Comments on: The Tyranny Of Conscious Thought

By: Jack

Jack — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:29:45 +0000

I agree! I think music is soothing to the mind and it doesn't matter what kind of music you're into, if the beats are right, you will be happy. I became interested in classical music after hearing pianist Ronnie Segev perform a rendition of Beethoven's Sonata Op. 69, and now I am learning more about other composers from sites like this. Keep up the good work!

By: Ben

Ben — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 04:15:42 +0000

Ahhh… that quote does fit in a bit better with the concept of actually playing, rather than just passively (or even actively) listening.

It’s definitely a complicated issue — but I guess if the quote really tried to be accurate it wouldn’t sound quite as snappy :)

By: Nic Stage

Nic Stage — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:25:45 +0000

When I first came across this quote elsewhere, I read it in terms of making/performing music rather than listening to it. I didn’t think of it in terms of listening to it. I tend to agree with the statement in terms of performing music (And lots of other art forms) to a certain degree. I would reword it slightly to say “A function of music…” instead of “THE function of music”.

I agree with you when it comes to listening to music. Music is much more likely to inspire a thoughtfulness when I’m listening to it. Although there are certain pieces and/or moods I might be in that will imbue a state of positive unconsciousness in me. The best performance I’ve ever had were very removed from conscious thought in the sense of thinking about what notes I was playing, timing, etc.

By: Ben

Ben — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 02:59:06 +0000

I like the ECT analogy. And I’d never heard that about writing and Baroque music — maybe I’ll try that when I am trying to isolate myself from the lab to think about a problem at work.

It seems like something in between thinking and not thinking, doesn’t it?

By: R J Keefe

R J Keefe — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 04:40:25 +0000

Is “thought” the word? I know that I cannot listen to music and not pay attention. Forget trying to fall asleep. The moment music ceases to be very interesting, it becomes very annoying.

And yet, like many writers, I find, I can work along quite happily to baroque music — especially Bach (what a scandal) — to which I’m not paying any attention at all. I’d know if it stopped, or if someone played the bourrée instead of the allemande, but that’s not really conscious attention, is it?

The quote must have been made by a romantic. A view more characteristic of the Enlightenment would recognize that music is a mild sort of electro-convulsive therapy: it resets the pulse of nerves.