If I were still in the academy and in the habit of writing long essays and whatnot, I would be terribly interested in writing something about limits in art and music that goes beyond the basics. And I’m not talking about a history of what limitations were (no parallel fifths for J.S. Bach) and why, but an examination of what happens when they’re not around and why they are so vital to the creative process.
There are pages and pages of my journals going back to my freshman year of conservatory that discuss the rules of music. At first, there is a lot of whining about how I don’t care to learn 16th century counterpoint or the harsh techniques surrounding 18th century fugues. In no time that gives way to the near panic upon the discovery of John Cage and the ultimate removal of all rules in exchange for music that is entirely conceptual. At some point I even wrote to myself that it was terrifying to consider that all I needed was “a beginning and an end and anything in between is music.” Dramatic, no? But true. For the most part.
There are days when I wish that I had time to think about things like this more. That I could amass enough research to make a compelling case for my theory that without limits there can’t really be any art or music but if I don’t want to give up creating music of my own, I will have to put it off for a while. Or post paragraphs to my blog from time to time and hope it adds up.
Mixing continues tonight. I’m not excited to do the mixing but I can’t wait to get the collection out the door. More on that as the week progresses.
Vaguely apropos: http://www.wetmachine.com/item/1643
Anyway, thanks for the post.
Vaguely apropos: http://www.wetmachine.com/item/1643
Anyway, thanks for the post.