"Music is the Language of God," Beethoven

[Samantha74]

I love beautiful things. I love beautiful art work. I love beautiful music. Music that means something to the heart of the matter. Whether it is of love, of a broken heart, of a happy day in the life of a child, of the death of a loved one, of creation. Actually, when I am writing music using the computer and notation software it is like a painters pallet. I think ooh I'll try this color, and that one, oh yes and that one. Something to that effect. I am just facinated with the sounds of instruments and the fact that humans play them. Only the one that I play on the piano do I have an emotional feeling involved, but I do so little of that at this time.

[reith]

Hello Samantha and welcome.

It's a fact that music allows us to express deeply "spiritual" energies and sensual issues without the severe limitation of words.

Good luck with composing!

[Samantha74]

Originally Posted by reith

Hello Samantha and welcome.

It's a fact that music allows us to express deeply "spiritual" energies and sensual issues without the severe limitation of words.

Good luck with composing!

"Spiritual energies." Beethoven is credited with saying, "Music is the language of God." This I believe because when I am composing it is more like I am taking dictation. I write what come to my mind.

[reith]

No disagreement there. "Spiritual energies" because they arise from the Mysteries within you personally, call them God-energies, inspiration or just God as you choose. Whether you regard them (or God) as exterior or interior doesn't matter because the Mysteries are somehow awakened in the individual and are unique.

I like your idea - you, perhaps "we" in our physical form, are secretaries who do the job of rationalising the result and go through the mechanics of writing it (or whatever), whether it comes though intuition or through cerebral, cognitive process. Someone like Beethoven was both genius and secretary in the same person.

Interesting, those who have never had, or lost, the secretarial skills and manage to compose via another person - Delius in his last years, for example.

cheers

[Student]

Ah, an idea somewhat akin to the Tolkienian view of art's place within the universe.

Originally Posted by Well, it's a decent summary but not Tolkien's words

God created the Universe and people within it to create and more fully flesh out what he had created, to subcreate as it were, this is what art is and always has been, expanding and building upon God's ultimate creation.

His Catholic background was a major influence on this concept but he worked out most of the ontology himself. Those of you who've read the Silmarillion probably understand much of it, and those who paid attention throughout the LOTR books caught glimpses of his ideas.

Sorry Samantha (especially sorry for misremembering your name...), you mentioned something vaguely philosophical and strongly theological. Those things set me off.

Edit: Names... names... names...

[reith]

Eh??????

Where's Michelle and Tolkein come into it?

Someone doesn't know what they're tolkein about.

[reith]

Originally Posted by Student

.......you mentioned something vaguely philosophical and strongly theological.

I'm not Samantha, obviously, but just to take you up on this point. I'm more of a street philosopher. As I see it philosophy and theology are man-made projections that allow speculation on questions that can never be answered because of the limitations of human perception. However, musical composition "from the heart" is one of those things that no one can explain except that it comes from one's deepest hidden self. While a composition can be talked about, its inherent nature cannot be intellectualised. I have my general theories as to why and how...they can only apply to me and serve as an adequate model on which to base my own creative work. Possibly, others have come to similar conclusions. Point is, as these deepest realms are hidden and unlikely to be unveiled in a way that can be intellectualised and subjected to reason - they certainly defy reason beyond the application of arbitrary rules of technique on the surface - they might as well be called anything as long as we have some idea of what is meant when discussing.

I'll be happy to call them God, God energies, spiritual energies, Mysteries, magic, the blancmange zone, pure intuition. That would do for me.

Of course, once things rise to the level of the 'secretary', converted into the pragmatics of notation, more can be talked about because at this level we're into form, structure, rules and areas where pockets of consensus have long been reached.

[brightparis]

I m great fan of Beethoven and i totally agree with him.Very Best of Luck for your future.