Why do you write music ?

Music is reality

(forewarning: I was pretty high when I came up with this)

So, like, there's everything. Everything that can exist, & everything that can't (which defines the former). Some people call this God, some people call it the Universe. Doesn't really matter what you call it. We're all part of it, & by extension we are also all of it - a being at once able & unable to comprehend itself.

For example type purposes, think of a cell in the nail of your left thumb (if you do not have thumbs disregard). It is many things - a cell, a collection of atoms, a finger, you, the human race, an abstract concept on an internet forum. You are vaguely aware that you are that cell, but that cell is not aware that it is you. By extension, you cannot truly realize that you are all of reality, even while you are.

Humanity has always had this idea of enlightenment, a point that, once reached, would forever transform one into a higher lifeform. But this is just human perspective. I personally view everything & nothing as different words for the same concept. Possibilities are infinite & therefore meaningless. Time is constant or flowing depending on how you look at it. At all times we are experiencing birth, death, & every moment of our lives.

Look at rocks. As far as we know, rocks have no desires. They just are, enlightened precisely because they are unable to comprehend it. Simple organic organisms, like, say...ants, might have some sense of self awareness, but are primarily focused on simple day to day survival. Humans, with our abstract thought & leisurely lifestyles, have the means to finally see ourselves for what we truly are in the scheme of things. The paradox in this idea is that upon realizing they are in fact everything, one then realizes they therefore have always been everything, coming in & out of existence, & the path of endless possibilities they have taken to reach this point is both real & an illusion.

Now, this is where music ties in in a few different ways. When you write a song (this applies to all forms of expression really but this is a music forum), you're essentially mimicking God (yourself) - creating something that is both a part of you & its own entity, using musical concepts given meaning by humanity (yourself).

Everyone has the potential to be a great musician or artist, but it lies in accepting, on some level, that good & bad are ideas you apply to parts of yourself that can be changed at will & both are essentially without meaning. There is no good music or bad music, just music. Great creators who change the way humanity views reality exist only because humanity decides it wants to, on a collective level.

And one more metaphor for duality - imagine that you took every audible pitch, every sound the human ear can possibly comprehend, & played them all at once in one endless drone. The sound that emits could be viewed in one of two ways - a meaningless babble of white noise without shape or definition, or, an infinite array of the most beautiful melodies imaginable playing together in the most complex harmony that could ever be. And I think that's kinda what the universe is like

Time for less thinking, and more music making.

  On 10/26/2011 at 5:35 PM, Cryptowen said:

Music is reality

(forewarning: I was pretty high when I came up with this)

 

So, like, there's everything. Everything that can exist, & everything that can't (which defines the former). Some people call this God, some people call it the Universe. Doesn't really matter what you call it. We're all part of it, & by extension we are also all of it - a being at once able & unable to comprehend itself.

 

For example type purposes, think of a cell in the nail of your left thumb (if you do not have thumbs disregard). It is many things - a cell, a collection of atoms, a finger, you, the human race, an abstract concept on an internet forum. You are vaguely aware that you are that cell, but that cell is not aware that it is you. By extension, you cannot truly realize that you are all of reality, even while you are.

 

Humanity has always had this idea of enlightenment, a point that, once reached, would forever transform one into a higher lifeform. But this is just human perspective. I personally view everything & nothing as different words for the same concept. Possibilities are infinite & therefore meaningless. Time is constant or flowing depending on how you look at it. At all times we are experiencing birth, death, & every moment of our lives.

 

Look at rocks. As far as we know, rocks have no desires. They just are, enlightened precisely because they are unable to comprehend it. Simple organic organisms, like, say...ants, might have some sense of self awareness, but are primarily focused on simple day to day survival. Humans, with our abstract thought & leisurely lifestyles, have the means to finally see ourselves for what we truly are in the scheme of things. The paradox in this idea is that upon realizing they are in fact everything, one then realizes they therefore have always been everything, coming in & out of existence, & the path of endless possibilities they have taken to reach this point is both real & an illusion.

 

Now, this is where music ties in in a few different ways. When you write a song (this applies to all forms of expression really but this is a music forum), you're essentially mimicking God (yourself) - creating something that is both a part of you & its own entity, using musical concepts given meaning by humanity (yourself).

