The Internal Listener’s Manifesto

MUSIC is omnipresent and multifaceted. MUSIC is the curation,
organization, active participation, and/or intentional listening
to sonic and other temporally oriented or durational happenings.
Nothing more and nothing less. Music is intentionality centered
in durational experience.
-
MUSIC should no longer be defined by archaic regulations of
notation, tonal theory, instrumentation, nor any sort of canon.
These rules stunt the creative psyches of composers, performers,
and listeners. These regulations manifest in exclusionary
closure, creating barriers with devastating consequences for the sonic magicians of our collective human past - sonic wisdom. Modern institutions perpetuating these rules are the same institutions that serve to oppress the marginalized,
and for this reason alone these institutions must be upended.
Simultaneously, stipulations and norms surrounding composition
and performance obstruct collective awareness and appreciation
for the omnipresence and incredible potential energy of MUSIC.
ALL individuals are sonically oriented and have the potential to
make MUSIC which deserves to be shared and appreciated.
MUSIC is inherently open; the closure, cultural capital, and
social rituals surrounding the INSTITUTION of MUSIC should be
eradicated for what they have kept from the spiritual and physical ears of the masses.
--
At all times, one’s psyche is tuning into and out of the present
environment and internal scapes, effectively ‘mixing’ the two in
real time. This ‘live-mixing’ of various perceptual and
sensory stimuli manifests in an ephemeral, ever-changing and
idiosyncratic reality. One’s reality is the conscious analysis
of these subconscious processes. These processes occur with
sound as well as with all other senses.
-
The INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE is the soundscape of the mind, body, and
conscious self. Each individual’s internal soundscape is
different. Each mind/body/self is perpetually
creating sounds, manifesting an idiosyncratic, constantly
shifting and ephemeral INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE. These sounds may
consist of internal vocalizations, full sentences, sonic
memories, songs ‘stuck in one’s head’, or any other sonic
internal happening in the mental sphere. Additionally, one’s
INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE may also include the vibrations felt on a bus or while walking, one’s heartbeat, the sound of one’s
breathing, the sounds of bones cracking, shivering, or any other
sonic or vibrational interoceptive experience.
-
The musical process of listening to one’s INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE–
the practice of INTERNAL LISTENING– is a sonically oriented
method of using the potential healing power of music and sound
to orient oneself and navigate the ontological happenings of the
longest duration-oriented event: one’s lifespan. INTERNAL
LISTENING is sonically oriented, but engages senses of
somatosensation, proprioception, and kinesthetic touch. MUSIC
is always concurs with INTERNAL LISTENING if one is open to its
existence as such.
-
INTERNAL LISTENING is appreciating all aspects of one’s INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE, as well as a process of noticing idiosyncratic sounds and silences and exploring their relationships to one another.

One’s INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE is ephemeral but no less omnipresent
nor ephemeral as one’s external soundscape; the
INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE is a byproduct of perceiving and interacting
with one’s reality. Therefore, one’s INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE should
be treated with the same validation and acknowledgement as the
MUSIC created through one’s external soundscape.
-
The concept of listening to one’s external soundscape as a musical process is still currently considered to be a marginal definition of
musicality, however it is these same internal processes that
construct the sounds perceived to be one’s sonic environment.
Furthermore, these internal processes, as well as other
subconscious processes such as internal bias, superintend all
aspects of ‘traditional’ music from compositional processes to
canon construction. It is time that we become sensitive to the
musicality of one’s INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE and its power.
-
The INTERNAL SOUNDSCAPE can serve as an incredible source of
creative inspiration. However, the process of INTERNAL
LISTENING is additionally a tool of COLLECTIVE HEALING and a
catalyst for ACTION. Society forbids the marginalized to listen
in this way, as we are taught not to trust our own psyches and
intuitions. For many, INTERNAL LISTENING can serve as a tool
for introspection and self-reflexivity. For marginalized
individuals, INTERNAL LISTENING is a TRANSGRESSIVE and MUSICAL
SELF AWARENESS that carries with it the radical potential of
COLLECTIVE ACTION.