TMIY Introduction | culturett

The Introduction:

This concise little book on music was initially not intended for publication. Its material was originally conceptualised and structured in 2019 as an interactive classroom course, featuring flipcharts, audio recordings, and a variety of instruments including electronic keyboards and drums. The course was primarily developed to support musicians—particularly those with limited backgrounds in music theory—in acquiring skills such as interpreting musical scores, understanding instrumentation, and gaining introductory knowledge about the scientific principles underlying music. It was indeed an exciting beginning and a different approach to music appreciation.

And then came the pandemic! COVID-19 descended on the Caribbean and the rest of the world in all its fury bringing with it all the mandatory social and physical restrictions including social distancing, limited group gatherings, and of course mask wearing. “The Music In You”, as our course was entitled, seemed as though it would never get off the ground.

There was, however, a re-think. After a short meeting with two of my closest advisors – my wife Donna-Marie and her good friend and fellow stage manager Asha Stewart – the decision was made to move from physical to online interaction. The flip charts transformed into visual slides and physical instruments were exchanged for diagrams and computer-generated images. The decision was also taken that, given the primary target audience, (mature gainfully employed or retired individuals) the course would run twice weekly in the evening time from 6pm to 7pm and would continue for a duration of four weeks. “The Music In You” was ready to go!

And so, it did. The course began running in late 2020 with a group of eight students. This group, while being made up primarily of “family and friends”, was very critical and provided valuable information and feedback concerning presentation and content which was used to fine tune the subject matter. In fact, it became standard practice in every later session of the program to collect participant feedback, which was then used to enhance the course's effectiveness. Upon careful review of this feedback, it became evident that a significant element was lacking: the inclusion of a companion course manual.

As the COVID pandemic gradually began to ease and run its course and the population, as Brother Valentino put it “went back to their race and class” our focus shifted once again, this time to writing this companion manual. Initially, the idea was simply to compile all written notes, diagrams and images from each of the eight sessions that made up the course and present this to our participants at the end of each run. However, as I began putting together the material and constantly writing and re-writing, this simple “companion manual” began to transform into something much more extensive and far-reaching. And then, as happened previously with the pandemic, we were presented with another very serious and this time personal life disruption.

Donna-Marie was diagnosed with end stage renal failure. Naturally, all other matters were put aside as our attention shifted entirely to medical treatments that could maintain or even enhance her quality of life. With kidney dialysis taking up three hours per session, three times a week, there was hardly any opportunity to focus on the course companion manual, which therefore became neglected. Eventually, Donna-Marie, my companion of forty-two years succumbed to her illness on March 19th, 2024.

As you might imagine, this led to a lengthy phase of personal growth and change for both me and my family. Part of this included revisiting overlooked matters that could potentially aid us during this time. And there, she was, on the back burner, just waiting to be picked up and revived. “The Music In You” companion manual no longer wanted to be a companion to anything but looked to stand alone on her own two feet (metaphorically speaking of course). And so, after writing and re-writing, editing and illustrating, and all else that was involved with this new project, the book version of “The Music In You” which I present to you now, emerged like a phoenix from the ashes of the back burner.

Before we proceed however, just a little exploration on the layout. The book is written in five parts which cover the following topics:

Part I explores music in its written form and therefore, covers topics like musical symbols and other aspects of notation. A little music theory. It also includes a discussion of communication in the performing arts with an emphasis, of course, on music.
Part II gets a little more exciting as we delve into areas like Tempo, Dynamics, Acoustics, and most importantly, human emotions in music. The science of sound and how it relates to music is also discussed.
Part III is where we look at musical instruments and the methods of sound production in each of them. Musical conversation is a key aspect of this section.
Part IV is all about patterns that are found in nature and music. We also see how these patterns reveal themselves in topics like music scales, intervals, and chords.
And finally, Part V is all about exploration. You’ll understand more when you get there.

It should also be stated that the book should be read in sequence, from Part I to Part V, as very often references are made to topics that were discussed in previous sections. Keep in mind also that this book originated from an interactive classroom environment, and its writing style mirrors that experience. Essentially, it presents a conversation between the author and the reader.

In conclusion, I must say that this work would not have gotten to this happy conclusion without the help of my friend Kizzy Lee Gibbs, my editor Roslyn Carrington and my illustrator Aarti Gosine. These three ladies are my angels. I also dedicate the book to my immediate family Donna-Marie (dec), my son Paul-Marc (dec) and my daughters Kristy-Anne and Shelaigh (dec).

Have fun and enjoy the read!