Music for Accountants
"This is our third college-bound child, and the first one looking at music schools. We thought applying to regular colleges was confusing, but we were totally unprepared for THIS!"
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"I don't understand why my daughter is so dedicated to music. I am supportive of whatever she wants to do, but it is as though she is speaking a foreign language. I never had musical training myself, and sometimes I feel helpless....well, maybe just a little frustrated because I don't know how to help her, and we have always been close."
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"He has been accepted to a music conservatory?
"You are letting him do that?
"You have ruined his life !"
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That last quote was from my Father (speaking to my Mother in 1963). My Father was an accountant—brilliant man, but there was no music in his background, so he had no idea of what to do with his clarinet-playing son. In many years of speaking with families of conservatory-bound students, we find that most have come to understand why their kids are so energetic about music. Still, there are many like my Father who are struggling to understand what is going on with their sons or daughters. If a parent has no musical background, it is inevitable that subtle feelings of estrangement will develop, and the parent will say, "Wait a minute. Let's think about what we are doing here."
This essay is my humble attempt at explaining the complexities behind the "simple" enjoyment of music, and how it is that a young person can start blowing, banging, or scraping on an instrument as part of the school music program, and end up at a conservatory in hopes of turning his or her skills into a lifelong career. This is a complex subject, requiring something of an analytical look at the music, the listeners, and the performers. Once these perspectives come together, it will all make sense.
I hope.
The Music
Anyone who has ever winced when chalk squeaks across a black board, or tried to block out the sound of a baby crying in an airplane, can tell you that we react to sounds. Our ears are exquisitely sensitive, especially in the ranges involving human speech. We can recognize the sound of our Mother's voice in a crowded and noisy room, over a very bad telephone connection, or when calling from several blocks away. In addition to the obvious survival implications of being able to quickly identify our parents, our reliance on language for communication demands that we develop an even higher level of sensitivity.
"How are you today?"
"I'm feeling good, thank you."
"Are you just feeling good? Or are you feeling GOOD?"
"I'm feeling GOOOOOOD."
Taken in its basic form, the words we say contain the basic message, but how we say it (tone, rhythm, timbre, pitch) contains the feelings behind the words.
Mother to daughter: "How are you feeling?"
Daughter: "I'm...ah...feeling......good, thank you."
Mother (urgently): What's wrong!
Most people are far more sensitive to the non-verbal content in communication than they are to the strict meaning of the spoken words. The simple fact is that the words coming out of our mouths are "filtered" by the intricate rules of social living, and thus may or may not be entirely true. In contrast, how we say what we say carries less filtered (thus more accurate) information on mood, feeling, and intent. While not "music" in the sense we study it, our ability to get along in the world depends in many ways on the accuracy of interpreting what comes to us through our ears. You might think of it as music in its most basic form—aural information about the momentary state of a person's feelings. Composers of art songs and opera understand how this works, using written music to provide the feelingful subtext to the words being sung by the performer.
In a similar way, music is used in movies to signal us about the feelingful content of what we see. The action (or lack of same) on the screen provides a visual guide. The music amplifies and confirms what we suspect is going on, intensifying the experience for the audience. Shut off the light in the projector, cancel out the dialog (and other noises), and you are left with an "emotional sound track" that if skillfully done can stand on its own musical merit. Some "sound track" recordings sell millions of copies for that reason.
The commercial world is well aware that music can set an emotional atmosphere—relax, energize, create tension, or irritate. You hear music in elevators, in offices, restaurants, grocery stores, and sometimes rudely emanating from a close-by car or boom box. Commercial enterprises tend to select music which makes people feel at ease and welcome. The idea is to make the customer stay in the "store" longer, which is usually associated with more business being done. Businesses marketing to sophisticated clients select sophisticated music for their sales efforts. Those selling high-energy products do so with high energy music.
Taken out of the commercial arena, it is interesting to see how music functions as an emotional amplifier in certain forms of music therapy. Clients are helped to relax, and the therapist selects music of a particular mood to accompany the session. The presence of music tends to resonate with the feelings of the client, making them easier to examine. Changes in mood prompt the therapist to alter the background music—again amplifying the emotional subtext of the session. The presence of this "sound track" if you will, is known to accelerate the daunting process of personal discovery typical of any therapeutic endeavor.
It follows that if music has the ability to alter moods in a business setting, to amplify emotions in a movie theater, or to help reveal hidden feelings in a therapeutic setting, it would also be something individuals would employ to make life more enjoyable, or simply to provide an aural context to the things we do as we experience day to day living. As examples, many of us have favorite types of music for driving, or for exercising. We take great care to select just the right recordings to accompany a candle-light dinner, or a wedding party. There is also music particularly suited for mourning, for being introspective, or for having a wild celebration. It's all about setting the mood.