 

Everyone has the potential to be a great musician or artist, but it lies in accepting, on some level, that good & bad are ideas you apply to parts of yourself that can be changed at will & both are essentially without meaning. There is no good music or bad music, just music. Great creators who change the way humanity views reality exist only because humanity decides it wants to, on a collective level.

 

And one more metaphor for duality - imagine that you took every audible pitch, every sound the human ear can possibly comprehend, & played them all at once in one endless drone. The sound that emits could be viewed in one of two ways - a meaningless babble of white noise without shape or definition, or, an infinite array of the most beautiful melodies imaginable playing together in the most complex harmony that could ever be. And I think that's kinda what the universe is like

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

oh god the walls are melthing

 

I like you, Cryptowen.

i think the difference is that similar to the concept of choice, humans are also bestowed the ability to interpret art. interpretation is entirely subjective yet at the same time easily absorbed and transferred. one who interprets a particular song in a particular way may be doing so simply by how they perceieve others interpreting it. or they could stop and think about what they're hearing and make their own decision. this is where choice comes in. i believe intelligence also plays a role.

  On 10/27/2011 at 10:32 PM, hardcode said:

humans are also bestowed the ability to interpret art

Speak for yourself...

  On 10/26/2011 at 6:47 PM, ZoeB said:

Time for less thinking, and more music making.

This really hit me. I need to think less, therefore I should end this musical dry spell. I think that already started last night though.

Let's face it, making music is actually more fun than talking about making music. Sure, it's harder to do, but it's much more rewarding and satisfying afterwards to sit down and listen to what you've done, knowing that it's good and you're the one who made it. Swapping tips is useful because it aids the music making process. I'm not so much into philosophy, because it doesn't actually help me in any practical way (that and dualism sounds insane to me). Live for the flow, my friend.

It's pretty easy to write good music. When you're not inspired, when you don't want to write music, when you can only write bad music, do it anyway. After a few hours of writing music even if it's bad, you'll likely be writing good music again. Just work through any creative blocks. You need to exercise your creativity the same way you exercise anything else.

Also, I'm glad to hear your dry spell's ending, that's great! :D

  On 10/27/2011 at 10:42 PM, ZoeB said:

  On 10/27/2011 at 10:32 PM, hardcode said:

humans are also bestowed the ability to interpret art

 

Speak for yourself...

i dont get it, you're saying you can't interpret art or something?

  On 10/26/2011 at 5:35 PM, Cryptowen said:

Music is reality

(forewarning: I was pretty high when I came up with this)

 

So, like, there's everything. Everything that can exist, & everything that can't (which defines the former). Some people call this God, some people call it the Universe. Doesn't really matter what you call it. We're all part of it, & by extension we are also all of it - a being at once able & unable to comprehend itself.

this is a top notch ramble and similar to some ideas that have been rolling around in my head today. i've been thinking about structure, that structure or composition is everything, the ultimate nature of the universe. composition of particles makes atoms, composition of atoms makes molecules, composition of bricks makes walls, etc.

you could say the mind of god is the sum of principles dictating the composition of all things. making music is definitely godlike, since it is an example of will dictating composition.

to answer the question of the thread, it makes me more satisfied with myself than anything else, because i recognize that it is the best thing i've ever done. my accomplishments in music, and even moreso in audio/visual max patching, are the one thing that makes me truly proud of my mind.

lately i've been less motivated to work on music, but more motivated to work on patches. one of the great inspirations with programming is the versatility of finished projects. making your own tools and then using them is one of the most rewarding things you can do. finishing a synth you really like, you not only have the satisfaction of having made something good, but also knowing that you'll be able to use that thing you just made over and over again in the future, interfacing it with other creations of yours in all different ways.

it's a strange mindset i get into when patching/programming... i get kind of sucked out of the real world through this creative wormhole. it's a great feeling, but sometimes it's difficult to come back to reality and understand that i'm actually this thing with skin and legs and i'm supposed to eat food and make money and shit.

  On 10/27/2011 at 11:15 PM, hardcode said:

i dont get it, you're saying you can't interpret art or something?

