John Burke
My blogs
| Gender | Male |
|---|---|
| Industry | Arts |
| Occupation | Composer |
| Location | Canada |
| Introduction | Consciousness studies, psychoacoustics and cognition, Eastern and Western philosophical/spiritual inquiry, the anthropology of music in traditional (shamanic/animist) cultures--these are the fields that have profoundly influenced my music. Inspired by such thinkers as Jean Gebser (Ursprung und Gegenwart) I have begun addressing the growing evidence that the modern/postmodern structure of consciousness is giving way to a new paradigm, that of integral consciousness. I am exploring the role that Western art music can and should play in this shift. I have created experimental musical/experiential environments in which to facilitate a transition from an animus-driven “esotericism of the head” (e.g. the postwar Boulez-Stockhausen-Nono project) to what might be described as an anima-unfolding “esotericism of the heart,” as understood in traditional societies. Concurrent with this I am exploring the psychoacoustic/affective resources of microtonality, with a focus on the piano in sixteenth of tones. |
| Favorite music | The music that speaks to, invokes, and catalyzes that which is beyond name and form. |
| Favorite books | Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism |
You've written a hit musical! How will you avoid having fame go to your head?
By reading "On Having No Head" by Douglas Harding.