quote:

I was thinking, for aspiring musicians, surely listening to music non-stop by-passes inspiration and drains your creativity? Perhaps...

I have thought about this in the past and have mixed feelings on the matter. Personally, if i watch my World According to John Coltrane DVD prior to practicing drums, or listen to Jimi Hendrix prior to practicing guitar...i play significantly better, inspiration miles closer. but there are times were it just becomes noise and i need to retreat from it all. i suppose moderation is the answer...

anyway...what do you guys (especially musicians) think about this? does listening to a lot (A LOT- like...NON STOP) of music fry your brain or does it in general expand your notion of sound and inspire you. rewire your brain in a musical way.

I hear what you're saying, and I do agree with you. When I'm listening to a lot of different bands and types of music I become unsure of my tastes and opinions- it's hard to separate one sound from another. That is when I know to retreat, albeit briefly. I then jump right back in. When I write, however, I always crack open my favorite books and reread them, just to get me in the frame of mind I need to accomplish anything of note. It's a lifting point that I feel necessary. Good question, Machols.

I can't speak for aspiring (or unaspiring) musicians, but I play music non-stop when I'm reading and writing, which is roughly 60% of my day. I find certain music to be a stimuli for getting my work done...there are a handful of discs I can play, whenever I'm knee-deep in a paper that I can't finish, and they always help me get by.

I should subtitle each chapter of my dissertation after the records that framed them...

I need more music more of the time. A few years back a Blue Meanie supervisor banned music on the job, except on headphones during breaks and lunch. I heard it was banned because one person couldn't abide someone else's radio choice in a different department (which shouldn't have affected the rest of us who boogie in peace, I argued to no avail). Besides breaks and lunch, I have the headphones on when I first arrive at my desk and prepare for the day. Usually this gives me 15-20 minutes of tunes to kick-start my head and I sure need it. Music at work always made me feel more creative & able to do a better job. Once work is over, it's music in the car & home cd players for most of the rest of the day. Music is like oxygen!

As a musician, I don't think that I need a break from listening to music. I always like to hear tons of sax players playing in different styles, songs. The more the better and I constantly seek more and more. Sometimes I switch up the genre but I am a lot like crazed in that music is like oxygen for me.