“And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” — Nietzsche
THE METHOD TO MADNESS
The earliest musicians built relationships with natural sounds in the environment. Whether hitting an object by accident and hearing its resonance echo, the rhythmic beating of walking, or the sound of firewood igniting. This sort of inquiry established the three acts that define the method behind the madness of music.
The Three Acts of Inner Music
I
ACT I: ACTIVE LISTENING
This develops an awareness of the relationship between mind and environment. (Click for in-depth view)
II
ACT II: INTERNAL INSTRUMENT
A learned listener of sound, by sheer act of listening, internally resonates to the atmosphere of sound like an instrument. (Click for in-depth view)
III
ACT III: INTENTIONALITY
The combination of Active Listening and body responsiveness through the Inner Instrument creates the ability to respond to sound with intentionality. (Click for in-depth view)
AIM
My aim is to fully equip students with the necessary building blocks to connect themselves to the music inside sound — through whichever instrument of their choosing. And as this natural relationship is empowered through the tuning of the body to music, we explore more complex and intricate aspects of music as they become necessary.
INSTRUMENTS
- Guitar
- Bass Guitar
- Keys
Percussion, vocals, and other instruments can be incorporated as the lesson plan progresses. These will be accessories to the overall musical development of the client.
PRACTICE
- Listening — developing sensitivity to tone, space, rhythm, and silence.
- Resonance — feeling vibration in the body and learning to respond through movement.
- Expression — exploring how awareness becomes sound through your chosen instrument.
- Reflection — refining your aesthetic judgment by noticing what feels aligned, what feels false, what asks to return.
WHAT TO EXPECT
- Developed ear and capacity for active listening.
- Expanded aesthetic palette and knowledge of the choices you can make.
- Knowledge of music theory (as needed—assessed based on student’s needs).
- Establishing the connection between creativity and intentionality.
- The ability to play songs of your liking.
- Ongoing support with technical issues relevant to playing, singing, creating, and/or producing music.
Ultimate Aim
- To nurture the inner instrument.
- To hold sacred the physical and emotional intelligence that gives rise to music.
- To make creation an act of will.
A MEETING POINT BETWEEN PSYCHOLOGY AND THE PHYSICS OF SOUND
Physics of Sound
The harmonic overtone series is the foundational meeting point between psychology and physics. Musical notes are tuned to the natural resonance frequency responses apparent all around in nature.
Every sound echoes to musical principles that connect to various human emotions.
The instrument is one piece of the puzzle… The way it’s played, the emotional state of the player, the room it resonates in, and how the musician is listening all create an intricate relationship that gives rise to the creative principle.
*If you wish to hear more about the physics of sound in your session, let me know. This won’t be a course on the math, but an overview of the fundamental principles.*
Friction
Every artist must become well-versed in the art of FRICTION.
No authentic and self-expressive work of art was written without some sort of friction building the gravity for it.
With Inner Music, we build sufficient understanding of how to direct the frustration of learning and creating toward the goal of self-expression and artistry.
This approach transforms resistance into a creative force, teaching you to use challenge as the source code for genuine, compelling art.
SEND YOUR INQUIRY
ACT I
ACTIVE LISTENING
The first step is Active Listening.
This develops an awareness of the relationship between mind and environment.
The active listener develops the ability to respond, in their body, to the music outside and inside. This is done by training the body to follow the gravity of rhythm as well as the ability to follow the sequences which create notes, scales, and chords.
ACT II
INTERNAL INSTRUMENT
The continuance of this cycle builds the internal “instrument” which hears and processes this relationship as music. This inner instrument is the creative principle which is inherent to all of the arts, specifically music.
Through active listening, selective hearing that is directed by your internal emotional state begins to form a third awareness - the inner instrument. Sounds begin to seem as if they are resonating against your emotions. An implication of directionality is developed and access to states of flow become available.
A learned listener of sound, by sheer act of listening, internally resonates to the atmosphere of sound like an instrument.
ACT III
INTENTIONALITY
The combination of Active Listening and body responsiveness through the Inner Instrument creates the ability to respond to sound with intentionality. With this ability to be intentional, we can begin to explore aesthetic choices or more complex music theoretical constructs which fine tune and expand the relationships we can have with sound to build the direct and authentic experience we are called upon.
As the active listener becomes trained, the spectrum of sound transforms from a mere combination sound-waves to something like emotions, ideas, and states of experience.
In this world, all musical relationships are in a state of flux and creativity is linked to vital and raw unconscious processes.