what next?

I created this blog for a class, but the class has been over for awhile. So it sits here, while I sit elsewhere with my mind. It would be lovely to write some more here, but the bizarre thing is that I don't REALLY want anyone I know to read it. There's something tantalizing about strangers learning your ins and outs. They don't have to see you each day; and frankly, I don't have to see them. Yet we can develop an emotional bond through empathy. I have trouble baring my soul to my most beloved family and friends, especially when those thoughts are impulsive and do not fit into our social order. And they can become self-obsessed, which can get pretty annoying to anyone after awhile. (I know some of those people... they're not my friends.)

I was thinking about making this blog focus on trying to stay grounded in the midst of this fast-paced, self-conscious, conspicuously affluent world called New York City. We'll see.

it doesn't make you a musician

The technological world offers more opportunities for individuals to learn and grow as musicians. Something as simple as Finale Notepad helps a person compose or arrange music in a way that would otherwise take hours or days, or perhaps cause the person not to try in the first place (yes, in this latter comment, I am referring to myself!). One thing I've noticed, though, is that sometimes those who work with technology that incorporates music do not quite understand the music side - generally, they've been trained in the technology field and their musical choices are either made on a whim or based on very limited understanding of what quality music is. Unfortunately, I've seen this a lot with video artists, whose video work is far superior to their musical choices to accompany the work. This brings up the point that just because a person has the ability to do something with music in the technological world, it doesn't mean they understand what they're doing with the music (or why they are making choices). I get very frustrated by those who use music for profound things but have hardly any understanding of why. How do we fix this? I'm at a bit of a loss. That being said, when I meet someone who is embedded in the technological world and truly is involved in the creative process of making music, it makes it all that much more powerful. (Golan Levin, anyone? :))

changing our lives irrevocably?

Last night, I went to the Apple store on West 14th Street, where my husband purchased a new iMac with a 24-inch screen and numerous other things that I can't begin to understand. He also bought us an Airport Extreme, which allows all three of our computers to go wireless (until now, we've been using a cable). When we got home, he announced that our lives are forever changed. FOREVER CHANGED? How is that, exactly? I shivered at the thought. As far as I could tell, I was still the same person as two hours before. As someone who strives (many times unsuccessfully) to be eco-conscious, I was more concerned (okay, solely concerned) with how much energy this computer would sap from the power grid. But then he started to describe how I can sit in bed and read email now, as I eat my pancakes for breakfast in the morning. Convenience! Which means I won't be in the living room, where I am better able to see the sun shining down. Less connection to the natural world! And then I realized that he could very well be correct. Unfortunately, the more I enter into the technological world, the more challenging it becomes to relate back to the natural world. I need to concern myself with connecting to that which makes me feel more human - that is, personal human-to-human contact and a connection of my senses to the physical (natural) world around me. It is a bit frightening, realizing just how much we are affected by technology, and as we go deeper and deeper into this realm, I can only hope that we will enter a state of efficiency with the technology where we can seamlessly interface with it and it frees us enough so we look back to the earth.

altering the concert experience/democratic processes (a ditty)

Last night, I went to hear the New York Philharmonic play in Central Park. The concert took place on the great lawn with over 60,000 people in attendance. As I watched the concert, I thought about how this performance could not have taken place in this manner when many of the pieces were written that the Philharmonic played. There were speakers set up all over the lawn, projecting the sound backward toward those who were sitting so far back from the stage that it seemed like a mile away (perhaps it was more like a 1/4 mile). Another thing: the philharmonic had a text message vote to decide what piece they would play as an encore. That couldn't have happened even 10 years ago. But it reminded me how technology can actually give us more buy-in to the democratic process if we use it correctly. (That being said, they only gave us two choices. And who the heck is THEY, anyway?! ;))

Literacy

I'm really struggling with the Powerpoint presentation to be posted on the web which relates to literacy through the performing arts (in my case, music). I struggle primarily because music is its own unique discipline, and I worry that discussing how music can help our society become better with general reading and writing would somehow place the focus away from what makes it unique and valid. The New York State standards referto the word "literacy" only once from what I have been able to find: when a school does not have the resources to have a full music program, it may be useful to focus on reading and writing as opposed to what is more core to a performance-based program.

Relating to a previous post, my frustration is further spurned because what I create here will automatically be a PUBLIC document. As I work out the kinks in my philosophy of music and its relation to literacy, I am forced to do it on a public stage. Perhaps, then, this post is designed to offer a request for patience and forgiveness from those who may discover my presentation. Welcome, self, to the world where your thoughts are no longer held private!

Stress and performance

This week has been tough. A couple of reasons:

1) There is so much going on with the web and its applications these days that I can't seem to get my head around it. The electronic world has changed by leaps and bounds since my first (and only previous) technology class, during senior year at Wellesley. For that class, we worked specifically with html and designing a web page. We wrote out every single last detail, including the use of frames and other things that I can no longer remember! But there is far more than I ever thought about - and not only are we working with just how the systems work, but authoring documents that have meaning for ourselves and within our professions.

2) Related to that last sentence- my head is spinning, especially as I sit here and get reminded the public nature of each thing we write in this class. Which concerns me, I have to say - and probably leads to some of the stress I've put myself under. It seems I can't tell where things start or where they could possibly end, nor where I fit into it. I am not a publicly-oriented person, and dread the possibility of anyone outside myself and my professor reading what I produce. Right now, it's a public performance every time I log on.

I've always dreaded group work

... but I have to say, it worked really well this time around! Given the different strengths of our group members, we were able to learn quite a bit from each other. Also, doing things on the web allowed us to do things on our own time (individually), and we could simply look at what the others were doing remotely without having to bother each other. Genius, this technology is! I highly enjoyed the process, especially from the non-technological side of finding out from Joanne some valuable information about salsa dance. I think it helped that Dr. Gilbert chose the groups, putting us with people who were in different genres/backgrounds.