Pat Metheny : American Garage

SUBJECT:	How do you listen to music these days? Back to Subjects
yulyo Feb 14 2011 at 12:16 PM	I talk to a lot of people and it’s kind shocking how many friends my age, now don’t really listen to music that much anymore. It’s always, I’m too busy or I have to listen in the care or I listen while I’m working. That’s not listening. That’s hearing. My kids use ipods and plug in while they are walking or running or exercising or doing something else. That’s the key thing. Why is everyone playing music while they are doing something else?
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St P Mar 03 2011 at 3:14 PM	I think that listening while exercising it is possible to get as much out of the music as if you were sitting alone just concentrating. Listening in the car, especially on motorway, you can also still dissect the music and listen to it very intensely.Hell, most of us listened to our formative music stoned - was that really the way to get into it ? On a spearate point, do many of you get the phenomenon when you listen tp a whole bunch of stuff random on ipod then a couple of days later one of the songs will jump back into the front of your brain and you will start to really appreciate it ?
lizzard Mar 03 2011 at 12:32 PM	Harn, I like your posts by the way. I think the quality of our environment has changed so much, along with our choices, that music seems to be everywhere from muzac in cafes to what we selectively choose to listen to. Theres nothing like putting on a record/cd purely for the pleasure of listening, to feel it wash through our being and observing the effects. I agree we dont need sophisticated or glamorous hi-fi, BUT, younger people today probably have seldom ’listened’ through a good system! Its all ipods and earbuds... my first PM album was First Circle, and funnily enough, i used to skip End of the Game...which is now a favorite track! I find ofton listening to music, the songs less liked at first turn out to be the gems!
rjs5877 Mar 03 2011 at 11:07 AM	I still listen to music much they same way I did as a kid. Many times it is a form of meditation especially with high quality headphones while lying down in bed. I’ve never owned a walkman nor an Ipod. I don’t like listening and being cut off from the world when out and about. The one exception is I do listen in the car and I guess the sheer volume could be considered being cut off. I still listen critically in a dedicated music room with the lights turned out. LP’s seem best for this as there is less chance for falling asleep! Though listening this way to To the End of The World or The Roots of Coincidence or First Circle are real peak experiences. I love the music of Pat Metheny in the same way I love the Grateful Dead or Allman Brothers or Miles, Monk, or Trane. Music that is improvisational has always and will always hold my interest and attention. Music (and musicians) that takes chances to search and explore is my favorite and a big reason why I listen the way I do.
Guinness1957 Mar 03 2011 at 8:35 AM	I listen to Sirius xm Watercolors often in the car. I also have my favorite music on my ipod hooked up to a dock for my stereo with jazz mixes of just Pat, just others and a mix of all. I also have this for my iphone hooked into my stereo. I think I have it covered since I don’t like much on the radio these days.
Thmiuatga Mar 03 2011 at 3:09 AM	Usually when I’m listening to music I am at home at the computer as I am now, or when I’m in my vehicle and working. Listening to the PMG kicks my creative thinking into overdrive. At the moment I’m listening to "The Way Up" and I’m thinking about flying. I’ll have to talk about that scenario later. His live material is stunning and Michelle Sammartino (formerly of XM and Moja Radio.com) was right when she said that Pat is a perfectionist. I was driving home after work in the wee hours of the morning and heard a PMG song on XM radio. It was "First Circle" and I didn’t realize it was live til I heard Pedro Aznar singing and the audience reacting. I was Stunned! "The Coincidence of Incidents" was another track I heard live for the first time and damned near perfect to the studio version note for note. I want to say more but "The Way Up" (I’m listening now)has my thoughts going overtime and taking my attention away!
pmscom55 Mar 02 2011 at 11:01 PM	Well, the music motivates. Medicates. I listen ALL DAY LONG. XM Sirius Watercolors boom box in home office, iPod in ears while walking, stereo to blast it for a while, CDs and XM in car. Love Pat Metheny. Even watching his You Tube videos. For hours at at time. But the best way to listen to music is LIVE and I had the blessing of seeing Pat on his Orchestrion Tour and it was absolutely wonderful. I will never forget it...
Bill coleman Mar 02 2011 at 10:25 PM	I think that the terms "listening" vs "hearing" are too polar and don’t capture the true range in the way the music around you can resonate in your spirit and your conscious brain. example: have you ever listened to really good music while drifting in and out of light sleep? The experience can open you to hearing it in a new way... like waves of colours shaping your thoughts. Conversely, really studying music as you hear it - tracking all the parts at once and relating them together against the movement of tone centres takes enormous concentration. this is highly rewarding in an entirely different way. Regardless of the context, any spiritual being will be incapabile of blocking out music entirely, ambient or otherwise, regardless of quality or genre. the way in which it effects us is a rainbow of possabilities. but it is like everything in life, you get out what you put in.
brokenladder Mar 02 2011 at 10:20 PM	for me listening to Pat Metheny I have to be ready for the story the music is going to tell me. I will buy a cd and sit on it for months before I listen to it because I want to be ready to hear all of it, if you know what I mean. I just cant put it on and "hear" it, I want to experience it. Does that make sense. I have been listening to Pat Metheny now for over twenty years and have always listened in this way
djcookirk Mar 02 2011 at 9:45 PM	I’ve never had the opportunity to simply "listen to" music,though I "enjoy" a lot of it. I’ve always been cursed with an overriding ability to deconstruct/analyze whatever I listen to. One of the key reasons I love Pat’s music so much (especially the Group’s) is the sheer volume of texture he and Lyle uses.
