Listening to music IS the education, and it's all the education you need.
Well, though I agree that there is something to what you say, I certainly don't agree fully with that. And, even if my disagreement is the very fact that I know I want something more, then I therefore need more. In general, when I am talking about "educated" and these things, I am not just talking about what people learn in school or things which many people just love to consider "stuffy" ... I mean it in a very fundamental sense of the word. I don't know, I think I am *far* more curious than most people must think and can even imagine.
Bach inventions, sure they're great, and sure Rachmaninov and Beethoven are great, but I was wondering about the lesser known pieces and composers you listen to and have a fondness for.
Just because I have a love for the inventions and some things which are more well-known doesn't mean that is the only thing that I love. Sometimes there are very specific reasons I want to know about certain things, and sometimes it is apparently IMPOSSIBLE for me to explain that in a satisfactory way to anybody on the entire planet.
You talk about an ongoing hunger for information but do you have that hunger for music?
Yes, of course I do. This is a good example of where I have actually stated numerous times, very directly, that I deeply love music ... specific pieces, and for whatever reason, just because you apparently don't see whatever you think you need to see in my writing, you (as an example) don't seem to see what I am saying. I just don't understand that.
Still, I open up discussions about it and see what other people think, it's actually not that diffeent from performing and exposing one's own playing!
Well, with all due respect, I am not too convinced you know that much about what it is like to perform and expose one's playing. So far, I mostly get the impression that you mainly talk about doing so as though you know what you are talking about. That aside, I don't understand why sometimes you can't just see that people behave in different manners, and it doesn't mean what you think it does, necessarily. Just because you open up discussions on particular works doesn't mean I should, or anybody else really. And, besides that, I have !!
I guess part of the point is, I feel it takes me a very long time, and I truly mean a very long time, to grasp a piece of a music. I really mean years. And, until I am grasping *something* about it, I don't feel inclined to speak about it, especially with jerky sharks swimming everywhere. But, a couple of examples of pieces that mean very much to me are the Feinberg 6th sonata, for example. And, yes, I am very attached to the rendition that our local artist, Marik, has posted. But, see, when I listen to this, it means something to me that I would wish to discuss with HIM, not just with any random person who might feel it's fun to be rude just for the sake of it. Yes, I happen to be a very sensitive person, and for years I am trying to deal with that. Forgive me if I don't always feel like being whatever others think I should be. Part of it is that I don't always know whether it is the piece or the artist that is affecting me as it seems I am being affected. So, in the case of Marik, for example, I listen to all of the recordings of him that I have access to, and in the case of the sonata itself, I would be interested to hear other people's performances (but I still might just be biased ... you see ?). That is where I feel as though sometimes I need more fuel for my thought and not just continue swimming around in my own, exclusive perceptions. But, I certainly don't trust any random person's ideas.
Another example is Barber's Interlude No.1, adagio for Jeanne. I have a recording by John Browning. I absolutely, hands down, crave this piece. And, it seems to me that John Browning has a good grasp of it, but I don't *really* know ! I like all of Barber's music, but this one in particular absolutely is different for me. I like the version of Burgmuller's "Music of the Angels" that somebody recorded and posted in the sheetmusic section of PS (not the audition room, but the official recording for the sheetmusic), a level 3 piece according to the levels assigned here on this site. I like listening to
those recordings. Have
you done any listening of those ? Have you bothered to purchase whatever the gold membership account costs (I just forget the exact number) and have a listen ?
I absolutely *love* some mystery piece that nobody seems to know, which I just by CHANCE got to know through an amazing recording that one of my former teachers made. He is a nearly completely unkown artist, and apparently this piece is extremely unknown, and I would *die* to play it, but for whatever the heck reason, for YEARS, can't figure out what it is.
Also, I have listened now to Alistair Hinton's string quintet about 5 or 6 times in total, full length at once (and then sometimes parts when I don't have the time to listen to the whole thing). Have you heard it even once ? When I first listened to this, I wasn't sure what my reaction was, I mean, I knew what it was, but I wasn't sure why I was having it. So, generally, I like to give myself time and see if for any reason I ever want to return to listening to a piece of music. And, I have. It is a monstrous work.
Anyway, I often weigh what my actions and thoughts are. I happen to be teaching for about 25-30 hours a week (actual teaching time, not to mention prep. time), I seriously study two instruments (sometimes which I am actually preparing concerts/performances for), and I have a household to somewhat maintain, as a person whom shares a space with another. I feel I could *easily* practice for at least 10 hours a day between my two instruments, and there are MILLION things I would like to be doing just to better myself as a musician, alone ! So, no, I don't dedicate large amounts of time to strictly listening. When I do, it needs to really count.
Topic: What's on your mind now?