De la armonía musical a la social | Carlos Pesina | TEDxYouth@Guadalajara
The speaker argues that music's pleasantness stems from underlying mathematical proportions, suggesting that like mathematics, understanding this "musical language" rationally allows it to become a tool for generating societal harmony. This is supported by comparing consonant intervals like the octave (simple ratios) to dissonant ones (non-rational ratios), and by referencing the need for cultural identity expression in music.
## Speakers & Context
- Speaker: Interested in understanding the mechanical and societal function of music.
- Initial Interest: Knowing *how* feelings can be expressed through sound and whether those feelings can be shared between people.
- Disappointment: Previous music lessons focused only on *playing* rather than understanding the mechanics of music.
## Theses & Positions
- Harmony and pleasantness in music have a simple mathematical explanation, involving proportional relationships between frequencies.
- Music is essentially *"unconscious arithmetic"*—we like certain proportions without being consciously aware of the arithmetic.
- The search for beauty in mathematics is analogous to the creative process in art (bringing two ideas together and testing their logic).
- Music has an evident social function, such as synchronizing people for a marching band or a concert.
- Identifying with music is less subjective than people think; it can be understood through a "musical language."
- The ultimate goal is to understand this musical language rationally so it can be used as a tool to generate harmony in society.
## Concepts & Definitions
- **Sound:** Defined fundamentally as a *"variation in air pressure."*
- **Frequency:** A specific measurable attribute of a note, such as 440 Hertz.
- **Consonant:** A pleasing interval, such as the octave, whose frequencies combine with simple mathematical ratios (e.g., 1:2 ratio).
- **Dissonant:** An unpleasant interval, such as C and F sharp, whose frequency relationship cannot be expressed rationally.
- **Musical Language:** A systemic, understandable framework underlying music, comparable to mathematics.
## Mechanisms & Processes
- **Generating Sound:** A note creates a specific variation in air pressure.
- **Harmony Detection:** Analyzing the ratio between two combined frequencies (e.g., the octave showing every two cycles of the higher note coinciding with one cycle of the lower note).
- **Cultural Identity Formation:** Creating music by mixing two seemingly disparate cultural or artistic ideas (e.g., acid 90s electronic music with Pérez Prado's sounds).
- **Collaborative Music Creation:** Remotely mixing music from two different national styles (e.g., rock with mambo, or surf with son jarocho).
## Named Entities
- Amparo Ochoa: Traditional Mexican singer referenced in relation to a collaborative project.
- Guadalajara: City in Mexico, location of famous sandwiches sold downtown.
- Pérez Prado: Musician whose sounds were mixed into a project called *Micro Papitas*.
- San Francisco: City where a collaborator lives.
## Numbers & Data
- Standard reference frequency: **440 Hertz** (though the teacher could not confirm variations like 841, 441, or 439).
- Ratios illustrating consonance (octave): Simple division resulting in a simple half.
## Examples & Cases
- **Octave Example:** Combining two sounds an octave apart shows that every two cycles of the higher note coincide with one cycle of the lower note, yielding a pleasant sound.
- **Dissonance Example:** Combining C and F sharp shows no simple pattern in the sum or division of their frequencies, resulting in an unpleasant sound.
- **Evolutionary Theory:** A neurologist suggested music is an *"evolutionary parasite"* designed to create language.
- **Marching Band:** The rhythm synchronizes all marchers.
- **International Travel:** Meeting musicians globally prompted the speaker to create music reflecting their own background.
- **Chicano Music:** An example from the 50s where US-based Mexicans mixed jazz and Mexican music (like mambo) due to a partial identity.
- **Los Amparito:** A project mixing electronic music with Son Jarocho, named as a tribute to Amparo Ochoa and Guadalajara sandwiches.
- **Micro Papitas:** A mix of acid (90s electronic music) with Pérez Prado's sounds and 50s sci-fi sounds, alluding to "microchips" and potato chips.
- **Francisco and Madero:** A collaborative project mixing rock with mambo, or surf with son jarocho, referencing the dual nature of identity.
- **Serge Gainsbourg:** Example of offensive art mixing (reggae version of the French national anthem).
## Tools, Tech & Products
- Game Boys: Used in earlier musical compositions.
- Video games: Source material used for early electronic music.
- Electronic music: Medium used for composition.
- Online file transfer: Method used for the current collaborative remote project.
## References Cited
- A neurologist's theory regarding music's evolutionary purpose.
## Trade-offs & Alternatives
- **Music vs. Mathematics:** Mathematics finds beauty in *logical and rational* equations; music's aesthetic pleasure comes from *unconscious* mathematical proportion.
- **Cultural Blending:** Mixing two ideas can be appealing (e.g., *Los Amparito*) but can also be *"very offensive"* (e.g., Gainsbourg's anthem remix).
- **Identity Expression:** The alternative to structured musical understanding is simply self-identification through what is listened to ("what the music we listen to says about us").
## Counterarguments & Caveats
- The initial belief that music is purely about *learning to play* is insufficient; true understanding requires knowing *how* it works.
- The concept of identity derived from music may be *less subjective* than people believe.
## Methodology
- **Acoustic Analysis:** Determining the mathematical relationship (frequency ratios) between audible tones to distinguish consonance from dissonance.
- **Compositional Synthesis:** Combining disparate musical sources (e.g., Acid music + Pérez Prado) to create a new work.
- **Remote Collaboration:** Working with a partner in San Francisco to merge existing musical styles.
## Conclusions & Recommendations
- The speaker believes a "language" exists in music that can be understood rationally.
- The only way to master this is by understanding the underlying rational/mathematical structure, which allows music to function as a social harmony generator.
## Implications & Consequences
- Understanding music mathematically implies that its emotional function is rooted in discoverable, proportional patterns rather than pure subjective feeling.
- If this understanding is taught, music can be systematically employed to achieve societal harmony, mirroring its function in art.
## Verbatim Moments
- *"Each sound is a variation in air pressure."*
- *"If we combine these two sounds, we can see how every two cycles of the higher note coincide with one cycle of the lower note."*
- *"If we divide the frequency of one by the other, we get a simple half."*
- *"Music is nothing more than unconscious arithmetic; we are not aware of the actions we like because of this simple proportion."*
- *"Music has a very evident social function."*
- *"It's precisely that kind of music that appeals to me the most, the one that combines two ideas that seem impossible, that seem impossible to put together."*
- *"We call ourselves Francisco and Madero, because 'with' and also alluding to how that idea of identity is somewhat false..."*
- *"I believe that only by understanding the musical language in a rational way can we also use it as a tool to generate harmony in society."*