So, as with all fine art forms, music addresses the primary elements of being human—our feelings, moods, and emotions. The critical question is this: What happens when all of the non-musical elements drop out of the discussion. How does music function outside of the realms of business, celebrations, therapy, or movies?
The Listeners
A gifted composer is somehow able to produce music that is interesting enough, complex enough, and emotionally satisfying enough to occupy the minds of the listeners with no other associated stimulus or activity. This level of listening is what those attending orchestra or chamber music concerts experience. Complexity is important, since the better pieces, while attractive to begin with, become more satisfying for the listener with repeated listening.
People who enjoy music this way (as an activity unto itself) become involved with the ebb and flow of the feelings evoked by the music. They also become involved on an intellectual level, appreciating the twists and turns—expectations satisfied or denied—by the melodies, harmonies, structures and textures involved. Equally important is what the listener is NOT doing (at least we hope not)—worrying about all of the stresses life holds these days (such as whether or not to send the kid to a music school). A seasoned concert goer will be entertained at a gut level by the music, intellectually appreciative of how it is put together, gratified by the interpretation of the conductor, and especially energized if the players put on a superb performance. This represents a lot of emotional content coming to a listener who appears to just be sitting there.
The Performers
Those of us on the stage experience the same sense of involvement as the listeners in the audience, only we are "inside" of the performance. We experience the sometimes stressful physical challenges of playing our parts, while simultaneously being mindful of those around us. We are athletes, producers, and consumers, all at the same time. Anything less than total concentration is an invitation to disaster, and if you make a sufficiently boisterous mistake, everyone will know it. It is a high stakes affair, with all the adrenaline associated with such things. At this level, most of the technical aspects of muscle memory are in play, and a performer's internal "voice" becomes a coach: "Remember to favor this note down. Conductor says we tend to rush here. Try to match the flute intonation here." When all goes well, it becomes one of those "peak experiences" we all have on occasion, and cherish.
Once a young musician reaches a certain point in his or her development, the excitement spreads over the entire process of learning, practicing, and performing music. The first time a difficult passage becomes flawless in practice is a point of satisfaction (unless, of course, you screw it up the next three times you try it. Maybe tomorrow...).
With this background, it becomes easier to see what is happening when developing young musicians suddenly "catch fire" and want to start working toward a career in music. They have discovered in their music a way to express their emerging emotions—a gift unavailable to those with less developed artistic skills. They also gain a feeling of personal value and acceptance by fellow musicians, friends, and adults. This is tied to their level of musical achievement, and serves as a powerful motivator for continued growth. The overall result is an exceptionally sensitive, talented, and focused individual—ready to see how far they can go professionally.
It should also be easy to see that trying to push a student like this into a less musically intensive college environment will produce a mismatch between the goals of the student and the values of the college. The curriculum is likely to be heavily balanced toward general studies, leaving little time for the kind of practice and focus required if the young musician is to continue to grow. In addition to mismatched goals, there is a sense of isolation in an environment where the majority of students are heading in different directions. As we all know, college friends and relationships can last a lifetime. The right contacts and associations in college can have a dramatic effect on future career opportunities.
The quote most often heard from students wishing to transfer from a liberal arts college to a conservatory is: "I didn't feel like anyone understood me there. They wanted to party, and couldn't understand why I needed to practice—even if I had a performance the next day." Clearly, a music conservatory is not just the preferred choice for the college education of a music student, it may well be the only choice for a student whose level of dedication and drive is deep enough.
Back to the Beginning
Referring to the quotes at the beginning of this essay:
Is selecting a music school more complex than finding a suitable liberal arts college?
Yes. In addition to the equity of the institution, you must consider the quality of the private teachers available, performance opportunities, etc.. The school, on the other hand, is responsible for identifying applicants who not only seek a career in music, but who have developed the level of skill required to thrive in the fast-paced atmosphere. The single best predictor of a "good fit" is the level of musical development a student has reached at the time of application. There is no other way to get that information except by listening to the applicant perform. This adds another level of complexity to the process.
Is there something wrong if you are feeling a little disconnected from the direction your son or daughter is taking?
Not at all. Even parents who have not had the opportunity to discover for themselves the rewards of music study (and performance) recognize that something extraordinary is happening as their sons or daughters become more and more involved. Supporting music study for your children can be a costly and time-consuming endeavor. We recognize and applaud the effort required of parents. You are the real heroes here, especially if your sons or daughters are making choices about things outside the boundaries of your own personal experience. Feeling a little disconnected is only natural.
Will this kind of a musically intensive education ruin anyone's life?
Of course not. We hope we have thoroughly explored that subject elsewhere on this web site. Here, we will just remind you that musically creative, hard-working, focused individuals tend to find fulfilling paths in life. This is not because the particular body of knowledge associated with music is "better" than any other, but because the very nature of music relates to those moods, feelings, and emotions mentioned earlier—the stuff from which creativity, personal growth, and good relationships with others is forged. These are traits that sooner or later result in good things, musical or otherwise.
