Transcendent Music

A couple of weeks ago I attended a high school senior recital of a friend of ours. Most of the music was classical (used in the broad sense of the term), but at the end one student played a blues piece. While I love blues, something struck me about the contrast it played against the other pieces. It struck me that when classical music is played right (as it definitely was by these impressive high school seniors) the performer actually disappears. The better the performer plays, the more invisible he becomes. As I listened to the music that afternoon, I found myself focusing on the beauty of the music, which transported my mind to the mystery of Beauty itself. By contrast, blues by its very nature focuses the mind on the performer. The better a performer plays the blues, the more impressed the listeners become with his skill. While blues taps into something profoundly human, it is imminent rather than transcendent.

I found out after the concert that the music teacher had reservations about the blues piece. Her comment was, "Blues music is not good for your soul." I would not go so far, but after my musical musings I understand where she is coming from.