rktrix Mar 02 2011 at 9:31 PM	Really great question. Sadly the answer is: episodically and sporadically. I haven’t been to a musical performance in ages. I find the ipod experience is just background noise, used when doing something else. Even the experience of putting together a playlist to share becomes background noise when played for a group. When people get together they expect to talk and visit. As a child, I spent time listening to symphonic music, sitting for hours on end without squirming. As I grew, we would play records at home and STOP and listen. The world rarely stops any more. I think it’s time for me to make it stop now and then and just hole up with music and let it saturate my soul.
troutonahook Mar 02 2011 at 9:06 PM	I’ve always listened to music intently.Listening to the individual notes and riffs associated with them. For instance there is a short quadruple riff that Lenny White does shortly after Stanley Clarke begins his solo in Romantic Warrior that is just awesome. You can’t hear that if you don’t listen. There is also a killer solo Johnny Winter does at the end of his Jumpin Jack Flash performance on the live album that rips through my soul and of course there’s the shit Pat Metheny does that makes you smile as if you were almost fooled or missed something. So I listen as if my life depended on it because it does. Amen!
gregleno68 Mar 02 2011 at 9:00 PM	I isten where and when I can and I play where and when I can. I can’t play like Pat but I can play like me. Music is in my mind whether its in the air or not. My ipod when I am cycling - my desktp when I am working - my loungeroom with a guitar when I am relaxing!
freebshell Mar 02 2011 at 7:32 PM	First, I completely agree with the person that said music is a craving. Second, I’m jealous of all of you with the sweet sound systems! Right now, all I have is my iPod with ear buds and car CD system. I have some vinyl but nothing to listen on. One day I’ll have a Bose system! When I was a kid, I listened to albums from my older siblings: Moody Blues, Emerson, Lake, & Palmer, Led Zeppelin, etc. I would listen while doing things, but many times, I’d just sit on my bed and listen. The very first time I heard Pat was on VH1. I had no other way to listen to music, so VH1 videos it was, for a while. I prefer to use headphones so I can pick up all the amazing sounds. I listen to Pat differently than I do anyone or anything else. At times, I might listen to his live music in the car or around the house. However, things like One Quiet Night, Quartet, or Secret Story ... I’m sitting quietly and focusing on nothing but the music! I sleep with Pat a lot too – great time to listen and enjoy! I’m proud to say that my son has a “craving” for music too. For the longest time all he would listen to was classical and Pat Metheny. I’m glad that he still loves both today, in addition to a wide range of other music. He too listens to music like I do, while he’s doing things (does help him concentrate), and while sitting still. It feels good to pass down the appreciation of great music.
DStafford Mar 02 2011 at 6:58 PM	I listen to Pat on my iPod Classic & Bose QC3 headphones or via iTunes on my desktop PC speakers. I also have the ultimate mobile iPod listening accessory. A 2008 VW R32 with integrated iPod dock. I take Pat with me everywhere I go!
stengel99 Mar 02 2011 at 6:53 PM	Great question. I primarily listen to music on my iPod and in the car. If you asked my wife, she’d probably tell you I always seem to to "listening," not just hearing. Actually, she says I’m analyzing the music. But if I’m being honest, probably a good third of that is just hearing. But whether hearing or listening, on an iPod, in the car, or in the living room with the CD player going full blast, Pat Metheny will always be one of my very favorites!
sjporter51 Mar 02 2011 at 6:25 PM	I have a commute by train , over an hour...IPOD with Bose noise canceling headphones allows a true listening experience. The nice thing about the IPOD, its that you can program it many ways. I make sure lots of Metheney tunes are always in the mix.... their new lossless format is great by the way.
JakeE Mar 02 2011 at 5:22 PM	Just adding my two cents here. Having just spent the last 5 years in college, music has been what helps me get through intense study sessions. I have my iPhone or Macbook playing music almost constantly, and from heavy rock to softer soundtrack pieces, I get through my day. That said, there are very few musicians that I will stop everything I’m doing to just listen to, Pat’s work being chief among them. Whether it’s Bright Size Life transporting me back home to the Midwest, Secret Story letting my mind float through a love story I’ve made in my head time and time again, or something like the Way Up that as a musician pulls my creative side in every direction urging me to create myself, these types of music require my fullest attention. An analogy I would give is that I can multi-task and watch Family Guy in the background, pick up on some of the jokes while I read the news online, and still enjoy the show. If I was watching something like, say, Lost In Translation, however, I need complete concentration to enjoy every scene.
Veselka Mar 02 2011 at 5:21 PM	I think another factor is that most popular today music just doesn’t demand any attention from the listener. Perhaps many have become too accustomed to this and forget how rich music can really be. For example, I know I can do my homework while listening to most popular groups that you could find on MTV, but If I throw on some Pat Metheny, his music just demands ALL my attention. I can no longer focus on whatever it is I’m doing. Same goes for any good classical or jazz music, I find.
steelydanny Mar 02 2011 at 5:09 PM	While I take every chance I can to listen to music, including commutes and while surfing the internet, I always make time to listen, immerse myself in the music. Since I no longer have my B&W towers and only have Bose bookshelf speakers, I prefer listening on my Sennheiser HD600’s. They’re great for jazz, classical, and most everything else, although their open design makes them audible to the rest of the room, but still quieter than the TV speakers... I find that watching high-quality concerts/performances on DVD to be enjoyable, since the visual adds so much. Might be time for some new B&W’s.
KentinNC Mar 02 2011 at 4:50 PM	I cannot stand to listen to Sirus XM as the audio is so crushed. I try to use the highest bit rate on an Ipod or similar in my car, with a direct connection, no FM modulator! I am thankful that there are a few Jazz stations on HD Radio for on the road to listen to newer works. The best is still my home system. I have the PMG DVD that was shot at the Paul Masson winery. It is in 5.1 surround sound and is just a pleasure to see and listen to.
