Wow, I clicked on your page and there is philip glass, I suppose it was a proper comparison then. Anyways, I love Glass!
“Most people die with their music still locked up inside them.”
― Benjamin Disraeli
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Comments
I listen to a lot of music from all sorts of styles, and as for a personal preference, Beethoven and Philip Glass are my two favorite composers as musicians but also as people. Your comparison is proper but I find it interesting as well because I didn't hear it at first. I'm curious if you have a particular piece of his in mind.
Edit: the more I think about it, I hear the violin part in Philip Glass-Dance 8 to be somewhat similar in a way, but I'm not sure if that is the piece that came to mind while listening.
The one trait in every song is that it is sound and silence -- that it is pleasing, or disconcerting to the ears: it's bound to make someone react, regardless of the manner and form. I may be wrong, or mistaken, but at least this is what I perceive: that whether it be old Roman chant, or plainchant, or a piece from kabuki theatre, or a traditional lullaby, or something off the mountains of Shaolin, it's bound to make someone feel something, or not feel something. Music is action, and with it comes a reaction.
As strange as this may sound, I still listen to Eastern music with Western ears (despite being of Eastern descent). Simply for a manner of understanding, even if at the end of the day, no matter what school of learning you have, the manner of playing an instrument has to be fluid and natural. In the East you have units; in the West you have syncopation -- and I tend to look at units in the context of syncopation.
:)
You're not wrong. That question is more about recognizing in a philosophical sense, maybe even in a subconscious level, about how we ourselves "treat" music and what we focus on whether it is through composing or what we tend to enjoy solely as a listener.
Music IS action, and music IS bound to make someone feel something or the lack thereof for a particular emotion. I particularly like what you said that it is sound AND silence. I don't necessarily think only in the terms of music alone, but rather to symbolically apply it to life itself. All that you said does apply.
"Next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world." Martin Luther
It is of no coincidence that the book of Psalms have always been a particular favorite for those to go to in times of sorrow as they are meant to be sung. We just don't have the music/notes documented that went with them, but I'm digressing a bit.
The point is in our perspective, and what music we listen to and write is a reflection in how we approach to live our lives. I don't know how obvious it is that my music tends to share a common theme that is death. I think about it quite often.
So this is my revelation when it comes to music:
If humanity were put in a box, you would get different perspectives, depending upon which side the individual sees. Humanity is a lot of things such as beautiful, and beauty is measured by subconsciously knowing that all things evaporate eventually. And that repetitious trait in every song is its ending.
ZLEAP
I am both excited and fearful to get into music theory with you. I imagine myself listening and learning more than discussing.
Phonometrologist
Ah what a pleasant surprise as I didn’t expect a reply really from anyone. My intention to write this was for my own sake with a slight chance that maybe someone else would find it interesting.
No fear necessary and I think we could discuss many things in regards to theory. Theory in itself explains the “how,” so I’m also highly interested in the philosophy of music to help clarify the “why” aspect as well. I’m also interested in the thinking, and I wish I could dedicate more time in studying music cognition. To see why some people enjoy a particular work while others do not, moreover, what a particular chord and a chord progression does inside an individual’s mind. I imagine it be similar to poetry in a way where words are carefully chosen to project an image. The web image that is attached to a word when you hear it can be unique to an individual in a way. For example: a child learns the meaning of the word “wet” and “dry” when playing in a bathtub or water-sprinkler.
I mentioned the art of words because I see a commonality in music.
What’s important is how effective the message is to which the music speaks to you. And I’m sure some wouldn’t accept this simple explanation of what is music, but Philip Glass and I are in agreement that music is a form of elegant speech.
I also love hearing other people’s own interpretation on the music they listen to. And I would like to leave open for discussion what that trait is that’s in every piece of music ever written. There’s not a definitive answer really, but it is in the perspective of the listener that makes it interesting. And there certainly is an answer.
“The true voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”- Marcel Proust