“The Power Of Music: How It Can Transform, Inspire, And Heal”
With over 30 years of experience as a music teacher and amateur musician, I aim to share the joy of incorporating music into people’s lives. My love for music has led to a healthy and exciting lifestyle, and I hope to inspire others to feel the same way. Playing the guitar has become second nature and has taught me a great deal.
Music is a primal urge, a link to the unknown. Music is the essence of our human condition and the elixir of life. To create or appreciate music, one must engage with sound — a timeless bond that unites us all. Classical and contemporary music, as expressions of our culture, deserve to be heard, studied and understood.
“Music is the soul’s engine,” Nick Tosches once said, and he was right. Music is a primal force that unites us all. It’s a universal language that cuts across cultural boundaries and speaks directly to the heart. Many think of music just as background noise, an afterthought in our daily lives. Many people regard classical music as an elitist pastime, a frivolous indulgence reserved for the aristocracy. Or they avoid rock concerts like the plague, fearing their children will be corrupted by evil and vice. But these clichés don’t capture the complete picture because music is more than entertainment. It can transform, inspire, and heal. It can transport us to places we’ve never been and elicit emotions we’ve never felt. It can make us laugh, cry, dance, and dream. Despite this, most people fail to recognize its true worth. Why? Because they’ve never learned to listen to music truly. Many people have not taken the time to explore the true origins and soul of music. They have not experienced the exhilaration of being alive that music can provide. Those who create and share music with the world are my personal heroes that I look up to. They are the ones who keep the engine of the soul running, the flame of hope burning, and the dream of a better world alive. Reminding us that we are not alone, are gregarious species, and are all part of something greater than ourselves.
PATTERNS THAT UNITE ALL OF US
Music is a powerful force connecting us to the universe’s essence. It’s a journey that takes us to unique places, such as surfing the Milky Way. We can sense the universe’s pulse through its melody, harmony, and rhythm and know we’re not alone. Music is a cosmic symphony that pulsates in perfect harmony with the universe, representing the patterns of the world. It’s a primal force that opens the doors of our perception and connects us to the deepest structures of ourselves, ultimately giving us a subliminal sensorial experience.
Music has the power to move our bodies and dictate the pace of our hearts. Dancing alone is like a monologue or soliloquy, but a conversation that goes beyond words begins when two bodies move together. They become partners in a dance, exchanging energy and harmony until they find the rhythm that speaks to their souls. Even animals, with their primal instincts, understand the power of dance. Birds flutter and sway to the beat of their wings, lost in the music of the skies. For us humans, dance is the ultimate expression of connection, a language of the body that transcends cultures and time. Let us dance, move to the beat of the drum, and find the harmony that unites us all.
If you find yourself trapped in the monotony of a dull melody or the dissonance of an unlistenable tune, boredom will quickly become overwhelming. However, selecting a musical composition that balances predictability with just the right amount of surprise can help avoid this. This sweet spot between chaos and order can be achieved in musical performance through unconventional rhythms, harmonies, melodies, timbres, and the degree of improvisation or variation. Some composers or performers intentionally increase musical entropy to create more innovative or experimental music.
This is the range of a learner’s proximal development or the distance between what a learner can do without assistance and what they can do with help. When music takes you in this direction, it lifts you out of the mundane and into the sublime. You have a pure and genuine sense of belonging that connects your inner being with humanity in a way that defies rational explanation. Music can save us from ourselves, connect us to our inner child, heal traumas, cope with losses, and make us feel the rapture of being alive.
QUALIA — ACQUIRING EXPERIENCES
Qualia are the unique characteristics of sensory perception, such as how one perceives colour, taste, sound, or touch. Qualia, often known as “gut feeling” or “subjective part of conscious experience,” is intangible and difficult to measure or analyze scientifically.
Qualia are the soul’s symphonies, a sensory feast that nourishes the spirit. To attend a live concert is to be transported to other worlds. Music has a manipulative power to play with our senses, taking us on an emotional journey through the full range of human experience. The only limitation to its power is one’s imagination.
Classical music, in particular, can improve memory, skill, and creativity. Playing music requires physical coordination that is nothing short of miraculous, whether you are a beginner or a professional. Music brings us together and allows us to express ourselves in ways only the soul can understand, whether alone or in a group, reading notation or improvising. It is the ultimate escape from life’s stresses, a conduit for our deepest emotions and desires.
MUSIC AS A LEARNING TOOL
Music is a divine gift, a language beyond words that speaks directly to the soul. Mastering music as a language is like becoming fluent in a foreign language whose meaning is conveyed entirely through sound. Music is to be felt, listened to and to be explored. Great erudite composers understood that the music sheet was just a guide, a walkthrough; it was the player’s job to bring that music to life. As artists, we use our creative sensibility to explore soundscapes and create memorable songs and experiences. To interpret a piece, we use our senses with our body, mind, and soul deep into it. With their finely tuned ears, musicians are better equipped to pick out subtle sound nuances. For instance, they can discern the emotional nuances of a baby’s cry or the harmonious rhythms of the universe.