Networx Mar 02 2011 at 4:43 PM	These days I do my casual listening at work or at home because too many things distract me from giving the music my full attention. I do my "critical" listening with my iPhone and a pair of Shure in-ear monitors with custom molds. They allow me to shut everything else out and just hear the music. I also find the car a good place to get involved with the music, again because there are fewer distractions, especially on long trips. I save "The Way Up" for long road trips because it relaxes me and I still hear new dynamics in it every time I listen to the album in that context... in the car with nothing but the open road in front of me.
nailmusic Mar 02 2011 at 4:42 PM	However I can - with whatever tech I have. iPhone in shirt pocket is great for classical while doing errands ’round the house; we keep a living room stereo for general listening. Right now I"m listening to music on my laptop. I think the question could be more about "under what conditions do you listen to music". For me, it’s pretty much all the time. :)
jbesseli Mar 02 2011 at 4:38 PM	I like listening to Pat Methany live! So given its been a while since I have seen you, when are you coming to Salt Lake City again? Last time was Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah a few years back. So when are you coming back? Back to the question at hand: The environment and delivery source of the music doesn’t matter, its the quality of the music. I listen everywhere and anytime I can, but often can’t listen while working. I do like the modern conveniences of iPods and genera stations and music sorting.
harn Mar 01 2011 at 12:08 PM	fendweller, you have a very valid point that music has much more competition now as a way of spending leisure time. There is so much choice that I think that is why peoples attention spans are decreasing. If you don’t instantly like something then you can get something else at the touch of a button, maybe it’s part of evolution. What many don’t understand is that a little perseverance can pay off big time in the long run. As an example; the first Metheny album I bought was First Circle, I got it in 1985 after witnessing his performance at the Manchester Apollo, I was 15 and obviously there were no CD’s it was vinyl! I didn’t much care for Mas Alla but as I didn’t want to damage either the vinyl or the needle by messing around jumping a track I would just sit through it to get to the last track Praise. After many plays I started to hear things in Mas Alla and over time it became one of my favourites on the album and is now a very rewarding listen. I don’t think that would happen now, especially not with a 15 year old! Also speaking very personally, as a young kid I heard certain things which really changed my whole life, I became obsessed by music and couldn’t live without it and I’ve been the same ever since. If that happens to a young kid now, surely there is no difference to my experience, no choice to be made, music will come before everything, it’s a craving which has to be satisfied. I really believe that if you don’t feel that way and you’re quite happy to watch TV or play a computer game instead then you possibly don’t love music quite as much as you think you do. For me music is not a pastime or a way of spending leisure time like the TV is, it’s a neccessity of life like water and food! It’s slightly ironic then that I should be seemingly spending so much time on here! But I have an excuse; I’m checking this website daily for more tour dates in the hope of at least one UK gig.
w15121 Feb 28 2011 at 5:49 PM	On one of my two "mid-fi" systems. I like real hi-fi but don’t think I’m a snob. THough I care about sound, I care about the music even more, especially when it’s Pat. - Crank Audio Guy (crankyaudioguy.blogspot.com)
bluepno Feb 27 2011 at 8:05 PM	I must ad that while I had it Sirius XM diital radio did sound great. Fine, clear sound with atmosphere.
bluepno Feb 27 2011 at 11:35 AM	Thank you harn for focusing on what is truly important.I just wish to add that when listening to music on the computer or other portable digital player the secret artist such as Rudy Van Gelder, Manfred Eicher or a George Martin doesnt seem to shine like on the dedicated listening machines of the past.
tokeyozi Feb 27 2011 at 10:04 AM	Harn, you’re entirely right. Hague, agreed, and no doubt it’s one of the reasons why (musicians like) Pat made ALL of their records, to make us listen, and not just ‘hear’ their music (that’s for diners and elevators). I myself tend to play a CD in order to listen, and whenever I have to concentrate on something else, however futile, I won’t play it (just don’t like background music). Maybe that’s why I’m sometimes reluctant to eat out, as the music kind of distracts me most of the time (luckily there are enough places where they don’t treat you to Mantovani, or any music at all). However, if it’s a jazz or blues bar, that’s quite okay :)
fendweller Feb 27 2011 at 8:02 AM	Harn - good stuff. I’ll have to ask my folks how busy their lives were compared to ours. My dad certainly was busy but liked his music too. I remember him sitting down with a certain reverence to listen to his opera records on his B&O radio/turntable combo (after he’d listened to each platter for scratches first). Possibly lives were less complex though. Less information coming at you. Less on telly. Less to do generally. Less competition for music as a pastime. That could be the reason why young people don’t seem as fussed about music as we are. It could also be because music is so much easier to come by now, both the music itself and the means to play it. It’s cheaper too, just. The easier something is get, the less treasured it becomes.
Dazedcat Feb 27 2011 at 7:48 AM	harn: rock on, epic post.
thehague Feb 26 2011 at 5:30 PM	Harn, exactly. That’s one of the reasons why Pat made TWU imo.
