This was the most important lesson I ever got from my mentor, who was an industrial engineer. He claimed that if you can do it once, you can do it again. Anyone. Anything.
That one belief has dramatically changed almost every project I've ever done.
My favorite part of this story is actually where the author admits that he categorically loathes any music that doesn't have a catchy hook and someone singing words he can follow.
A pet peeve of mine has always been how _everyone_ claims to like music. When there are people who dislike ice cream, people who dislike movies, people who dislike sports, people who dislike dancing...why is it that you never meet anyone who will admit to disliking music? That always annoyed me as a musician who's met many people who can't possibly actually enjoy music considering their listening tastes. Yet, because of social pressure, these people will never publicly admit to disliking music.
So it's refreshing to hear from someone who admits to feeling zero affection for music. There are people who admit this about visual art. People who say this about drama. But it's rare to meet someone who will admit this about music,
Also consider that if you're a musician, people are less likely to say that they dislike music to your face, out of politeness.
I don't think it's so much cultural pressure as it is unusual. It's like meeting somebody who doesn't like art. It is so common and there are so many kinds out there that categorically disliking it entirely is strange. Most people probably do not want to be seen as strange.
It's also possible that in Western culture, not liking music is traditionally associated with something sinister. For instance, in Julius Caesar, Cassius is described as follows
"...He reads much,
He is a great observer, and he looks
Quite through the deeds of men. He loves no plays,
As thou dost, Antony; he hears no music.
Seldom he smiles, and smiles in such a sort
As if he mock'd himself, and scorn'd his spirit
That could be mov'd to smile at anything.
Such men as he be never at heart's ease
While they behold a greater than themselves,
And therefore are they very dangerous."
which contrasts with the more sympathetic character, Brutus, and his love of music.
There's a more explicitly anti-tone-deaf example in The Merchant of Venice: "The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils; The motions of his spirit are dull as night And his affections dark as Erebus: Let no such man be trusted."
Virtually everyone likes food, but not everyone is a gourmand. I think it's mostly the same way with music. People may not like the music you like, but they still like music.
People don't need music to live, like they do with food. It's a different situation.
My assertion is that if there are people who don't "do" art and people who don't "do" theater, then there must be people who don't "do" music. Yet I've never met anyone who will say this aloud.
I disagree. Response to music is fundamentally human. Animals respond to music, so the ones who say the have zero appreciation for music are kidding themselves. Now, all music? Of course not, I cant stand, rap and girl bands, but others appear to like them.
I definitely believe it could be true. I don't think the music story would be out of character for Einstein.
One of my academic advisors was Professor Robert Borkenstein (he invented the breathalyzer, among other things.) Before he got into academia, he had worked as a police captain and forensics advisor to various organizations, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police. I was visiting Borkenstein's office once, long after he became a Professor Emeritus, and I commented on some artwork he had on the wall. I was really just making small-talk out of nervousness, and I hadn't really even looked at the drawings beyond a quick glance. Borkenstein perked up and asked me to really examine the drawings, and tell him what I thought about them. They were just sketches and doodles, mostly...nothing elaborate. I was going to just say they were 'nice" out of courtesy, when I realized a few of them were signed...by Albert Einstein.
It turned out that Borkenstein had worked as a guard for Einstein and some of the other scientists involved in the US nuclear efforts when he was younger. He wasn't supposed to interact with any of them, he was just there to help insure their protection. One day, Bob was so curious about the mechanics of something they were discussing that he forgot his place and asked a question. Einstein apparently spent quite a bit of time explaining the confusing concept, and became fond of Bob and his curiosity. He recognized that Bob had a very inventive mind and apparently wanted to encourage it, so whenever Bob worked a shift, Einstein would chat with him. Einstein had drawn most of the sketches on the wall to explain various concepts, although some of them were just absent-minded sketches. He let Bob keep them when the protection detail ended.
The sketches meant a great deal to Bob, and I think he had kept them somewhere in his office for his entire career. I also think the sketches (and personal attention from Einstein) helped provide some of the impetus for Bob's inventing career. Unfortunately, I don't recall all of the details Bob gave when telling his story about the Einstein discussions, but I remember that he was very reverential, awed that Einstein had taken the time to discuss important things with a guard. I think Einstein was genuinely fascinated with how other people view the world...and they say a new perspective is worth XXX IQ points, right?
Cool story, but what Einstein does here--escorting a stranger out of a concert for a private music listening training session--is downright strange and socially odd, by most standards. Did he feel he had a license to do this because he was one of the most famous people in the world? Or was he so wrapped up in his own brilliance that he didn't even notice what was a bit socially deviant?
You think he seems arrogant here? Maybe he didn't care that he was being a bit socially deviant! :-)
My impression is he was just too excited about "opening up yet another fragment of the frontier of beauty" to worry about adhering to the social standard!
Anyway, thanks dfield for posting, this was a fun read!
Interesting that you call trying to teach someone about music soically odd, but by not commenting imply that it is totally normal to sit in a concert ignoring the music. Perhaps social norms are not all they are cracked up to be, and a little "out of the box" thinking can be good. Or even thinking out of space and time :-)
Einstein asked a question, the writer said he did not understand the music. Okay so most people would perhaps have just tried to "explain" the music in the intermissions - but I doubt that would have the same effect.
One of Einsteins skills was explaining logic in simple easy steps to build up a very complex picture. For me this story (be it true or not) shows his brilliant tutalege in action :)
People whose opinion I care about aren't that fussed about other being "a bit socially deviant". Apparently Einstein had similar views, so I feel I'm in good company.
Society progresses only by the friction created by all those unreasonable eccentrics.
I believe this, AND I was just playing the advocate. Note that belief and approval are orthogonal. I think this is really happening, altough I do not really approve it.
There is a rather strong and noble tradition among great physicists of being a little bit off the beaten track. Read Feynman. The bets between Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne at Caltech. There wasn't a lot that was conventional about Einstein.
I felt like I was in the room observing this encounter take place.
This was very nice to read, or rather, to experience :)
The joy of wonder!
Thanks for the post