Editor’s greetings!
As a musician I have always had heart for piano music. Music, to me, means many things. A way to express oneself, a way to cope with emotions, a way to relax inside your own head when the outside world becomes too much. Piano is a peculiar instrument that has the means to do all those things. I try to keep an open mind and a wide horizon and listen to all kinds of music but throughout the years simple piano music has been my favorite.
It is quite well known that music can be used as a tool to cope with one’s feelings, learning and much more. We have an inborn ability to enjoy music and rhythm. They are very primitive instincts and thus very powerful.
So why piano? Not only does it offer a great variety of possibilities, but also embodies the truth that many people are yet to understand: music is maths. The enjoyable thing about music is that it can be counted, predicted and understood. Progressive music is a whole another page in this book but the main theme of To The Moon is a good example of this. Most of the song consists of two notes being repeated again and again. The left hand part is not that complicated either. The whole thing is calm, simple, predictable and very enjoyable. It offers very few surprises, making it an excellence piece of music for relaxation.
Many people attempt to draw lines to what is and what is not music. Contrary to the common belief, it is not as hard as people think. Music has a strict structure. In absence of that structure, music ceases to be. It’s open to argument how much of that structure is needed, though. Many musicians wish to make music with less structure – and, surprisingly, more mathematics. Ironically, the structure is still there, just different. Music without structure is just noise.
So what does it mean for music to be about mathematics? First and foremost, it means that musical ability is not something you are born with, it is something you learn. Anyone can learn how to play piano, just like anyone can learn how to do mathematics. Anyone can learn to enjoy the music, both on practical and theoretical level. I think it’s vital that we stop pretending that some people are musical and some people are not.
For now though, when November has arrived with rain and dark, take few minutes off what ever you were doing, sit back and enjoy the music.
Best regards,
The Editor