harn Feb 26 2011 at 3:02 PM	I think the original thread has been slightly lost. I totally agree that many people don’t "listen" they only "hear" and they are two very different things. There are probably millions of reasons why this is true but a major one is the evolvement of technology. Music is now very portable, convenient and disposable. Gone are the days when if you decided to play an album you would take the time to carefully pull the vinyl from it’s sleeve, place it on the turntable, drop the needle down and then sit with a triple fold-out record cover on your lap totally engrossed in the world of the artist of your choice, at least until the side had finished, no skipping or shuffling tracks, no driving or sitting on the bus, no jogging, no walking the dog, in fact nothing other than listening. Music is no longer cherished in that way, especially by younger people. In my opinion an album should be an artistic statement to be heard as the artist intended from start to finish with no facility for the listener to alter it in any way. Afterall, you don’t go into an art gallery with a paintbrush and paint out sections of the canvas do you? It really doesn’t matter what equipment you listen on as long as you are really listening, there is a lot of snobbery amongst hi-fi enthusiasts and often they are some of the worst culprits, they are too busy studying the sound instead of the musical content. I hear a lot of people saying that they "don’t have the time" which I don’t believe for a minute, if you love music then you will make the time, if you don’t make the time then you don’t love music as much as you think you do. It is a popular misconception that we all live "on the go", we all lead such busy lives day in day out. I think we’re actually being conditioned into thinking that so that we’ll buy whatever product to make our lives easier. People had high pressure jobs and kids in every decade gone by and there were no ipods or computers, only turntables and guess what, we used them regularly!! There....rant over!!
gabrielaramirezargentina Feb 23 2011 at 4:01 PM	Yeap... Even better if the seat is my car´s and I´m driving some country´s lonely road. The rest of the time, well, the music inside my head usually keeps me in a sort of contemplation mode.
shiveringgoat Feb 23 2011 at 3:34 PM	Still with my ears.
Wendy Feb 22 2011 at 11:00 PM	The car. Sometimes a long commute is a good thing.
Tom Rudd Feb 22 2011 at 11:52 AM	Over the weekend I was in a bar/restaurant with my wife having dinner and there was some bad 80’s rock playing loudly over the speakers. I said the her "this is painful listening to this" She says just turn your ears off like you do sometimes when I talk to you. I said "That will work thanks ! LOL
Mike S. Feb 17 2011 at 11:17 AM	Most of the time in my car which actually has a pretty good sound system. And when I am home I listen through a Sony portable cd player and Grado R80 headphones which are AWESOME. However, when home alone, I do get to listen through an old NAD receiver and a horrible cd player and my Bose 901’s
Dazedcat Feb 16 2011 at 2:54 PM	Probably 90 percent of my listening now is via a nice Sony CD Discman through a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones. My wife doesn’t run screaming out of the room this way and I don’t really need much else at this point in my life.
mountain Feb 16 2011 at 2:53 PM	When the stork delivered two little girls, most of the music gear went into hiding. Now that they are 2 and 6, we have a dedicated room for the musical instruments and my guitar lab studio and we are building a new home theater setup based on two Infinity towers. I have ripped thousands of CDs into the iTunes monster (ugh) and use a variety of portable devices (ipod/iphone) and the PC. I have been using the Bose 15 headphones too. I do spend some time listening to music in the car through ipod and XM radio. I greatly miss the record shops. I am well versed in digital music technology and have lots of capacity to download, store and play, but truly miss the experience of the independent record shops to find and listen to stuff. My other challenge is that my wife is a safety professional and any sound source cranked up more than a whisper and she is turning it down on me....to protect me hearing. Unfortunately, I can’t enjoy what I can’t hear...so out come the headphones or long drives in the car!
rainriver Feb 15 2011 at 1:40 PM	at home i listen to my music on a set of jbl lsr4328 studio monitors. i never listen to music in mp3.
mugsy Feb 15 2011 at 11:08 AM	For me, music is and always has been a huge form of meditation. I try (and almost succeed) to spend at least an hour every day just listening. Then, in addition to that, I always have music going in the car, while exercising, walking, etc. I agree that there is a big difference between listening and hearing.
bluepno Feb 15 2011 at 9:06 AM	1970’s Kenwwood amp...2 Infinity speakers and 2 Advent speakers (a and b channels together...Grado cartridge on a dual turntable...I need to upgrade the cd player to give me the SACD sound I used to get on my old player. Microtrack II digital recorder (to transfer lp’s to cdr).Simple yet effective. Rare ipod or mp3 player. Any suggestions on a solid cd player would be welcome. LP’s still sound sweet in the listening room. Video in the living room is sent to a sony digital amp and then the sound is split Left and Right through large JBL speakers. I added a center speaker and rear cubes to enhance the surround effect on the the good movies. Orchestrion will sound awe inspiring...Secret Story...Speaking of Now and The Way Up dvd’s are used often to show novices how things should sound.
-m Feb 15 2011 at 8:48 AM	If I’m really lucky my best listening comes when I’m playing.
zargb5 Feb 15 2011 at 7:55 AM	I have a dedicated hi fi system, but tend to listen more at the moment via pc and DAB radio albeit whilst doing other chores or things. Due to depression i find it very difficult to just sit and listen due to suppressed emotion.
barley Feb 15 2011 at 7:48 AM	Disconnect the ’phone and doorbell. Switch off the cellphone. Put the cats out. Inform other family members. Choose CD. Turn off the lights. Turn up the volume. Open ears. Press "Play". Never fails. Well, actually never happens but you get my drift.
fendweller Feb 15 2011 at 3:47 AM	Sadly, my hi-fi was mothballed two years ago when my twin girls came along. Speakers on stands are a bad idea when that happens. I’ve thought about putting up some bookshelf ones but the chances for listening are so few and far between, especially as my wife and I aren’t on the same planets musically. So for me it’s iPod on the train, occasional CD’s through the kitchen-based Denon box, plus Youtube and iTunes while working. That’s still listening while doing something else though.
thehague Feb 14 2011 at 3:57 PM	I agree, you have to sit down (at least while listening to Pat and the likes). I try to take time everyday and I almost accomplish that. It’s such a joy.
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St P
Mar 03 2011
at 3:14 PM

