The Logic Off Topic list

In einer eMail vom 05.08.00 11:56:08 (MEZ) - Mitteleurop. Sommerzeit schreibt 
bhelsloot@...:

<< Learning about instruments is also my goal, just like you said. Wich 
brings me back to the start of this dicussion; you'll have to understand a 
lot about music in all it's aspect and traditions if you'd like to come to a 
good result.>>

You're right ... even if it will always also exist people with a very 
intuitiv talent with very poor knowledge about composition technics and 
traditions able to bring new things into music art. Very often, it will be 
someone coming from an other place, with an other bakground and an other 
representation of the world with different esthetic norms.

What I mean is that computers give us a new approach to music, much more 
intuitiv. Many of my friends composers - coming from both avant-garde and 
jazz related music - would confirm that point. Some of them hat even a 
esthetic break point after starting composing in a computer supported 
environment. Music is _sound_ and not symbolic notation, even if you can 
achieve a very high level of abstract and mental representation abilities. 

<< In a lot of music wich has come grasp of many amateurs (thanks to the 
computer) you can see a very poor use of musical means. I think that's 
ashame. Todays slogan is - everyone can do everything-, this is killing art; 
the results on media speak for itself. >>

You are probably right here too... even if I really enjoy our time where 
people witout any music background can buy a synth or a sampler... built a 
homestudio... make some music... put it on a website... discuss it in a 
mailinglist... and get some fans who want to download it. You must admit that 
the possibility to bypass intutitions and music industry giants will open 
fantastic possibilities, even if it will also, of course, make music with 
very low quality available and create new marketing "rules", obviously with 
many perverse implications. But at the end, you're free to go where you want, 
and concerning medias, I do believe they will go through considerable changes 
in the coming years. Of course, I may be a very optimistic person.

<< And afcourse Stockhausen was a child of its time, but don't underestimate 
the influence of people like him on todays art. >>

I don't know if I underestimate the influence of Stockhausen... and Boulez, 
Berio, Nono... etc.... the famous 20 years composers... on todays art. With 
the exception of Ligeti and some Berio things like Aronne for example, I 
don't care about them anymore so much. I know very well the scores they 
wrote, I have read all the books they wrote. Today, I still enjoy the "enfant 
terrible" spirit that they all had it the young years. I'm smilling and find 
it amusing to see that they more or less all tried to built up solid music 
intutitions that are today more or less all obsolete and, today, I prefer to 
go down a street in Bombay and listen to a amazing tabla-player or visit some 
west african kalimba-players in a small village. My taste and interest may 
have changed and with more life experience, I'm now more concerned about 
living closer to simple things able of speaking by themselves, without any 
need of a verbal dissertation.

<<The underlying idea of " everything can be caculated" is still there ( once 
I've wrote a lot of serial music by the way; incredible) and not only in 
music.>>

Hmmm... God protect us....

... :-)... I'm joking... nice to hear that you didn't persist in this way. To 
namy tabous... isn't it? I probably would prefer your jazz oriented phase... 
:-)

Have a nice week-end.

basto