tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post7185586960880516296..comments2024-03-27T23:06:03.736-05:00Comments on The Music Salon: What is Music?Bryan Townsendhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09482696991279345516noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-87565769644823744602016-01-26T07:40:50.847-06:002016-01-26T07:40:50.847-06:00Aha, we have been visited by the shade of John Cag...Aha, we have been visited by the shade of John Cage!Bryan Townsendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09482696991279345516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-40336678737726057682016-01-24T15:15:27.956-06:002016-01-24T15:15:27.956-06:00"What is music?"
To the modernist, it..."What is music?"<br />To the modernist, it's and auditory work of art, usually with sound that reaches listener's ears.<br />Example: Using a blender to make orange juice. That's so music.<br /><br />To the classical musician, it's rote.<br /><br />(I guess I love today's perceptions on music.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-3826343852076353392016-01-19T07:42:57.496-06:002016-01-19T07:42:57.496-06:00Yes, very charming piece. It is from Glassworks, a...Yes, very charming piece. It is from Glassworks, an album I owned in the 80s. Most certainly reading his memoir has made a big difference in how I regard him and his music. Now I know a great deal about him, his life and what he thinks about music and composition. I'm not sure it makes a difference in how I listen to or evaluate the music, though.<br /><br />Yes, you are right, I didn't respond to that question. It is rather a tricky one, isn't it? It actually seems to prompt a whole bunch of other questions: what sort of evidence would speak to a musician's passion about their music? Would it be evident in the way they perform it? In the specifics of the music itself? Would the lyrics offer clues? What about the qualities of the music itself? What if the songs very predictably used only tried and tested harmonic progressions and hackneyed rhythms? What does it mean to be passionate about your music? Does it mean you play or sing with passion? Does someone who sings with restraint indicate a lack of passion? If you are passionate about your music do you seek to find unique ways of creating it, or are you content with the usual clichés?<br /><br />I actually think that posing those questions is the best answer to your question!Bryan Townsendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09482696991279345516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8827040061563065922.post-63873246821749498122016-01-18T10:12:38.165-06:002016-01-18T10:12:38.165-06:00That's an absolutely lovely piece! I've li...That's an absolutely lovely piece! I've listened five times.Now that you've read Philip Glass' memoire has it influenced the way you feel about him? By the way you didn't answer my question: "If you truly believed these musicians were passionate about what they were doing, passionate about the music itself, would you accuse them of money grubbing?"Christine Lacroixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02006109075551438090noreply@blogger.com