I think that listening while exercising it is possible to get as much out of the music as if you were sitting alone just concentrating. Listening in the car, especially on motorway, you can also still dissect the music and listen to it very intensely.Hell, most of us listened to our formative music stoned - was that really the way to get into it ? On a spearate point, do many of you get the phenomenon when you listen tp a whole bunch of stuff random on ipod then a couple of days later one of the songs will jump back into the front of your brain and you will start to really appreciate it ?

lizzard
Mar 03 2011
at 12:32 PM

Harn, I like your posts by the way. I think the quality of our environment has changed so much, along with our choices, that music seems to be everywhere from muzac in cafes to what we selectively choose to listen to. Theres nothing like putting on a record/cd purely for the pleasure of listening, to feel it wash through our being and observing the effects. I agree we dont need sophisticated or glamorous hi-fi, BUT, younger people today probably have seldom ’listened’ through a good system! Its all ipods and earbuds... my first PM album was First Circle, and funnily enough, i used to skip End of the Game...which is now a favorite track! I find ofton listening to music, the songs less liked at first turn out to be the gems!

rjs5877
Mar 03 2011
at 11:07 AM

I still listen to music much they same way I did as a kid. Many times it is a form of meditation especially with high quality headphones while lying down in bed. I’ve never owned a walkman nor an Ipod. I don’t like listening and being cut off from the world when out and about. The one exception is I do listen in the car and I guess the sheer volume could be considered being cut off. I still listen critically in a dedicated music room with the lights turned out. LP’s seem best for this as there is less chance for falling asleep! Though listening this way to To the End of The World or The Roots of Coincidence or First Circle are real peak experiences. I love the music of Pat Metheny in the same way I love the Grateful Dead or Allman Brothers or Miles, Monk, or Trane. Music that is improvisational has always and will always hold my interest and attention. Music (and musicians) that takes chances to search and explore is my favorite and a big reason why I listen the way I do.

Guinness1957
Mar 03 2011
at 8:35 AM

I listen to Sirius xm Watercolors often in the car. I also have my favorite music on my ipod hooked up to a dock for my stereo with jazz mixes of just Pat, just others and a mix of all. I also have this for my iphone hooked into my stereo. I think I have it covered since I don’t like much on the radio these days.

Thmiuatga
Mar 03 2011
at 3:09 AM

Usually when I’m listening to music I am at home at the computer as I am now, or when I’m in my vehicle and working. Listening to the PMG kicks my creative thinking into overdrive. At the moment I’m listening to "The Way Up" and I’m thinking about flying. I’ll have to talk about that scenario later. His live material is stunning and Michelle Sammartino (formerly of XM and Moja Radio.com) was right when she said that Pat is a perfectionist. I was driving home after work in the wee hours of the morning and heard a PMG song on XM radio. It was "First Circle" and I didn’t realize it was live til I heard Pedro Aznar singing and the audience reacting. I was Stunned! "The Coincidence of Incidents" was another track I heard live for the first time and damned near perfect to the studio version note for note. I want to say more but "The Way Up" (I’m listening now)has my thoughts going overtime and taking my attention away!

pmscom55
Mar 02 2011
at 11:01 PM

Well, the music motivates. Medicates. I listen ALL DAY LONG. XM Sirius Watercolors boom box in home office, iPod in ears while walking, stereo to blast it for a while, CDs and XM in car. Love Pat Metheny. Even watching his You Tube videos. For hours at at time. But the best way to listen to music is LIVE and I had the blessing of seeing Pat on his Orchestrion Tour and it was absolutely wonderful. I will never forget it...

Bill coleman
Mar 02 2011
at 10:25 PM

I think that the terms "listening" vs "hearing" are too polar and don’t capture the true range in the way the music around you can resonate in your spirit and your conscious brain. example: have you ever listened to really good music while drifting in and out of light sleep? The experience can open you to hearing it in a new way... like waves of colours shaping your thoughts. Conversely, really studying music as you hear it - tracking all the parts at once and relating them together against the movement of tone centres takes enormous concentration. this is highly rewarding in an entirely different way. Regardless of the context, any spiritual being will be incapabile of blocking out music entirely, ambient or otherwise, regardless of quality or genre. the way in which it effects us is a rainbow of possabilities. but it is like everything in life, you get out what you put in.

brokenladder
Mar 02 2011
at 10:20 PM

for me listening to Pat Metheny I have to be ready for the story the music is going to tell me. I will buy a cd and sit on it for months before I listen to it because I want to be ready to hear all of it, if you know what I mean. I just cant put it on and "hear" it, I want to experience it. Does that make sense. I have been listening to Pat Metheny now for over twenty years and have always listened in this way

djcookirk
Mar 02 2011
at 9:45 PM

I’ve never had the opportunity to simply "listen to" music,though I "enjoy" a lot of it. I’ve always been cursed with an overriding ability to deconstruct/analyze whatever I listen to. One of the key reasons I love Pat’s music so much (especially the Group’s) is the sheer volume of texture he and Lyle uses.

rktrix
Mar 02 2011
at 9:31 PM

Really great question. Sadly the answer is: episodically and sporadically. I haven’t been to a musical performance in ages. I find the ipod experience is just background noise, used when doing something else. Even the experience of putting together a playlist to share becomes background noise when played for a group. When people get together they expect to talk and visit. As a child, I spent time listening to symphonic music, sitting for hours on end without squirming. As I grew, we would play records at home and STOP and listen. The world rarely stops any more. I think it’s time for me to make it stop now and then and just hole up with music and let it saturate my soul.

