The incredible moment arrived and the grand 6-5 appogiatura captured my heart once again followed by the unnerving and relentlessly pulsating anticipations of the progressive melody in Liebestod. Suffering from what I have identified as analytical boredom from particular pieces of music, a malady that consists of hearing something, understanding it, and then no longer being interested in it, I have never grown tired of hearing Liebestod by Richard Wagner. It is one of and perhaps my favorite piece of music in all of music literature. Listening to the remarkable counterpoint of augmentation and diminution, thematic alteration, and expansive melodic lines is to hear the music within the music. Hearing it is to be transformed to another world, a sublimely perfect world made of everything beautiful and enchanting, a world of hope and peace and a world of perfect purity in all things. Every time I hear Liebestod, I experience an indescribable emotion that somehow alters and improves the inner being. A work of musical art unequaled and sitting on a throne of beauty.
Some of Beethoven affects me nearly as much and some of Brahms as well. I enjoy the music of Stevie Wonder, Elton John, and yes even Lady Gaga, in fact the list of music I enjoy seems to be nearly infinite, but the music of the masters goes beyond that of enjoyment and enters a different realm. And as I reflect on Liebestod, I wonder if I disagree with my earlier post on entertainment? Was I entertained by Liebestod? Am I entertained by Beethoven's Ninth Symphony or Brahms' First Symphony? Is there an emotional response that is deeper from listening to Wagner as related to listening to Sondheim or Michael Jackson? I think so. Does this mean that the music goes beyond that of entertainment? Maybe yes, maybe no.
Sure I was entertained, received pleasure from hearing Liebestod, but somehow it feels cheap to relegate the music into a classification of music for entertainment. Yet I suppose that no matter how it is expressed, how many ways I can describe the feeling, in spite of its longevity, its craftmanship, its sincerity and depth of emotions, in the end the music is still entertaining on some level. Hard to acknowledge this truth since the music has a greater depth of meaning to me well beyond that of most entertainment I see and experience around me.
The music of Wagner, Beethoven, Brahms is entertaining, but designating it as such is to diminish its power and significance. So please forgive my equivocation and pandering to the academic community, but I am having trouble attributing the magnificence of this music to fit into the concept of entertainment. On the other hand, to say it is not entertaining is to diminish its purpose. So all this to say that music can be and should be entertaining. Perhaps great music also reaches yet another level.
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Watching a young kitten at play can be entertaining. Watching a “mindless” program on TV can be entertaining. But music, if done right, can bring a person to worship the one true God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. I think the gift of the masters was to bring us closer to an understanding of the Nature of God.
At an early age, I decided that I cannot stand “country music”. I grew up listening to Grand Funk Railroad, Deep Purple (I still remember the lyrics to Smoke on the Water), Uriah Heep , Led Zepplin, Savoy Brown, Three Dog Night, etc. Then one day, the music club that I was a member of sent me a “wrong” tape. By accident, mistake, fate, act of God, I received an eight tract tape (which I am now holding in my hands once again) titled “Heavy Organ/ Virgil Fox”. It contains:
•Prelude in A Minor
•Fugue A La Giguie
•Taccata and Fugue In D Minor
•Vivace (Trio Sonata No. 3 in D Minor
•Sinfonia (Cantata No. 29)
•Sleepers “Wake in Dulci Jubilo
•Come, Sweetest Death (Arranged by Virgil Fox)
That was the moment music became more than entertainment to me. So called “classical” music contains all of the power and emotion of rock but none of the chaos. It is ordered. It pulls the listener to a higher plain. I dare say it points to The Heavenly Father.
By the way, I really enjoy the natural music of cicadas!! They bring back enjoyable memories of my distant youth. You might say cicadas entertain me!
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