FREE ESSAY ON DAN KENNEDY

DAN KENNEDY

Throughout my life, music has always been a major influence. It has the power to change my
mood when I'm feeling down, but the thing I find most intriguing about music is that it
doesn't always end up improving your mood: like all forms of art, it imitates life, which
is not always portrayed in a positive light. The musicians that I admire most have the
versatility to induce several different emotional responses in the same piece. This
quality is present in most of the wide variety of music I listen to, from Russian
composer Dmiti Shostakovich, to Chicago jazz band Tortoise, to California pop/rock sextet
Mr. Bungle. 
Music is far more than the sum of its parts. It can be thought of in a highly
mathematical sense, which leaves one in awe of the seemingly endless combinations of
rhythm, tone and intervals that a good musician can produce. Admiring music in this way
is a lot like admiring an intricate snowflake, or shapes in the clouds; it's beautiful,
but at the same time very scientific, based on patterns. All of the aforementioned
qualities of music have one thing in common: they can be defined with numeric, specific
values. However, the greatest aspect of music lies elsewhere, and can not be specifically
defined with words. It is the reaction that each individual has when they are confronted
with their favorite (or least favorite) kind of music. 
There aren't many words to describe the emotional reaction I get when I hear certain
songs, even those that don't have the "complicatedness" of some of the more skillful
artists. Music can be viewed from many different perspectives. When I think of music, I
take all of these points of view into account. My goal, simply put, is to hone my craft
in every aspect, to the very furthest of my ability.