troutonahook
Mar 02 2011
at 9:06 PM

I’ve always listened to music intently.Listening to the individual notes and riffs associated with them. For instance there is a short quadruple riff that Lenny White does shortly after Stanley Clarke begins his solo in Romantic Warrior that is just awesome. You can’t hear that if you don’t listen. There is also a killer solo Johnny Winter does at the end of his Jumpin Jack Flash performance on the live album that rips through my soul and of course there’s the shit Pat Metheny does that makes you smile as if you were almost fooled or missed something. So I listen as if my life depended on it because it does. Amen!

gregleno68
Mar 02 2011
at 9:00 PM

I isten where and when I can and I play where and when I can. I can’t play like Pat but I can play like me. Music is in my mind whether its in the air or not. My ipod when I am cycling - my desktp when I am working - my loungeroom with a guitar when I am relaxing!

freebshell
Mar 02 2011
at 7:32 PM

First, I completely agree with the person that said music is a craving. Second, I’m jealous of all of you with the sweet sound systems! Right now, all I have is my iPod with ear buds and car CD system. I have some vinyl but nothing to listen on. One day I’ll have a Bose system! When I was a kid, I listened to albums from my older siblings: Moody Blues, Emerson, Lake, & Palmer, Led Zeppelin, etc. I would listen while doing things, but many times, I’d just sit on my bed and listen. The very first time I heard Pat was on VH1. I had no other way to listen to music, so VH1 videos it was, for a while. I prefer to use headphones so I can pick up all the amazing sounds. I listen to Pat differently than I do anyone or anything else. At times, I might listen to his live music in the car or around the house. However, things like One Quiet Night, Quartet, or Secret Story ... I’m sitting quietly and focusing on nothing but the music! I sleep with Pat a lot too – great time to listen and enjoy! I’m proud to say that my son has a “craving” for music too. For the longest time all he would listen to was classical and Pat Metheny. I’m glad that he still loves both today, in addition to a wide range of other music. He too listens to music like I do, while he’s doing things (does help him concentrate), and while sitting still. It feels good to pass down the appreciation of great music.

DStafford
Mar 02 2011
at 6:58 PM

I listen to Pat on my iPod Classic & Bose QC3 headphones or via iTunes on my desktop PC speakers. I also have the ultimate mobile iPod listening accessory. A 2008 VW R32 with integrated iPod dock. I take Pat with me everywhere I go!

stengel99
Mar 02 2011
at 6:53 PM

Great question. I primarily listen to music on my iPod and in the car. If you asked my wife, she’d probably tell you I always seem to to "listening," not just hearing. Actually, she says I’m analyzing the music. But if I’m being honest, probably a good third of that is just hearing. But whether hearing or listening, on an iPod, in the car, or in the living room with the CD player going full blast, Pat Metheny will always be one of my very favorites!

sjporter51
Mar 02 2011
at 6:25 PM

I have a commute by train , over an hour...IPOD with Bose noise canceling headphones allows a true listening experience. The nice thing about the IPOD, its that you can program it many ways. I make sure lots of Metheney tunes are always in the mix.... their new lossless format is great by the way.

JakeE
Mar 02 2011
at 5:22 PM

Just adding my two cents here. Having just spent the last 5 years in college, music has been what helps me get through intense study sessions. I have my iPhone or Macbook playing music almost constantly, and from heavy rock to softer soundtrack pieces, I get through my day. That said, there are very few musicians that I will stop everything I’m doing to just listen to, Pat’s work being chief among them. Whether it’s Bright Size Life transporting me back home to the Midwest, Secret Story letting my mind float through a love story I’ve made in my head time and time again, or something like the Way Up that as a musician pulls my creative side in every direction urging me to create myself, these types of music require my fullest attention. An analogy I would give is that I can multi-task and watch Family Guy in the background, pick up on some of the jokes while I read the news online, and still enjoy the show. If I was watching something like, say, Lost In Translation, however, I need complete concentration to enjoy every scene.

Veselka
Mar 02 2011
at 5:21 PM

I think another factor is that most popular today music just doesn’t demand any attention from the listener. Perhaps many have become too accustomed to this and forget how rich music can really be. For example, I know I can do my homework while listening to most popular groups that you could find on MTV, but If I throw on some Pat Metheny, his music just demands ALL my attention. I can no longer focus on whatever it is I’m doing. Same goes for any good classical or jazz music, I find.

steelydanny
Mar 02 2011
at 5:09 PM

While I take every chance I can to listen to music, including commutes and while surfing the internet, I always make time to listen, immerse myself in the music. Since I no longer have my B&W towers and only have Bose bookshelf speakers, I prefer listening on my Sennheiser HD600’s. They’re great for jazz, classical, and most everything else, although their open design makes them audible to the rest of the room, but still quieter than the TV speakers... I find that watching high-quality concerts/performances on DVD to be enjoyable, since the visual adds so much. Might be time for some new B&W’s.

KentinNC
Mar 02 2011
at 4:50 PM

I cannot stand to listen to Sirus XM as the audio is so crushed. I try to use the highest bit rate on an Ipod or similar in my car, with a direct connection, no FM modulator! I am thankful that there are a few Jazz stations on HD Radio for on the road to listen to newer works. The best is still my home system. I have the PMG DVD that was shot at the Paul Masson winery. It is in 5.1 surround sound and is just a pleasure to see and listen to.

