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10/02 - Foreword to the book by Andy Wasserman
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As you will soon discover for yourself, the Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal
Organization requires us to think in a new way. While it is inevitable that
you will bring what you know to the Concept, you will soon realize the
dramatic difference of this musical landscape where tones, scales, chords,
and modes resonate within the Principle of Tonal Gravity. In order for this
to begin to work within you and within your music, it is strongly suggested
that you give these ideas your complete openness and attention, and, even for
brief moments, let go of your preconceptions of the theoretical foundations
of Western music. The knowledge that appears in the two volumes of the Lydian
Chromatic Concept bas been distilled very carefully to allow students of the
Concept to adapt their own musical perspectives to this one.
The unified core of ideas at the root of the Concept has the potential to
transport music into a realm of deeper meaning. Opening up to those
possibilities requires patience, concentrated thought, and dedicated study.
Therefore it is important to realize that you cannot assimilate these ideas
from too narrow a basis, either intellectually or emotionally. By making the
effort to absorb the terminology and structure presented here, your musical
foundation can be made stronger and the connections between you and your
music more intelligent. Once the unity of the Concept begins to penetrate
your practical understanding, everything in it becomes useful. It is then
that its message challenges you to inquire musically and psychologically into
the things you think and feel. For this reason, it is crucial to embrace the
Concept from an emotionally receptive position of seeking something genuine
for yourself in a world where most music is far removed from innovation and
excellence. To do this requires a willingness to learn that emanates from
self-motivation.
The Concept has a unique way of interpreting and translating the things of
great value that music can tell us--something about the meaning of
organization and gravity. Its purpose is to generate new pathways toward
greater freedom in exercising aesthetic judgment and discernment that invoke
a more objective fulfillment of musical statement. The focus, attention, and
consciousness you put into the study of the Concept will uncover greater
meaning and an expansion of your musical understanding, regardless of the
stylistic genre of music to which you apply it.
Throughout this course of study you will notice that terms like vertical,
horizontal, and the relationship to states of tonal gravity signal an
eloquent departure from the major-minor consonant-dissonant system that is
commonly taught to students. This specific language, when integrated into
your thinking, can bring about personal advancement that will convey insight
and innovation to your craft. The ideas are interrelated for a unity like
that of a mandala, rather than the compartmentalized, noncontiguous elements
that form commonly accepted notions of musical behavior. By its very nature,
the Lydian Chromatic Concept will give you a fresh outlook that can aid in
bringing life to your musical understanding. This requires you to master a
sense of independence and self-awareness. Try to "visualize" the
relationships presented in this book by "hearing" its knowledge with an inner
ear that is capable of formulating your own singular musical ideas through
the experience of an internal focus. This focal point can help you decipher
between the superficial, mechanical associations you may be accustomed to
making in your compositions or improvisations and the quality of
consciousness that allows many levels of subtlety to come into play. Simply
to imitate what others have played and composed is not enough. It may be
beneficial for you to consider adopting a reciprocal attitude to digesting
the Concept whereby the energy you give while implementing its ideas will
fuel your passage through unexpected doors of discovery.
Having a specific aim while working with the Concept can he helpful. Whether
you are a composer, instrumentalist, improviser, educator, arranger, or
theoretician, and even if you come to this book from outside the profession
of music, finding an aim as you work will allow you to put this knowledge
into action and have it work for you. Use this book as a map to help you aim
for that which extends beyond your customary approach. This will require you
to examine some basic questions about the meaning behind an organization of
musical tones and why you play or write music.
As you absorb this knowledge and become more intimate with its fundamental
principles, such as the actuality of a passive "do" which yields to
everything in scale that is higher that itself (Chapter II), you can begin to
unearth a vision of your innate "response-abilities" within your musical
discipline. At its essence, The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal
Organization creates a self-organized and infinite range of possibilities for
us to master.
Andy Wasserman
Used by Permission, © 2002
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