Art, Sound, Mind

Of  things within the artist's control, the choice of what enters consciousness, and what does not, is of singular importance.

In the course of everyday events, various degrees of attention are given to innumerable things, and to indiscriminately focus on the mundane and banal is anathema to creativity and aesthetic purpose.

When the mind is directed to accomplishing work involving details and nuanced gestures, the artist's attention is thoroughly engaged.  In sound composition, this means ideas combine with execution, along with continuing assessment of the work, both before and after its completion.

With critical discernment, choose, perceive, experience, internalize, and bring into being.

Vision and Influence

Observe the various connections of art to nature, cultural life, and the world of emotion.

These are projections, first filtered through the consciousness, experience, and self-knowledge of the artist, then through those of the percipient of the art. They represent such things as objects, people, and events, and they are placed in specific contexts in order to produce particular effects associated with ideas and feelings.

What is true for visual and literary forms applies to musical works as well.  The composer seeking only to arrange sounds for aesthetic purposes is equally subject to these scenarios of cause and effect.

What is imperative is that the work be done with clarity and integrity.

Artsounds

From the artist's perspective, the purpose of the composition is to draw the percipient into the focal point of the work.

Historically, this focal point changes as the result of political, economic, and cultural factors, as is clearly revealed in all artforms.

From my point of view as composer of sounds, as well as that of my collaborator, the focal point is the individual listener's consciousness itself.

Enter Tradition

Predictability suffocates interest.

At issue is the power of sound imagery in cultural life.  The banal cannot simply be set in opposition to the works of the past and claim justification through ironic perspective, nor can superficiality and appeals to tastes popular and otherwise attain meaning when none exists.

What is of genuine moment is the realization of imagination.

Rebellion, Cognition and the Percipient

Revolt is, at times, an existential necessity.

Any artform may be designed as a tool for elevating perception and evolving perspective.  Most are not so designed, and, in fact, engage a sense of acceptance of the status quo accordingly.  This is no more than a capitulation to appearances.  Nothing more.

The artist as composer is interested in revealing, through representations in sound, the underlying realities of natural and human phenomena, and if doing so results in a sense of transcendence and detachment in the listener, so it will be.

Will to Hear

Listen with intent.

Observe surroundings, hear what is present, absorb and realize reality through perception, and do so in order to be more alive, and more human.

Intrinsic Connections

Sounds acquire associations, and these are developed in the course of listening experiences.

Yet, given their value, these associations alone do not provide breadth and depth in absorbing the reality of sound.  This subjectivity must be set aside and perceptivity developed, along with moral reason and the aesthetic sense, for one's consciousness of the meanings inherent in sound to evolve.