Music education is the Holy Grail of the soul. It nourishes the spirit, stimulates the imagination, and ignites a fire in the belly. When learning how to express ourselves through music, we tap into the essence of our being, the primal, mysterious and strange force that drives us all. Music is vital to the human experience, a cosmic symphony that flows perfectly with the universe. It is a language beyond words that speaks directly to the soul. Those who create and share it are the true heroes of our time. They keep the soul’s engine running, the flame of hope burning, and the dream of a better world alive.
Let us embrace music education with open arms, investigate its creation’s mysteries, and discover its soul’s secrets. Let us dance to the beat of life and find the harmony that unites us all.
THE CULTURE
Music and the arts are no longer just extracurricular activities; they are now essential to our cultural and personal development. They provide us with a glimpse into an infinitely diverse world of possibility, sharpening the skills necessary for success in other areas of study and work. Shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” and “Late Night Shows” have recently introduced a broader audience to contemporary composers like Steve Reich, as well as guests from the jazz and classical music worlds (including Wynton Marsalis and Alex Ross). Viewers can critically analyze performances and express their thoughts forcefully by watching “American Idol.” The YouTube Symphony Orchestra competition drew many entries and received extensive media coverage. Whether people realize it or not, the arts are becoming increasingly important in modern society.
The opening of these fields has sparked people’s interest if not excitement. Artists and music fans worldwide must continue to inform the public about the fantastic work being done worldwide through various online and offline channels.
A vibrant culture provides many opportunities for its citizens to broaden their intellectual and personal horizons. In such a culture, people can delve deeper into their passions, experimenting, exchanging experiences, and learning from others. We can see that the benefits of a flourishing culture extend beyond material wealth to the enrichment of the human spirit.
EMOTIONAL GROWTH
Music education is the doorway to a world of limitless possibilities, a symphony of the soul that opens the heart to people from various backgrounds. It’s like a ray of sunshine illuminating the path to greater self-esteem and anxiety management skills. Children’s musical training is like fertile soil that nurtures the seeds of mathematical and pattern-recognition development. It’s like a cool breeze on a hot summer day, an enjoyable form of repetition practice that lulls the mind into pure bliss.
Introducing children to music at a young age is like planting a seed of unbridled curiosity, a spark that ignites their creative imagination and sets their hearts ablaze. It’s like a fountain of youth, a creative potential and overall intelligence that flows indefinitely and nourishes the soul. Besides helping students cope with stress, musical training is like a treasure chest of rewards that never runs out of gold. Listening to relaxing music has the same effect on children as a warm hug from a loved one. Children who learn an instrument gain a vital life skill: focusing and sticking to a routine. They must dedicate time to practise and learn to overcome challenges, much like a mountain climber ascending a treacherous peak, but the reward is the view from the top, the sweet sound of success that echoes through the hills.
Investing in art education is like planting the seeds of a new world order. Children who engage in artistic pursuits often demonstrate an increased capacity for original thought, like the delicate branches of a flowering tree reaching for the sky. Through this type of education, they can learn to think creatively and recognize that there is more than one correct solution to a problem, much like a painter who uses a variety of colours to bring a canvas to life.
Learning music is akin to discovering the secrets of the universe. It can help students develop spatial intelligence, which is necessary for accurate perceptual processing and the formation of mental images, much like a treasure map leading to a hidden gem. Focusing on spatial relationships like a compass pointing to the true north can help superior mathematical abilities. To succeed in musical ensembles, children must learn to collaborate, a skill that can be taught, much like the harmonious cooperation of a flock of birds in flight. In these settings, students develop social skills and an understanding of teamwork, much like the intricate dance of a honeybee colony.
Playing music in front of an audience can be nerve-wracking, like a tightrope walker balancing on a wire. Learning to take risks and overcome fears can help young people reach their full potential, like a surfer riding a wave of success. Parents and teachers can help their children gain pride and confidence by encouraging them to learn an instrument, providing a steady guiding light in a storm. Music education can also help students develop the ability to express themselves, much like a poet who finds the perfect words to capture the essence of life.
Final Thoughts
Since the dawn of time, musicians have been integral to human expression, using sound and music to convey messages of love, politics, and joy. Did you know that music can help develop the brain’s left hemisphere and aid in memorizing information presented in songs?
Being a musician means mastering memory and execution. Music teaches the value of craftsmanship, prioritizing high quality over quantity. These skills can be applied to anything in life. Music teaches you how to learn anything from scratch, formulating and asking the right questions to get what you want and need. Playing an instrument is a mental dance that requires coordination, focus, motor skills, and pushing boundaries.
For young musicians, playing an instrument is a ray of hope in a sea of uncertainty, a positive outlet for stress and pressure. It’s a fire that ignites the soul and burns bright with the promise of a better future. Musicians have finely tuned ears, able to pick out the emotional meaning of a baby’s cry or the harmonious rhythms of the universe. It’s a talent that can be applied beyond music, assisting young people in dealing with stress, staying motivated, and succeeding.
Being part of this community is a privilege, my friends. I want to end this post with a thoughtful quote: “Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” — Plato, 4th century BC.
Written By Gabriel Felsberg
