source file: mills2.txt
Date: Thu, 13 Feb 1997 21:22:01 -0800

Subject: Neil's reply to Paul's reply to Neil

From: bq912@freenet.uchsc.edu (Neil G. Haverstick)

Haverstick here...Paul...I play 19 and 34 because these instruments fell
into my lap so to speak, and I've grown to like them. Starrett built the 19, andand Larry Hanson sent me the 34...I also have a 31 tone electric, and I
have several pieces planned for it down the road. I'd love to try 22, but
have no funds to build one...maybe later. 
Also, I have nothing against ANY prime limit, Partch notwithstanding. I
plan on expoloring as much of alternate tunings as I can while on this
Earth...it takes time. Also, I don't like to dabble in a tuning...if I
plan to explore it, I'm going to compose a bunch of stuff, and learn to
play the shit out of the axe...again, that all takes time.
The Harmonic series is not my model, per se...I am still trying to come
to grips with certain concepts that I've lately become familiar with
in regards to tuning theory...again, time is needed. But, when it is 
said that there is perhaps some inexorable mathematical basis to music,
that doesn't seem too far fetched to me. The speed of light, gravity,
electromagnetism, and other physical phenomena have laws as well. Now,
needless to say, there may be more to physics than we have presently
encountered; of course there is, and I'm excited to see what's next.

But, I do not agree with your statement about Creatorship and magic in
music...you said because they cannot be scientifically examined, best
to leave them alone. Quite the opposite...to me, these are precisely
the sorts of discussions missing in our society as a whole today, and
that's a drag because the Creator is the author of all laws and 
physical phenomenon...to discuss these things is the ultimate goal of
mankind. Unfortunately, our socisty has done a rather astonishing
thing with it's "separation" of "Church and State"...I truly believe
that this culture of ours is the first in the history of the planet
that has attempted to remove the Creator from his own Creation...

As is fairly well known, Indian society speaks of the OM vibration, which
is the basis of the physical Universe...the Book of the Hopi says "The
Universe quivered in tune", and the bible speaks of the Word, which is
obviously sound...thus, how can music theory be separated from the very
One that created sound in the first place. Of course, this gets into
very personal beliefs, and some may not believe in a Creator...that is
OK with me, but it does not change my beliefs that we are the Created ones.

Anyway, if music can be used for healing, etc., I see no reason why this
should be excluded from tuning discussions...what nobler purpose in life
than to heal...hell, even Hendrix talked about music being used for this
purpose, and Erv Wilson said some mighty interesting things in El Paso about the metaphysical powers of music. Again, I truly believe that we, the so
called western culture, have forgotten many, many sacred concepts, and
this applies to music. I am at the first step of a vast path, but I do
feel that there are deeper truths to music and it's power, of which the
"scientific" and "intellectual" parts are but tiny ripples in a Universal
ocean of sound...Hstick

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