August 4ths

8/4/2000

Can you imagine, David Bowie becoming an architect?! It’s an interesting notion that aging rock stars can cross disciplinary boundaries. One might not think that Bowie belongs in something so Apollonian, but he’d infuse a Dionysian element. 

8/4/2010            

Listened to Fresh Air interview with Brian May. Interesting: The guitar riff repeats on We Will Rock You are actually tape splices.

8/4/2012

Saddle Man

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Through the window of a local pool hall that had been closed for some time. There was a figurine of a cowboy in the window that had a "shadowy" vibe].

8/4/2017

The proof of the effect of music on the mind and body is if it is compelling enough to dance to, or is otherwise rhythmically kinetic. Shifting tempos and meters can have subtle effects on emotion, combined with tension and release in the melody and harmony.

The other ‘proof’ is music’s use in film. Something slow and in a minor key scored for low strings will typically evoke melodrama, whereas either of them in isolation wouldn’t necessarily provoke them. It has been shown that emotional responses to music are universal across cultures as well.

8/4/2019

Anything can influence music composition, especially philosophy, which can recontextualize or reframe your methodologies. This is particularly useful in writing contemporary music, including all kinds of pop music, where thinking about the music before beginning to write it will influence your process. A simple example is making a list of what the music isn’t or what you won’t do or will want to avoid. A music producer might be the one doing the philosophy, as well as the psychology, as that will guide the direction of the people making the music. If I’m writing ambient music, I will want to avoid song form, chord progressions, drum kits, lyrics, etc. If you’re doing something rock ‘n’ roll you want to avoid complexity in all areas, or bring it in selectively for an ironic effect, and make sure it works that way.

[8/4/2025: AI Music throws a wrench into this because it hijacks philosophical reflection. Even if you carefully write prompts, it won’t square with your intentions. When you work manually, it is easier to “own” the music. With AI music, you “take possession” of it or it’s a “rental”].

8/4/2024 

Watching some of the concert footage from Beck’s current tour, using various orchestras. Read an interview that he thinks classical music is a “spiritual” experience. We all have these kinds of experiences throughout life. I was bitten by the classical bug when I was 23, and I’m still writing classical arrangements. It still feels “spiritual”—meaning refined or exalted. But as a pop artist, you can own both and play all sides of all the fences. The public wants you to be one thing so their mind doesn’t have to do any calisthenics. He was also asked the obligatory “AI” question as if the juggernaut is actually real. Any artist can try out a new tool, but I still think AI is just another Autotune that gets used in and on anything, whether or not it needs it, like Autotune for your toothbrush.

[8/4/2025: Eventually, a new technology breaches barriers, and it starts to flood everything. You could look at the flood as a “delta” with nutrients, or rising sea levels destroying the ecosystem.]