Music has been around for thousands of years. Actually, tens of thousands of years. Maybe it’s too bold of a statement to make in my first blog post, but I’d like to think that the ability and desire to organize sound – to make music – serves as one of the greatest milestones in human evolution.

This new blog, I suppose, is nothing new. We’ve been doing this for 40,000 + years. Amazing, though, that we are still fascinated by music – in fact, you could say we can’t get enough. Music is everywhere in our modern lives, from formal events like church or graduations, to casual things like shopping or even sports games.

Claudio Monteverdi‘s (1567-1643) opera “L’Orfeo” (1607) was not the first opera ever written, but it is the earliest opera written that is still performed today, 400 years later. (a mere 1/100th of 40,000 years – the dating of the earliest musical instrument found). The overture is pure rock-and-roll: 8 bars of loud music, all in the same key. No development. No tricks. Just rock, and repeat. After the overture, a sweet aria, in which a character called “La Musica” sings:

I am Music, who with sweet accents can make a troubled heart to be at peace;
I can set ablaze even the coldest of minds with noble anger or love.

A fitting beginning for the Fine Art of Listening. Thanks for visiting!

How about them Harry-Potter robes, eh?