Sky Like A Broken Clock
(20.12.2002 - 1:44 p.m.)

Michelle asked why we thought we listened to music and what the role of a musician is. I thought about it and wrote a few things down:

I would say, first and foremost, art is a form of communication. It is a way of enabling you to discuss, explore and develop ideas; in your own mind and through those who become involved in that process of communication, i.e. those that listen, watch, view that art with you. I would say that you also enter into a form of communication with the artist themselves; partly because you have received and interpreted their art, but also sometimes on a more personal level, being able to physically communicate with them on a one to one basis. Why do I listen to music then? Partly because it is a way of exploring and understanding the world in which we live.

But this then begs the question, is all music art? Would you consider the most generic of boy-bands in any way artistic? Most people, including myself, would probably say no, which suggests that their sort of music plays a different role. Pop music of that sort is often associated with a particular event in a persons life; a particular period of time which brings back all kinds of feelings. And in that way, it is a key to memory; a way of reaching into your past. So I listen to music for that, too.

But what else? If painting or cinema, or other kinds of art that depend on you looking, are primarily visual mediums, then it something that you see in them that draws you to them. There is something about that painting's appearance that appeals to you on some level. In the same way, music is primarily an aural medium. You listen, sometimes very closely, and something about a particular song or piece of music appeals to you. Whatever it is, and whether you can verbalise it or not, there is something in that music that moves you; that makes you want to listen again, or in more depth. And I listen to music for that reason also. Because it is visceral, and unexplainable.

And if music is a means by which we can record events, then it follows that music is also a tool for learning. Folk music in particular is often associated with narrative. That narrative form lends itself to recording history, legend and folklore. And therefore I listen to music for that reason also.

I'm sure that there are many more reasons. People listen to all kinds of music on many different levels. And if we listen to music for all those reasons, then what is the role of the musician? Storyteller, interpreter, thinker and confidente, and a host of other things besides. I love music; no more or less than the next person I suspect, but I think life would be that little bit more dull without it.

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