----- Original Message ----- From: "Tim Thompson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 'I never really studied brain surgery, but I'm > pretty good at winging it!'" I realize this is a far-fetched analogy, > but it speaks to the perceptions of people concerning what it takes to > be a professional in any field versus becoming an effective artist. The architect Frank Lloyd Wright stressed the importance in all disciplines, not only in architecture, to "know thoroughly one's materials". I believe that much of the belief that lay musicians can achieve or express as much as learned scholars of music by their 'natural' powers of inspiration has to do directly with the wide lack of understanding of music's material, that is, the schools of harmony and their logical ties with the actual physics of sound. If an architect screws up, the building falls down and people get killed. If a musician/composer screws up, he can easily fake his mistakes due to the lack of direct, obvious and physical damage. There is a large prerequisite to be able to see mistakes in music, and that is to know it's materials. Not many do, and, hence, the widespread refuge in the belief that one can wing it. In my opinion, whimsical, unconscious applause is the ultimate catalyst of this. Liudas _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
