Someone told me long ago that in order to keep ourselves mentally "fit," we should attempt to tackle and learn a new subject every six months. I've always liked that philosophy and this goes a long way in explaining why i am that proverbial "jack of all trades, master of none." Having said that, though, i think it will be time to tackle a new subject when i get back home at the end of July. It seems like i have read nothing except Buddhism, Vedanta, Yoga, and "Success," or personal development, for the past year. It's time to move the sheep to a new pasture.
I spent the better part of yesterday morning, last night, and this morning watching parts of the Teaching Company course String Quartets of Beethoven. The lecturer, Robert Greenberg, is astoundingly good at his job. He is passionate about his job, knows and understands the material inside and out, has a great sense of humor, and delivers a great lecture. It's fascinating to see how he can make the difficult, and sometimes obscure, music theory behind the quartets so easily accessible.
So, i've decided that i need to broaden the knowledge i've learned in this course, which focuses solely on the theory as it pertains to Beethoven's string quartets, and get a better handle on classical music theory in general. All Teaching Company courses go on sale at least once a year, so the next time i see Understanding The Fundamentals of Music on sale i'm going to buy it and start on this subject area. I'd also like to buy How to Listen To and Understand Great Music, but it will be a looong time before i can afford this course, even when it goes on sale. Maybe near the end of 2011 or early 2012.
Each course always comes with a great bibliography, so i'll see what Greenberg recommends for a book before buying something that i can also study as i go through the course. Sounds exciting.....
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