One of Pink's suggestions for honing one's sense of symphony is to listen to some of the great masters' work. During the vacation I downloaded a bunch of symphonies from iTunes and listened to them. Amazing!
I never really studied music other than the bits and pieces you get in school. Never learned an instrument which I believe hinders my appreciation of "classical" music. I have no real understanding of the art/science of musical composition. But this time I really tried to listen... put on the headphones and closed my eyes. It was quite an experience. As Pink points out these pieces are a great example of many different elements coming together to make a whole which is greater than the sum of its parts.
Another suggestion of Pink's is listening for metaphor. Metaphor is a linguistic way of seeing familiar things in a new light. The inventor of velcro noticed burrs sticking to his dog's coat and came up with the idea for the now ubiquitous fastener. If we notice metaphor and practice thinking metaphorically we can open a door to our creativity.
I'm enjoying symphony...the music and the thought process.
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With my 8th grade ELA classes we are studying some of the music that was considered degenerate by Hitler, composed by inmates of the concentration camps. One in particular stands out to me because it was written on scraps of paper, and the composer (25 years old) was killed just a few weeks before the camp was liberated.
Anyway - you can see the way metaphor and symphony relate - especially in music. For some of the prisoners, the only way to express feelings of fear, terror, sorrow and even hope was through music. So, even if we don't quite understand it. . . .we are listening for it.
Sounds really intense! Love classical music. Isn't it interesting Pink's suggestion of looking at things as a metaphor. Makes you think deeper. You need all of the parts to make a whole...symphony
I really appreciate your comment on "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts." Great application of a mathematical concept : ). I enjoy classical music and I haven't thought about it this way, I'm glad you brought up that great point.
I have been trying to write my comments on everyones blog and i read this blog a few days ago and it got me thinking about how it takes a lot of different instruments to play together and create a symphany. I have been having a few teamwork issues with the girls in my class recently and after reading your blog I tried something. I kept the girls in from recess and had them listen to a Hanna Montana song ( something they could relate to) I told them to write down all the different instruments that heard. After the song was over, I asked them to tell me the different instruments that the heard. we then talked about how the song would sound if one of the instruments werent there and I compared them to the song. I told them we were all an intrument from the song and if we didnt work together the song wouldnt sound good.
Thanks Maureen!!!!!
Hey Maureen!!
I enjoyed reading your thoughts and ideas in regards to Pink’s sense on symphony! I too never played an instrument in school or really paid much mind to classical music until recently. It is truly amazing how so many different instruments and sounds can create ONE amazing musical piece. The composer, conductor and orchestra all work together to create a magnificent piece considering all the different parts. Your blog made me think about the project YouTube (YT) put together called the ‘YouTube Symphony Orchestra’. YT called for professionals and amateur musicians of all ages, locations and instruments to audition for the YouTube Symphony Orchestra by submitting a video performance of a new piece written composer Tan Dun. Auditions came in from all over the world and from all walks of life. Winners had an opportunity to perform at the famed Carnegie Hall. The great part of this story is that YT put together a video of all the audition tapes and compiled them into a mashup video which was premiered worldwide on April 15th. What an amazing video! Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/symphony.
The idea of symphony is truly amazing. I played piano for 14 years and when I was learning a new piece, I would play the notes of my right hand first and then practice the chords and music of my left hand. When playing each hand separately the music sounded average. However, it was when both hands came together that the music came alive. I feel that is partly what symphony represents. Taking unconnected things and bringing them together to create beauty and uniqueness.
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