Networx
Mar 02 2011
at 4:43 PM

These days I do my casual listening at work or at home because too many things distract me from giving the music my full attention. I do my "critical" listening with my iPhone and a pair of Shure in-ear monitors with custom molds. They allow me to shut everything else out and just hear the music. I also find the car a good place to get involved with the music, again because there are fewer distractions, especially on long trips. I save "The Way Up" for long road trips because it relaxes me and I still hear new dynamics in it every time I listen to the album in that context... in the car with nothing but the open road in front of me.

nailmusic
Mar 02 2011
at 4:42 PM

However I can - with whatever tech I have. iPhone in shirt pocket is great for classical while doing errands ’round the house; we keep a living room stereo for general listening. Right now I"m listening to music on my laptop. I think the question could be more about "under what conditions do you listen to music". For me, it’s pretty much all the time. :)

jbesseli
Mar 02 2011
at 4:38 PM

I like listening to Pat Methany live! So given its been a while since I have seen you, when are you coming to Salt Lake City again? Last time was Kingsbury Hall at the University of Utah a few years back. So when are you coming back? Back to the question at hand: The environment and delivery source of the music doesn’t matter, its the quality of the music. I listen everywhere and anytime I can, but often can’t listen while working. I do like the modern conveniences of iPods and genera stations and music sorting.

harn
Mar 01 2011
at 12:08 PM

fendweller, you have a very valid point that music has much more competition now as a way of spending leisure time. There is so much choice that I think that is why peoples attention spans are decreasing. If you don’t instantly like something then you can get something else at the touch of a button, maybe it’s part of evolution. What many don’t understand is that a little perseverance can pay off big time in the long run. As an example; the first Metheny album I bought was First Circle, I got it in 1985 after witnessing his performance at the Manchester Apollo, I was 15 and obviously there were no CD’s it was vinyl! I didn’t much care for Mas Alla but as I didn’t want to damage either the vinyl or the needle by messing around jumping a track I would just sit through it to get to the last track Praise. After many plays I started to hear things in Mas Alla and over time it became one of my favourites on the album and is now a very rewarding listen. I don’t think that would happen now, especially not with a 15 year old! Also speaking very personally, as a young kid I heard certain things which really changed my whole life, I became obsessed by music and couldn’t live without it and I’ve been the same ever since. If that happens to a young kid now, surely there is no difference to my experience, no choice to be made, music will come before everything, it’s a craving which has to be satisfied. I really believe that if you don’t feel that way and you’re quite happy to watch TV or play a computer game instead then you possibly don’t love music quite as much as you think you do. For me music is not a pastime or a way of spending leisure time like the TV is, it’s a neccessity of life like water and food! It’s slightly ironic then that I should be seemingly spending so much time on here! But I have an excuse; I’m checking this website daily for more tour dates in the hope of at least one UK gig.

w15121
Feb 28 2011
at 5:49 PM

On one of my two "mid-fi" systems. I like real hi-fi but don’t think I’m a snob. THough I care about sound, I care about the music even more, especially when it’s Pat. - Crank Audio Guy (crankyaudioguy.blogspot.com)

bluepno
Feb 27 2011
at 8:05 PM

I must ad that while I had it Sirius XM diital radio did sound great. Fine, clear sound with atmosphere.

bluepno
Feb 27 2011
at 11:35 AM

Thank you harn for focusing on what is truly important.I just wish to add that when listening to music on the computer or other portable digital player the secret artist such as Rudy Van Gelder, Manfred Eicher or a George Martin doesnt seem to shine like on the dedicated listening machines of the past.

tokeyozi
Feb 27 2011
at 10:04 AM

Harn, you’re entirely right. Hague, agreed, and no doubt it’s one of the reasons why (musicians like) Pat made ALL of their records, to make us listen, and not just ‘hear’ their music (that’s for diners and elevators). I myself tend to play a CD in order to listen, and whenever I have to concentrate on something else, however futile, I won’t play it (just don’t like background music). Maybe that’s why I’m sometimes reluctant to eat out, as the music kind of distracts me most of the time (luckily there are enough places where they don’t treat you to Mantovani, or any music at all). However, if it’s a jazz or blues bar, that’s quite okay :)

fendweller
Feb 27 2011
at 8:02 AM

Harn - good stuff. I’ll have to ask my folks how busy their lives were compared to ours. My dad certainly was busy but liked his music too. I remember him sitting down with a certain reverence to listen to his opera records on his B&O radio/turntable combo (after he’d listened to each platter for scratches first). Possibly lives were less complex though. Less information coming at you. Less on telly. Less to do generally. Less competition for music as a pastime. That could be the reason why young people don’t seem as fussed about music as we are. It could also be because music is so much easier to come by now, both the music itself and the means to play it. It’s cheaper too, just. The easier something is get, the less treasured it becomes.

Dazedcat
Feb 27 2011
at 7:48 AM

harn: rock on, epic post.

thehague
Feb 26 2011
at 5:30 PM

Harn, exactly. That’s one of the reasons why Pat made TWU imo.

