Oct. 18th, 2009

eve_prime: (Default)
Today's relax-and-recuperate activity was the Oregon Bach Collegium's Haydn concert at the Episcopal church.* I was quite looking forward to this, even though I'm not terribly interested in Haydn, and given that I'm not a fan of classical-classical music (as contrasted with baroque music, or romantic-era classical music), nor familiar with the pieces, it was a good experience.

My mind wandered a lot, and I kept feeling conscious of my body and my wandering mind in a way that doesn't happen when I'm watching a movie or reading a book. I kept thinking that I want to have a more mindful experience and get absorbed in the music, so I wondered about the barriers to that. I noticed that I seemed to be less distracted from the music whenever it was obvious what notes were coming next, so probably if I were more familiar with the pieces I could have focused better. However, I don't think I completely require familiarity to focus on music - there are numerous concerts that I've felt thoroughly immersed in without knowing all the songs in advance - but I think those tended to be Christmas music or like when I saw Brocelïande. So I think the factors that contribute to being able to get absorbed in a musical performance (when I'm trying) must be: familiarity, beauty, and emotional engagement.

(This relates to my doctoral research.)

* My previous experience with them: Bach and Telemann.

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