Response to 9/26/2011 Prompt

“The effect of music is so very much more powerful and penetrating than is that of the other arts, for these others speak only of the shadow, but music of the essence”(Page 257). What Schopenhauer has done is distinguished the importance of music from the rest of the arts. Perhaps I’m out of line, but what I get from the imagery in this sentence is that the Allegory of the Cave can explain the effects of arts; all other arts are comparable to the cave dwellers entertaining themselves with the jumping shadows on the wall of the cave while music, separate from these arts, reveals a sort of true objectification rather than imitation which we could equate to the guardian emerging from the cave enlightened.

Schopenhauer says that “music is independent of the phenomenal world, positively ignores it, and to a certain extent, could still exist even if there were no world at all” (Page 257). The analogy he uses, which I believe, if applied by men of science, could change the understanding of the way at least how the phenomenal world works, basically applies the idea of harmonics to the world around us (i.e. deep bass notes are represented as “inorganic matter” like the earth, middle tones would represent the organic nature around us like plants and animals, while the highest melodies we “recognize the highest grade of the will’s objectification, the intellectual life and endeavor of man” (Page 259)). Schopenhauer also explains how the progression from low to high is a “departure of the individual from the type of species” (Page 258+259). This leads perfectly into the conclusion of a piece of music in that no matter how dissonant a piece of music may be, and no matter what the objectification may be, “there always follows a final return to the keynote” (Page 260+261).

As ridiculous as I’ve considered Schopenhauer to be so far, in reading his thoughts on music (in particular) I have come to appreciate the musicality of all things. This doesn’t mean I’ve necessarily dropped all hard feelings for Cage and his 4’33” piece, but I have come to the conclusion that although 4’33” may not be a piece of music or even a piece of art, it’s still very important to me as a philosophy of music.