Jung once said that it is impossible for a Westerner to be fully involved in practising yoga and reach enlightenment by practising Eastern spirituality. It is so because of the analytical mind characteristic for Western culture, science and common sense, while people in the East are born and raised with a holistic idea of the world, where all is one and one is all, where Gods and people are the same thing in essence, image of a world where everything is connected through the mysterious laws of dharma and karma. And according to Jung, that creates a gap between the two civilizations that can’t be bridged in this stage of human development (especially on the West side of humanity).
That might be true in the realms of philosophy and science, but music - that’s something completely different. Music is not mathematics. It utilizes the mathematical methods for ease of access to its own ideas, but in essence music is the complete opposite of math. Music is synthesis of many senses and processes, it connects the brain synapsis in unpredictable and intense ways and it does that to every human being, even animals, regardless of race, colour, cultural background or species in general. It is the universal language of the world. In that sense, where words and concepts can’t bring people closer together, there is music to solve the differences.
In front of me I have the CD “Sangam” by Michael Nyman, one of the most prominent contemporary English composers, pianists and musicologist. The album was released in 2003 through the Warner Music label and it is a collaboration with musicians from India including U. Shrinivas and the Misra Brothers. The word “Sangam” is Hindi and means “meeting point” or “coming together”, making it the perfect title for this grand meeting of music masters from both worlds. It is a result of Nyman’s huge interest in Indian music and culture which urged him to go to India and stay for a month. After that he returned to the West and spent two years writing the material. Fascinated by Indian classical music, Nyman wanted to keep most of those traditional music forms in his new composition. In that context he said: “I didn’t want to intervene too much because their singing is so beautiful, particularly in the slower sections. It was more a case of making a bed for their voices”. Shrinivas is credited as a co-composer, beside his contribution as a percussionist. Nyman explained in an interview that “Shrinivas could hear a tune of mine and then transform the rhythm. Or it might be the other way around. It’s difficult in places to tell what is me and what is him.” And that’s probably why this music sounds so spontaneous and this cross-cultural merging feels so natural. It is a wonderful example of what music truly represents - a universal language for all living beings.
