A short invented word to describe the method I’ve been using to compose instrumental music for the last 15 years, ‘overtonality’ might be better described as ‘resonance-based, continuo-supported harmony’. Over the next series of posts, there will be less whimsy and more articulation of the basis of this type of composing.  for now, here is one example, as performed by CSULB New Music Ensemble a few years ago, Martin Herman conducting.

An idea for how the tradtional components of music are studied in the academy, as interpreted by the teachers of Eastern thought:

1. pulse/rhythm = lower chakra, body, sex, physical attributes of existence (e.g. dancing).

2. melody/monody = heart centered, emotional life, ‘soul’. When produced by a human voice with words, is associated with 5th chakra (creative expression of soul).

3. harmony  = the voice of God that replies to the entreaty of the heart. Mindful contemplation.

4. counterpoint = the intellect, a distillation of the work that melody and harmony does. Modal counterpoint prevailed until Western culture needed more clarity and reason, less floating and soaring of the spirit. Bach’s great achievement was to harness both.

5. color = the aesthetic, sensual world. Does not appear as a major feature until the 19C.

More psychedelic griefwork from 2006:

Better this than the alternatives, too various and generally pathetic and gruesome to contemplate.

Check out this press photo for the ‘singing string quartet’ Well Strung.

According to a recent study published by the National Academy of Sciences, what we ‘see’ trumps what he ‘hear’ in choosing music that we like. For gay guys, it’s a tantalizing prospect – nerdy classical musician types transformed into porn stars. For fans of classical string chamber music, however, this marketing strategy may leave one cold – a gimmick to get in Lady Gaga fans to concerts. Even though the dude’s ripped look good to my eye, the truth is that his musculature probably detracts from his playing as it limits the mobilty and dead arm weight needed to produce a great tone. Do gay fans care? Nah. The pecs trump our interest in tone.

Sight over sound in the judgment of music performanceDepartment of Management Science and Innovation, Faculty of Engineering Science, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom Edited by Dale Purves, Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, Singapore, Singapore, and approved July 12, 2013 (received for review December 21, 2012) Abstract Social judgments are made on the basis of both visual and auditory information, with consequential implications for our decisions.

via Pnas

Renders colors to life that one does not normally see. Grief has a well-earned reputation for making grown folks do strange things, but it also sends the habits of life and thinking into exile status for a period of time. Traditional cultures have had a smart approach – with lifespans shorter and infant mortality high, few could afford the luxury of a long, open-ended period of grieving. Women needed to get back to basic tasks and child-rearing – family unit survival, not merely emotional cohesion, depended on it. They took a period of their lives and changed everything, ululating and wearing special colors and making a basic but conspicuous change to the home. Anything to get through it and get back to substantial tasks. What will 21st Century grieving look like, with the social media tools that allow for a narcissistic self-regard? Getting through the crazy quilt wilderness of major grief requires a purpose. For this writer, it was musical. Here’s one that came out of that sorrowful summer.