The colour of the place is incredible. The music and dancing was special. Offerings were made to gods and the volcanoes placated.
Poetry – A Sound Poem
A Sound Poem
Connected by a beat,
A throbbing of the heart.
Notes rising and falling
In a symphony of art.
Capturing emotion,
Expounding philosophy,
Expressing great love,
Misery to ecstasy.
Created from a drumbeat,
Or plucking of a wire.
Melding into melody
To set the soul on fire.
From all walks of life,
Industrial and rustic.
In all its many forms –
It’s the wonder of music.
Opher – 21.8.2020
India – Arrival in Chennai. – Photos
No Diggity by the Night Drive Project
Creativity – a human trait? Are we losing it?
So why are humans creative? Why do we love to dance, sing, play music, paint, write stories, write poems and express our emotions?
Well we are not alone. Other animals have displayed similar traits. Chimpanzees, Gorillas and even elephants have all enjoyed producing colorful art.
Whales produce the most amazing complex songs and sing to each other across oceans.
There seems to be a need for intelligent creatures to express themselves, to interpret their emotions, feelings and ideas in some creative manner.
The need to create crosses all cultures and has been repressed by various religions throughout history. When Rock ‘n’ Roll came in it was considered primitive and there was talk of bans. The Taliban and ISIS want to eradicate music, dance and any art that portrays human beings. Many books have been burnt. The Nazis wanted much art, writing and music banned.
But the urge for creativity is always more powerful than these repressive forces. People will go to extremes in order to create. The urge is strong.
Yet this is by no means all people. In this modern age most people do not create. They seem to have lost the urge. Why is that?
If we go back to our tribal past nearly everyone was involved in some creative expression, whether that be through dance, music, costume, hair or body art. We seem to have lost a lot of that. Is that a bad thing?
Music – Haiku
David Knopler and Harry Bogdanovs at the Great British Folk Festival
This was a little bit like the festival of not quite so famous brothers – not only did we have David Knopler but we also had Chris Jagger. Interesting.
Well David played a set with Harry Bogdanovs and it certainly wasn’t dire. I enjoyed it. He ranged between acoustic guitar and piano and at times there were shades of Dire Straits.
There were times when David seemed a bit down and a brief mention of brotherly relationships. Which I gathered were not brilliant.
Here’s a few photos:
Nick Harper & the Wilderness Boys – Sheffield
Well I’ve finally gotten around to posting this. It has been a turmoil of a house move that I’m still drowning in. The Nick Harper gig was a couple of weeks ago!
It was great to see Nick with a band of young musicians. They were all excellent and it was so good to hear the way that they had adapted the songs. Nick is great on electric guitar and it was good to see him enjoying himself so much. This was a totally new perspective on the music. They rocked.
Here’s a few photos:
Rock Music – What makes a great song, band or performer?
When you can anything at the touch of a button everything is devalued.
Having access to everything means that nothing has value.
It is very sad.
I am a record collector. I’ve been doing that since I was a child. A lot of my life was spent touring round the second-hand record shops searching for rarities and bargains. There was a thrill to the search and a rush of adrenalin when you made a discovery of a long sought after album.
Along the way you met a lot of interesting people and had a great social interaction. I made some good friends and had some interesting debates.
Now it is a question of browsing on the web, identifying something at a reasonable price and clicking a button. Everything is available and easy to find, it is merely a question of the price you are willing to pay. The fun of the search has gone. The adrenaline rush is no longer part of the deal. There is no social interaction at all.
If someone desires the entire Chess Singles or Trojan output they can find and download them at the flick of a switch. They can be listening to them five minutes later. Where’s the fun?
You do not even need expertise and knowledge. The music is disposable and no longer cherished.
The cherishing of music has been a part of my whole life. I feel it has been cheapened. Having everything available is not necessarily a good thing!