Music conjures memories and emotions. Have you ever listened to a song and had a flashback to where you were and who you were with when you first heard it? The frequencies of certain musical notes can even reach into the minds of people suffering from severe Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) and calm them. Music also has the ability to excite and incite. Certain genres like hip hop (Public Enemy “Fight the Power”) and rock (Limp Bizkit “Re- Arranged”) come to mind. Dr. Daniel J. Levitin’s book “This is your brain on music” explains why: “particular combinations of rhythms, timbres and pitches have lodged in your memory, making your pulse race and your heart swell every time you hear it.” However, you do not have to be a neuroscientist to understand the power of music.
During the height of the cold war in the 1950s, U.S. State Department commissioned jazz giant Dizzy Gillespie, Maya Angelou and other African American cast members of the opera “Porgy and Bess” to perform in “Communist” Eastern Europe. Instead of nuclear annihilation, audiences discovered American treasures – African American original music (jazz) and opera performed by magnificent African American singers/actors. The State Department’s musical diplomacy bridged the gap between “enemies.”
So, I hope musicians are encouraged and inspired to keep doing your thing; creating wondrous music. To all fans of my music, please “SMILE” and know I appreciate you.
One Love…
Aria