Pretty much, yeah. I get entertainment. I get functional music that serves a purpose. I get something that makes you emotional, or that makes you want to dance. Art always sounds very hazy and nebulous, and a lot of the time it sounds like something similar to entertainment, except it doesn't entertain anybody.

I liked Cyptowens rant... similar to ideas I have also been thinking about for a long time. I bad with words though, and I always feel like what I am trying to say is just a short distance away from my grasp... music definitely has made me a spiritual person, and has allowed me ways to view the world around me in ways I've never have before. I really am hesitant to write more, as I never seem to say exactly what I feel in my head. Music is how I best express myself... I'll leave the words to the poets(jodi foster ftw).

I had no idea so many people here were spiritual. Interesting. I didn't really expect that, given the technical nature of electronic music.

I'm not surprised at all... Music is one of the most direct lines to emotion, and technical things excite the brain... Throw in the solitude that comes with writing electronic music, and the meditative state you go into during the periods of inspiration and creation, it makes perfect sense that people doing this would feel a sense of something deeper than just the physical world.

  On 10/26/2011 at 6:47 PM, ZoeB said:

Time for less thinking, and more music making.

hi 5

  On 10/28/2011 at 6:27 PM, Kcinsu said:

it makes perfect sense that people doing this would feel a sense of something deeper than just the physical world.

hi 5

my reason is:::why not

Because hearing is seeing.

  On 10/27/2011 at 10:48 PM, EleminoP said:

  On 10/26/2011 at 6:47 PM, ZoeB said:

Time for less thinking, and more music making.

This really hit me. I need to think less, therefore I should end this musical dry spell. I think that already started last night though.

Haven't written anything for over a month now... I write because I enjoy it, but I haven't felt it in a while... it irritates me. I want to write music, but I can't make myself do it. When I try, I make shit, so I just stop after an hour or so now.

  On 10/30/2011 at 7:33 PM, Sprigg said:

When I try, I make shit, so I just stop after an hour or so now.

That's exactly my point! You have to break through the hour of shit on your way to the hour of gold.

For me there's a certain feel when I'm going to have a really productive musicking session. I'll sit down, start putting stuff together without really thinking about it, & before I know it the track's pretty much written itself. Sometimes trying to force it works, but the ones where I'm not putting a lot of force in are generally the funnest.

I'd say the hit/miss ratio is about the same for both methods, though.

  On 10/27/2011 at 11:15 PM, hardcode said:

i dont get it, you're saying you can't interpret art or something?

OK, so if you define "art" as, say, "great art stretches the taste, it doesn’t follow tastes," then I'm down with that, although it's still objectively difficult if not impossible to differentiate between what's really cutting edge and out there versus what's just plain bad, if such a distinction even exists... The whole thing seems a bit nebulous. In this sense, I philosophically prefer popular culture over high culture because you can at least quantify how popular it is, which means you can ignore the philosophy altogether and go straight into making things that people actually want. I try to ensure that each thing I make is better than the last, but if I can't quantify how good something is, that's not possible. A populist philosophy is as close as I can get to that, so is a means to an end of achieving a practical, philosophy-less philosophy, if you see what I mean. :) Basically, I want to think about the reason to create things as little as possible and actually create and improve them as much as possible, so I use A/B testing, licensing and album sales to do that. The only problem with the latter two is changing multiple factors at once, such as a subtle shift in genre at the same time as a different direction in marketing tactics... But that's what I'm aiming for, at least. :)

I don't think I write because I enjoy it or how artistic it is.

I think I do it because in general I like to create things, regardless of what they are.

Because I must.

But for real, I find it fulfilling and worthwhile for whatever reasons there are. If I didn't make music, I would do something else instead, but I like music. The thing with music is that it doesn't have to have specific meanings or narratives. It can be extremely vague and minutely specific at the same time. There's so much feeling in it. People get all caught up in books and movies and visual art because of all the words and interpretations. Music, not so much.

Also, nice one Crypty.

I write music because I can't help it. The whole process is a constant chase for some form of perfection and elevation that only we know it's there, waiting to be found. Sometimes I come off as somewhat anti-social; making music makes me feel like I can reach out to other people and touch them in a beautiful way.

Just wanted to say I like a lot of the latest posts in this thread.