Or is the latter the result of one-who-has-good-hygiene's obsessive bent?
A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of seeing live one of my favorite singer/songwriters, Brandi Carlile. As I continue to root myself in this little-town city, I am continually amazed by its charm and distinct plusses: near to the mountains, near to the coast, with one of the best parks in America, two hours from ATL, Charlotte, one from Asheville, home to Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, a gluttony of farmer's markets, area farms, artists, and, soon, Anthropologie. But, aside from this, and the excellent people I'm blessed to call friends, I experienced a seminal moment that will forever mark Greenville as a life-moving place: sharing, with a small crowd, the sheer beauty, energy, and immense talent of one of my current favorite performers.
Why is music so moving?
The answer is one we sense but can't necessarily explain. We simply understand our intrinsic inclination, a desire to listen and to respond to rhythm, notes, words. We share an interest in music, as we share our basic needs: breathing, eating, walking, mating, and vacuuming.
And, as we know, collective experience (energy multiplied) is like amping your listening room from clock radio to surround sound. Concerts, especially in small venues, where you're standing shoulder to shoulder, beer to beer, with sweaty, music-loving people, screaming the words, awestruck as you sing in real time with your favorite singer, are moving experiences—the difference between seeing the Grand Canyon in pictures and sleeping in its air. Unmatched. Inexplicable. Simply awe-some. Collective soul? Absolutely.
Though there is weight behind all expression—literary, visual, theatrical, dance, etc.—music (symphonic, operatic, and—perhaps most especially—rhythmic, lyrical, and personal) pierces to the core. It is visceral. And it is collective. In no other art can you participate so presently/simultaneously/cathartically with the artist. So, Brandi and I, though we arrived from different places, were expressing ourselves at once. I was singing her words, with her, of different experiences, but with a shared understanding. I was screaming her words with her, and that was amazingly powerful.
We are moved by art, by artists, by lives and work we consider valuable. To share this experience just makes me smile.
And, though I thought I was before, I am officially obsessed with Brandi Carlile. It's stated, here in writing. Hopefully I am putting it to good use.
