You nailed one brilliant line in there "I had to want to like it". Says so much about the complex process. Who "wants" and who "likes"? Some über-ich wanting something the ich should do? And so much more thinking along those lines. Thanks!
P.S. And you are right, you listening to and discussing pitchfork reviews is deeply incestuous :)
I’m very enamoured the current thinking in psychology that suggests that the ‘self’ is basically the result of post-rationalisation of the outcome of squabbles between various unconscious impulses. The consciousness pieces together and idea of a consistent personality out of all the random nonsense your brain throws up.
Not sure what you mean by "post-rationalisation" and not sure about who "pieces together". You seem to differentiate between "self" and "consciousness", not sure about that either. But I definitely like the idea that the "self" (or indeed consciousness) is the result of various impulses and other nonsense your brain comes up with. Although I am absolutely at a loss to describe the process in any detail.
So brilliant. I think it’s brave to grow intentionally. And at the same time I also think it’s mature to know when you just don’t give a shit about what you’re being told is avant garde because you know it’s just dumb.
What I have been made aware of recently is how very little I actually recognize is of my own taste. I’ve been, per the recommendation of a friend, writing out a list of what I like, and doing so in the third person so it is an objective list.
To that end, I, as a former opera critic, wonder what the fuck Copenhagen would think of the first item on that list: my second-hand Ford F150 pick up truck with the extended bed, meaning my truck is that much bigger than everyone else’s. Also, my predilection for only drinking French wine even if West Coast US wines are better, and the fact that I love fried dill pickles.
And to me, none of this is incongruent. Also, I have NOTHING in common with my family. I like nothing they like, and vice versa.
I mean, the Danish would frame things that way because they are the last bastion of hegemony in Europe. So seeing things in such a categorical way is in their genes, you could say.
Thank you! I do think its a really interesting dance, that one between what you like and what you want to like - trying to grow one’s own experience and opinions but also being honest about when things don’t resonate at all. A lot of the most interesting people I know are those who just follow their own taste (although they’re all people who happen to have extremely eclectic and interesting tastes, too)
Our generation, at least in my observation, have only now been able to start culling what isn’t truly us as individuals. As Boomers drop off, and as the chaos monkeys in charge keep fucking shit up around the world, especially the Middle East, I predict a strange space opening up where for once there’s enough oxygen for us Xers to deeply breathe, and at the same time there will be pressure on us to get real about who we are or die.
This is so interesting. I think taste is such a tricky subject because it is so easy to offend people. I do try very hard not to write things off (especially music.) I will keep coming back to things just to see how I feel, and it often pays off. I think tastes change and develop inevitably because what is instantly accessible and appealing to us often quickly becomes dull. I love the idea that wanting to think about art makes you seek out more challenge so to speak. Emotional response is as important as intellectual I think though, and I’m really interested in the specifics of what about a piece of art or music or a film pulls on the heartstrings.
Thank you. You’re right about emotion, too. I think that, and the immediate aesthetic response to beauty, have tended to be downplayed in a post-modern world of conceptual art, but they’re still fundamental. No one’s ever going to convince me that Damien Hirst is a good artist, because I find his work ultimately unengaging. I can think about it intellectually, but the lack of resonance means I think he’s a fraud. But Jeremy Deller? I think he’s terrific, and a large part of that is simply because his works resonates with me emotionally and aesthetically.
The line about Sibelius and Finlandia was effective, but he is unquestionably high-brow. For anyone who doesn't want to waste time with Alice Coltrane and other such nonsense, here are ten works for beginners from the brilliant critic Dave Hurwitz. The recording by Leif Segerstam and the Helsinki Philharmonic on Ondine are a good place to start for a lot of this repertoire.
You nailed one brilliant line in there "I had to want to like it". Says so much about the complex process. Who "wants" and who "likes"? Some über-ich wanting something the ich should do? And so much more thinking along those lines. Thanks!
P.S. And you are right, you listening to and discussing pitchfork reviews is deeply incestuous :)
I’m very enamoured the current thinking in psychology that suggests that the ‘self’ is basically the result of post-rationalisation of the outcome of squabbles between various unconscious impulses. The consciousness pieces together and idea of a consistent personality out of all the random nonsense your brain throws up.
Not sure what you mean by "post-rationalisation" and not sure about who "pieces together". You seem to differentiate between "self" and "consciousness", not sure about that either. But I definitely like the idea that the "self" (or indeed consciousness) is the result of various impulses and other nonsense your brain comes up with. Although I am absolutely at a loss to describe the process in any detail.
So brilliant. I think it’s brave to grow intentionally. And at the same time I also think it’s mature to know when you just don’t give a shit about what you’re being told is avant garde because you know it’s just dumb.
What I have been made aware of recently is how very little I actually recognize is of my own taste. I’ve been, per the recommendation of a friend, writing out a list of what I like, and doing so in the third person so it is an objective list.
To that end, I, as a former opera critic, wonder what the fuck Copenhagen would think of the first item on that list: my second-hand Ford F150 pick up truck with the extended bed, meaning my truck is that much bigger than everyone else’s. Also, my predilection for only drinking French wine even if West Coast US wines are better, and the fact that I love fried dill pickles.
And to me, none of this is incongruent. Also, I have NOTHING in common with my family. I like nothing they like, and vice versa.
I mean, the Danish would frame things that way because they are the last bastion of hegemony in Europe. So seeing things in such a categorical way is in their genes, you could say.
Thank you! I do think its a really interesting dance, that one between what you like and what you want to like - trying to grow one’s own experience and opinions but also being honest about when things don’t resonate at all. A lot of the most interesting people I know are those who just follow their own taste (although they’re all people who happen to have extremely eclectic and interesting tastes, too)
Our generation, at least in my observation, have only now been able to start culling what isn’t truly us as individuals. As Boomers drop off, and as the chaos monkeys in charge keep fucking shit up around the world, especially the Middle East, I predict a strange space opening up where for once there’s enough oxygen for us Xers to deeply breathe, and at the same time there will be pressure on us to get real about who we are or die.
This is so interesting. I think taste is such a tricky subject because it is so easy to offend people. I do try very hard not to write things off (especially music.) I will keep coming back to things just to see how I feel, and it often pays off. I think tastes change and develop inevitably because what is instantly accessible and appealing to us often quickly becomes dull. I love the idea that wanting to think about art makes you seek out more challenge so to speak. Emotional response is as important as intellectual I think though, and I’m really interested in the specifics of what about a piece of art or music or a film pulls on the heartstrings.
Thank you. You’re right about emotion, too. I think that, and the immediate aesthetic response to beauty, have tended to be downplayed in a post-modern world of conceptual art, but they’re still fundamental. No one’s ever going to convince me that Damien Hirst is a good artist, because I find his work ultimately unengaging. I can think about it intellectually, but the lack of resonance means I think he’s a fraud. But Jeremy Deller? I think he’s terrific, and a large part of that is simply because his works resonates with me emotionally and aesthetically.
The line about Sibelius and Finlandia was effective, but he is unquestionably high-brow. For anyone who doesn't want to waste time with Alice Coltrane and other such nonsense, here are ten works for beginners from the brilliant critic Dave Hurwitz. The recording by Leif Segerstam and the Helsinki Philharmonic on Ondine are a good place to start for a lot of this repertoire.
Finlandia
Symphony No. 2
Karelia Suite
Symphony No. 5
En Saga
Pohjola’s Daughter
Pelléas and Melisande (Suite)
4 Lemminkäinen Legends
Violin Concerto
Symphony No. 7
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MF39sZ2fCM