The Music of 2010

So another of my goals is to listen to more music. In this arena, Cabana Boy is a huge asset, because he's a music lover and has a fantastic music collection. So after I listen to my Mid-morning Musicale on the radio (where they play random music for an hour... generally classical, but also some Enya and ABBA thrown in), I pick one of Cabana Boy's CDs. I'm also trying to make sure I've listened to all of the albums I have on my iPod, which I know I haven't done. We won't discuss why that's the case, because it might be illegal.

Anyway, I've started with jazz. I'm fairly ignorant about music, especially when compared to things I know a lot about, like books. Last week was a lot of Miles Davis, a lot of John Coltrane, some Duke Ellington, and a little Count Basie. I also threw in some Ella and some Dinah Washington on the weekend, because they're already on my list of faves.

Here's what I know about myself. I like patterns, I like layered orchestration, I like melodies and harmonies. So a lot of what I've listened to has been very different for me. I'm not great with improvisation as a performer, so when I hear it, I'm flummoxed. I don't know if free jazz is for me. The Coltrane was a little intense. There were some songs that I thought were great, but others that I couldn't wrap my head around. I enjoyed "Blue Train" more than "Giant Steps."

Miles Davis was very pleasant to put on while I was working, or while I was reading. I could just float along on the music, while my brain was focusing on other things. I found it very relaxing... almost too relaxing. It didn't draw me in... it sort of mellowed me out. I'm not accustomed to music doing that. I'm used to music being the main activity that captures my focus. I often find it hard to listen to new music and do other things. So, like, I guess it worked? I was definitely calmer. I just can't describe what I was listening to.

I find that I have a similar reaction when I listen to the jazz program on the radio at night, driving home from drumming. It's mostly contemporary music, generally people I've never heard of, and it's a mixture of styles. Some of it I like a lot, some of it, not as much. As a rule, I could not describe to you what I've listened to. I just know that my 35 mile, tedious, exhausted drive home passes unbelievably quickly, and with virtually no road rage. It's amazing.

So maybe there's something going on here... like... beta waves or frequencies or something. I'm so used to having a tune stuck in my brain or a rhythm trapped in my hands, that this Zen-like emptying is entirely unexpected. At first, I thought that maybe I wasn't cut out for this type of jazz*, but in fact, it might be better for me than I realized.


* See, I feel awkward here, because I like Dave Brubeck a lot, and Harry Connick Jr, and then I start wondering if this is some sort of unconscious "race" thing. Which is ridiculous, but Miles Davis got so angry at Dave Brubeck for co-opting the term "cool jazz" when he really had started the movement, that I feel guilty.