'The world that created me, the world that I created', anyway, the 40th in the series is a story about classical music.
The author majored in composition in college, and after graduation, worked as a classical music reporter for a performing arts magazine.
After leaving journalism, I studied music listeners in graduate school and wrote lyrics for pop songs.
Because of that, he easily moves between the inside and outside of classical music, the vastly different realms of creation, performance, and appreciation, from the anticipation and cheers that fill the audience to the passion or fear of the creators and performers who fill the stage with music.
A world as wide and deep as it is old, fascinating, yet stubborn as an iron fortress.
But music that is perfect and beautiful, has endured through the ages and is still played, sung, and appreciated today.
The author said, “I couldn’t love the entirety of the huge mass called classics, but I have cherished the moments I experienced while slowly walking the small paths within them,” and calmly chose the writing by tracing those precious moments and the feelings I liked.

The heart that sits in a small workshop, carefully touching and polishing string instruments to produce clear and deep sounds, the life that looks upon young friends who have just started playing an instrument with longing and encourages them in their own way, the stories of great people on stage, the great history or philosophy in books, that heart, that life, may be more important.

--- p.9

The composer's job is to decide which note to write next to each other.
The listener feels and enjoys the flow that extends from the first note.
What more can be added to the completeness of creation and appreciation itself?
The old-fashioned attitude of someone who studied composition and the inferiority complex of someone who failed to become a musician were mixed together inside me.

--- p.11-12

Much of the philosophy we learn in the field of musicology teaches us to be wary of music that is extremely beautiful.
The point is that music is a high-dimensional abstract art form and an art form that contains ideology and truth, so if the melody is vulgar and worldly, it can actually be a hindrance.
Every time I read a book like that, I mutter to myself.
'Not knowing how difficult it is to write a great melody...
You fools, this is something only a few geniuses with natural talent can do!'
--- p.22

My life as a composer ended so meaninglessly that I'm embarrassed to even say I graduated from the composition department.
It would be more accurate to say that it hasn't even started yet.
Yet, I know how preciously such a great melody is born, and how difficult it is to make beautiful music beautiful.
And it's a little better that I can convey that beauty through words.
That would be great, geniuses.

--- p.27

Unlike painters or writers who present finished paintings or writings, performers tell their stories and paint pictures while the audience watches.
Even while writing this personal piece, I go through several revisions and agonies. If I thought someone was watching this process, I wouldn't be able to write even a single sentence. However, pianists go through this process for tens of minutes, and do it multiple times, in front of audiences of hundreds or thousands.
It's amazing.
This is why I admire artists who perform with their bodies.
Boldness and honesty.

--- p.47-48

The question of whether it is the same whether the note is played softly or slowly changes once you discover the order of the universe that Bach created.
In this world, that fact becomes extremely important.
Just as a constellation changes when a single star moves slightly, a subtle difference in expression can create a completely different meaning.
That's why musicians sit at their desks or in front of their instruments and think and think about what nuance to give to each note and what story to give to each melody.
I learned the reason why I have been studying and playing classical music for a long time through Bach.

--- p.54-55

An old man who watches a tree grow for a long time while selecting the notes, and the piano shop owners who are satisfied with making children smile.
Although values ​​may differ, it is true that good art goes hand in hand with a good life.
Good art comes from a good life, and good art in turn creates a good life for the artist.

--- p.92

I live with the heart of a musician even though I am not a musician.
He worries like a poet, even though he is not a poet.
A healthy day is very precious.
I absolutely hate writing that seems to be intoxicated with oneself, but I think it's okay to read a well-written piece that isn't too sad and is safe, even if it's belatedly comforting.
A healthy and safe day is really precious these days.

--- p.101

Do I have the courage to live while admitting my mistakes?
Can I embrace and care for my past to move toward the future I desire?
I'm not very confident.
When I look back, only the clumsy things that I did remain in my heart, and I shake my head to shake them off.
I wish I could have the ability to sublimate pain, sorrow, and reflection into art, like Germany and Estee did.
I want to have that kind of driving force that allows me to move forward with some strength.

--- p.122

Art is born from the temperament, sensibility, and sensitivity of artists living in a certain era.
Even if it only reaches a few viewers, or is simply passed down to future generations as a record, it cannot be said to be meaningless.
The value of art lies in the attempt itself, and its evaluation is completed at different times.
The fact that it allows us to enjoy the freedom of listening and the joy of active discovery is enough reason to enjoy contemporary music.
That's why I keep listening to the new music that is being born.

--- p.140-141