harn
Feb 26 2011
at 3:02 PM

I think the original thread has been slightly lost. I totally agree that many people don’t "listen" they only "hear" and they are two very different things. There are probably millions of reasons why this is true but a major one is the evolvement of technology. Music is now very portable, convenient and disposable. Gone are the days when if you decided to play an album you would take the time to carefully pull the vinyl from it’s sleeve, place it on the turntable, drop the needle down and then sit with a triple fold-out record cover on your lap totally engrossed in the world of the artist of your choice, at least until the side had finished, no skipping or shuffling tracks, no driving or sitting on the bus, no jogging, no walking the dog, in fact nothing other than listening. Music is no longer cherished in that way, especially by younger people. In my opinion an album should be an artistic statement to be heard as the artist intended from start to finish with no facility for the listener to alter it in any way. Afterall, you don’t go into an art gallery with a paintbrush and paint out sections of the canvas do you? It really doesn’t matter what equipment you listen on as long as you are really listening, there is a lot of snobbery amongst hi-fi enthusiasts and often they are some of the worst culprits, they are too busy studying the sound instead of the musical content. I hear a lot of people saying that they "don’t have the time" which I don’t believe for a minute, if you love music then you will make the time, if you don’t make the time then you don’t love music as much as you think you do. It is a popular misconception that we all live "on the go", we all lead such busy lives day in day out. I think we’re actually being conditioned into thinking that so that we’ll buy whatever product to make our lives easier. People had high pressure jobs and kids in every decade gone by and there were no ipods or computers, only turntables and guess what, we used them regularly!! There....rant over!!

gabrielaramirezargentina
Feb 23 2011
at 4:01 PM

Yeap... Even better if the seat is my car´s and I´m driving some country´s lonely road. The rest of the time, well, the music inside my head usually keeps me in a sort of contemplation mode.

shiveringgoat
Feb 23 2011
at 3:34 PM

Still with my ears.

Wendy
Feb 22 2011
at 11:00 PM

The car. Sometimes a long commute is a good thing.

Tom Rudd
Feb 22 2011
at 11:52 AM

Over the weekend I was in a bar/restaurant with my wife having dinner and there was some bad 80’s rock playing loudly over the speakers. I said the her "this is painful listening to this" She says just turn your ears off like you do sometimes when I talk to you. I said "That will work thanks ! LOL

Mike S.
Feb 17 2011
at 11:17 AM

Most of the time in my car which actually has a pretty good sound system. And when I am home I listen through a Sony portable cd player and Grado R80 headphones which are AWESOME. However, when home alone, I do get to listen through an old NAD receiver and a horrible cd player and my Bose 901’s

Dazedcat
Feb 16 2011
at 2:54 PM

Probably 90 percent of my listening now is via a nice Sony CD Discman through a pair of Bose noise cancelling headphones. My wife doesn’t run screaming out of the room this way and I don’t really need much else at this point in my life.

mountain
Feb 16 2011
at 2:53 PM

When the stork delivered two little girls, most of the music gear went into hiding. Now that they are 2 and 6, we have a dedicated room for the musical instruments and my guitar lab studio and we are building a new home theater setup based on two Infinity towers. I have ripped thousands of CDs into the iTunes monster (ugh) and use a variety of portable devices (ipod/iphone) and the PC. I have been using the Bose 15 headphones too. I do spend some time listening to music in the car through ipod and XM radio. I greatly miss the record shops. I am well versed in digital music technology and have lots of capacity to download, store and play, but truly miss the experience of the independent record shops to find and listen to stuff. My other challenge is that my wife is a safety professional and any sound source cranked up more than a whisper and she is turning it down on me....to protect me hearing. Unfortunately, I can’t enjoy what I can’t hear...so out come the headphones or long drives in the car!

rainriver
Feb 15 2011
at 1:40 PM

at home i listen to my music on a set of jbl lsr4328 studio monitors. i never listen to music in mp3.

mugsy
Feb 15 2011
at 11:08 AM

For me, music is and always has been a huge form of meditation. I try (and almost succeed) to spend at least an hour every day just listening. Then, in addition to that, I always have music going in the car, while exercising, walking, etc. I agree that there is a big difference between listening and hearing.

bluepno
Feb 15 2011
at 9:06 AM

1970’s Kenwwood amp...2 Infinity speakers and 2 Advent speakers (a and b channels together...Grado cartridge on a dual turntable...I need to upgrade the cd player to give me the SACD sound I used to get on my old player. Microtrack II digital recorder (to transfer lp’s to cdr).Simple yet effective. Rare ipod or mp3 player. Any suggestions on a solid cd player would be welcome. LP’s still sound sweet in the listening room. Video in the living room is sent to a sony digital amp and then the sound is split Left and Right through large JBL speakers. I added a center speaker and rear cubes to enhance the surround effect on the the good movies. Orchestrion will sound awe inspiring...Secret Story...Speaking of Now and The Way Up dvd’s are used often to show novices how things should sound.

-m
Feb 15 2011
at 8:48 AM

If I’m really lucky my best listening comes when I’m playing.

zargb5
Feb 15 2011
at 7:55 AM

I have a dedicated hi fi system, but tend to listen more at the moment via pc and DAB radio albeit whilst doing other chores or things. Due to depression i find it very difficult to just sit and listen due to suppressed emotion.

barley
Feb 15 2011
at 7:48 AM

Disconnect the ’phone and doorbell. Switch off the cellphone. Put the cats out. Inform other family members. Choose CD. Turn off the lights. Turn up the volume. Open ears. Press "Play". Never fails. Well, actually never happens but you get my drift.

fendweller
Feb 15 2011
at 3:47 AM

Sadly, my hi-fi was mothballed two years ago when my twin girls came along. Speakers on stands are a bad idea when that happens. I’ve thought about putting up some bookshelf ones but the chances for listening are so few and far between, especially as my wife and I aren’t on the same planets musically. So for me it’s iPod on the train, occasional CD’s through the kitchen-based Denon box, plus Youtube and iTunes while working. That’s still listening while doing something else though.

thehague
Feb 14 2011
at 3:57 PM

I agree, you have to sit down (at least while listening to Pat and the likes). I try to take time everyday and I almost accomplish that. It’s such a joy.

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