every composer!
With thanks and warmest regards, Joel
With thanks and warmest regards, Joel
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Infinite Permutation as a Creative Principle
Consider the following process as a manner of invention for musical material. A medieval composer takes a melodic fragment from plainchant, sets it in longer note values as a cantus firmus, and composes polyphony against the cantus firmus according to the contemporary practice. The new music sounds like medieval polyphony instead of plainchant. A bebop musician in the 1940’s takes the chord changes of a standard popular song and composes a new melody using the same harmonic structure. The new tune sounds like bebop instead of a standard pop song.
Now consider that the medieval composer takes a line of the new music and makes it the basis for new polyphonic composition using the same process. Or the bebopper makes substitute chord changes for the new tune and then composes a new melody over the substitute changes. These processes can continue ad infinitum, and the new music will always retain a seed of the original, but it will not necessarily be recognizable to the causal listener. Furthermore, the new work may sound radically different from the original or the most recent creation and the composer can create a new musical language in this manner. There is no end to the different directions this process can take, and there is no reason why the new creative work may not deal with any of the parameters of music (besides melody, harmony and counterpoint) and reframe the old model with, for example, new tuning systems, structural principles, rhythmic systems, instrumental, vocal or electronic settings, etc.
Now consider that the medieval composer takes a line of the new music and makes it the basis for new polyphonic composition using the same process. Or the bebopper makes substitute chord changes for the new tune and then composes a new melody over the substitute changes. These processes can continue ad infinitum, and the new music will always retain a seed of the original, but it will not necessarily be recognizable to the causal listener. Furthermore, the new work may sound radically different from the original or the most recent creation and the composer can create a new musical language in this manner. There is no end to the different directions this process can take, and there is no reason why the new creative work may not deal with any of the parameters of music (besides melody, harmony and counterpoint) and reframe the old model with, for example, new tuning systems, structural principles, rhythmic systems, instrumental, vocal or electronic settings, etc.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Artistic Vision and Craft
I define artistic vision as: the generating ideas for works of art; and craft as the power and technique to carry out the artistic vision. Much of our training as musicians consists of mastering the techniques and skills used to execute musical ideas. Less training is spent on the development of artistic vision. People who earn graduate degrees in music are not generally expected to do original research until they reach the doctoral level; even then, their topics of research are often suggested and always approved by their graduate advisers. Contrast that with the musical originality of the giants of music history: Machaut, Josquin, Monteverdi, Bach, Beethoven, Berlioz, Wagner, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Ives, Parker, Cage, Ellington, Partch, Monk, Stockhausen, Xenakis, and Gaburo, some of whom were self-taught or didn’t earn graduate degrees. Many composers with advanced degrees have superior craft, but lack original vision. Many musical visionaries possess original artistic visions, but lack the technique to completely realize their ideas; they either limit their musical visions to match their technique--or else they eventually master the craft necessary to realize their visions.
The ideal, of course, is to develop an original vision and possess the craft to realize that vision. Vision and craft go hand in hand. I have sometimes been criticized by performers for composing music which is technically difficult if not impossible. Of course, the technique is necessary to realize my ideas completely and distinctly. If performers approach my music with a sincere desire to understand the artistic vision, and they dedicate themselves to realizing that vision, the technical mastery follows naturally. Good musicians who work hard make great performances with an intensity which is excellent and rare.
The ideal, of course, is to develop an original vision and possess the craft to realize that vision. Vision and craft go hand in hand. I have sometimes been criticized by performers for composing music which is technically difficult if not impossible. Of course, the technique is necessary to realize my ideas completely and distinctly. If performers approach my music with a sincere desire to understand the artistic vision, and they dedicate themselves to realizing that vision, the technical mastery follows naturally. Good musicians who work hard make great performances with an intensity which is excellent and rare.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
