--- In [email protected], cardemaister <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In [email protected], "authfriend" <jstein@> wrote: > > > > > > Probably Asperger's, like I think I myself might be... :) > > > > Really? You think you are? > > Someone interested mainly in "dead" languages, like > Latin and Sanskrit, probably is. Of course that would > depend on the criteria used, but at least according > to DSM IV, I quite likely would.
Well, I dunno; most of the characteristics DSM IV lists have to do with "live" interaction, so posts to an Internet forum don't really say much. I took a look, and I did see one that doesn't seem to apply to you at all, though: "a lack of spontaneous seeking to share enjoyment, interests, or achievements with other people (e.g., by a lack of showing, bringing, or pointing out objects of interest to other people)" You're constantly sharing your appreciation of Sanskrit with us! And I hardly think an interest in "dead" languages is a sign of Asperger's. They may be "dead," but they're fascinating. There are plenty of perfectly normal people who devote their lives to studying them. On the other hand, there are also many accomplished people with Asperger's, so it isn't such a dire condition in any case. My instinct is that your main problem is worrying about whether you're normal. I seriously doubt there's anything much wrong with you other than that you worry too much. > > > My "acid test" would be how he played, if he ever did > > > (which I'm "afraid" he didn't) the "trivial" Toccata and > > > Fugue in D minor. > > > > Why would that be the "acid test," and test of what? > > Whether I'd like Gould or not. At least those performances > felt too "intellectual" or "detached" or something, for > my taste. You mean the YouTube videos? Those aren't my favorite Gould performances of the Goldberg Variations, especially the later one; it's awfully cerebral. Also, the Goldberg Variations is a pretty cerebral piece to start with. I had to listen to it quite a few times before I began to like it, but now it's one of my top favorites, and my response to it is deeply emotional. I much prefer Gould's first recording from 1955. It has an innocence and simplicity, even when the music gets very complex, that captures the essence of Bach, as far as I'm concerned. Rather surprisingly, Asperger's "patients" are > often *more* emotional than so called normal people, > but they (or us?) don't have that many shades of emotions, I guess. > Why acid test? That's been my favourite piece of classical of music > since I heard Karl Richter play it when I was a kid. It's a dynamite piece. I don't think Gould ever recorded it. If you're interested in getting into Gould, find the 1955 recording of the Goldberg Variations and just listen to it until you begin to get to know it. I bet you'll like it, and him. The thing about Bach that gets to me is his what seems to be his *humility*. But I have no idea what gives me that impression about him.
