Why do we Seem so Intimidating?

October 29, 2011 at 1:30 PM

I was playing a game of Tetris online, when suddenly a question popped into my head. Why do we Seem so Intimidating? I ask this because I know a lot of people outside of school come across as being intimidated when the topic of 'unpopular' music crops up. Is it like that for you? It's a normal discussion, but once it goes past popular music, everyone backs away and you're left feeling like the odd one out.

I could apply personally feeling intimidated by certain other cultures outside the music one though. For instance, the culture of dancing. Although I used to be a dancer myself, it has always felt like an intimidating thing to me watching rehearsals and feeling the atmosphere. And if a group of dancers were to approach me and start talking about dance, I'd feel way out of place.

But it doesn't have to be like that, does it? I try my best to make the discussion of music open to everyone. I don't try to be snobby or throw words like 'crescendo' and 'spiccato' into the conversation unless I know the other person is musical themselves. Yet, there seems to be this thing of people backing away. Maybe it's the feeling of the unknown, the fact that as musicians we delve deeper into the subject than 'they have a great voice.' What do you think?

From Bryan Doherty
Posted on November 2, 2011 at 4:17 PM

Music is a language and it is much more important to a musician. "Unpopular" music is also more complicated. I think non musicians do not have (cannot have) as deep an understanding. When we listen to a performer, or a peice of music we usually can tell what the performer/composer is trying to get across or (in the case of a bad performance) if they don't know what they are saying or aren't saying anything at all. To non musicians music is just sound. I had a friend and he only listens to rock. He just thinks of it as cool sounds to listen to. people who don't know music that well listen to what is most accessible. Pop music is sugar, rock is acid (hah), Beethoven is like steak and Mozart is like ripe fruit (Besides being an outcast for liking classical music, I am also the weirdo who likes fruit). People just go for the sweets all the time. They also have trouble comprehending serious music. Non musicians can get the basic moods and ideas of pieces, but it is hard for them to tell the difference between a technically perfect performance lacking feeling and meaning, and a great performance. This is because thay are unfamiliar with music's language.

Let's say you don't know French. You can't understand what someone says in French, but you can still tell if they are agitated, angry, happy, or depressed (Unless the culture's body language is significantly different). You might be able to tell their emotion or basic idea but you will still feel uncomfortable and not understand what they are saying. Also, if you don't know a language then you can't tell if somone has correct grammar or not. Furthermore, you can't have a very deep conversation about the French language if the only French words you know are R.S.V.P.

Personally music is a very important part of my life, and I can't understand why someone would spend time writing or talking, when they could be playing, writing, or listening to music (I enjoy books though). One time I went to a concert with a full orchestra and choir, and afterwards I picked up my mother and sister at a play. The play was still going and I watched the last few minutes, but I couldn't stop thinking how much more wonderful and powerful the concert was compared to a few people talking next to some fake cardboard walls. I think it is hard for non-musicians to talk about music, because either they never considerd deeper topics, or they have very little knowledge on the subject. However there are people who are not musicians, but still love music and sometimes conversations with them can be very stimulating. One (okay two) final note; when I first started music I enjoyed Mozart and Vivaldi since they have simple straightforward musical languages. Since then I have slowly been growing to like more complex and modern composers (But my latest favorite is Bach). I think this is because of my increased knowledge and familiarity with the language of music.

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Why do we Seem so Intimidating?

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