Being Alert And Letting Your Ideas Grow [A Conversation With Brian Eno]

We spoke to legendary musician and producer Brian Eno who told us about what he considers the most important quality for a music maker to have - alertness.
Brian also explains how often it's rare for people who make music to have a clear idea of the end result when they begin creating something new. In fact, it's about adapting and being responsive to the situation you find yourself in.
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#EarOpener #MusicTheory #BrianEno

[@AnUnseenRuler]

So much of what Eno talks about at its root is managing the anxiety of the creative process.

[@EarOpener]

Yes indeed. Check out this video (more Eno included) called Where's your Head At kzbin.info/www/bejne/fYaWcoaCgrJgZpI

[@brkitdwn]

Brian Eno looks better as a senior than he did when he was young.

[@Dmyra]

he Always inspires me soo much. just his energy sparks that same Alertness. He has always been an important mentor for me, for so many. when i listen to music i often hear a passage within the music an i think look at that that 30 seconds however long it is i am like that right there is whole other genre of music i have never really heard before, its just a snippet... but i swear, i do a triple take this is a whole style of music i have never even heard.

[@ritchxmusic]

It's being curator not just creator, leaving the ego out of it and discovering the secrets which emerge through the exploration of new ideas. Then recognizing which are distractions to the core of that idea, chipping away at those edges until that fully mastered idea can be released

[@EarOpener]

Yes. I don't think these ideas have really hit the mainstream yet, despite being around, even in western cultures, for quite a while....

[@SusanKempster]

I wish Arts Council England would listen to this. We're expected to know all the outcomes before we've even started the creative process. From idea straight to end result, with the lie that we really know how it's going to be.

[@EarOpener]

Ha ha - yes. Do send them the episode! EO

[@peterwestcott3475]

I like watching Brian Eno’s head. It’s perfectly formed, just like his thoughts.

[@EarOpener]

Check out the videos on 'Experiment' and 'The Beginning of the Process' on our channel for more of those perfectly formed thoughts, and ...er... heads. EO

[@mementomatrix]

@@EarOpener please put a link, i cant find the video you reference

[@LucianoVarelaClasesdebateria]

@@mementomatrix kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3eoq2RnasSMiNU

[@LucianoVarelaClasesdebateria]

@@mementomatrix kzbin.info/www/bejne/pHamdp6roJWVndk

[@dannyvalentine468]

4:46 here is straight up facts.

[@aom6397]

What a wonderful and insightful interview. I share so much of his philosophy but can feel how much further he has developed some of these concepts. Thank you

[@EarOpener]

Thanks. Yes, Eno is one of the clearest thinkers about all this. There's more of him on the channel - in particular, have you checked out this video : kzbin.info/www/bejne/pHamdp6roJWVndk. EO

[@andrewfryer6187]

This is very applicable to visual arts as well. As a student in college I was in a position that was unfamiliar to me; I needed to develop a theme as a visual object. To start, I needed to be aware of anything that I found interesting and allow for the possibility of correlation, or to be ok with moving on.

[@EarOpener]

Totally agree. Pretty good tactics for a lot of things - marriage? EO

[@garaughty]

Seriously brilliant insights !

[@EarOpener]

Yes - it was a great interview. More insights on this video - kzbin.info/www/bejne/pHamdp6roJWVndk EO

[@butterflymoon6368]

I'm a sculptor for sure.

[@paulywauly5575]

This is great, thanks for sharing.

[@EarOpener]

it's our pleasure. Enjoy the channel. EO

[@alexsalinas32381]

Brilliant

[@EarOpener]

More Eno rlsewhere on the channel. EO

[@ivervas]

Name of the song at the beginning??

[@EarOpener]

It's an original track by Paul Clark. EO

[@darrenlee1938]

Love ENO solo work .. but. Coldplay? U2?? No envelopes being pushed there. Just a pay check

[@EarOpener]

Yes, I was puzzled by this for years. Then I spent a morning chatting with him and it was very clear that he is fascinated by and in love with pop music - and, whatever you think of those bands (and many others he produced) they did their best work with him in the room , in my opinion. . .Paul.

[@georgesikorski9891]

To him it was more than a paycheck. He worked with U2 for a long time for starters, but with Coldplay he really put his best foot into Viva La Vida. All the stories of production aside, like when he locked Chris out of the studio for the first week to let the band play on their own, you can feel his touch especially on tracks like Cemeteries of London and Yes.

[@misterguy9051]

The gardener image is cool, yes. But the detective one is... quite hot!!

[@EarOpener]

Ha ha. All temperatures accepted here. EO

[@polycentric6726]

Eno speaks with his, hands and head. Not from the heart. Never liked him. But, I have to say, he did some things, we only can Dream off. Eno, your time is over. Just stop.

[@EarOpener]

Respectfully disagree. Speaking from the heart, I find it continually inspiring to be involved in a world (music) that accommodates so many different ways of being - whether they be cerebral, intuitive or something else. All these approaches can be honest, and all of them can be successful .One of the reasons Eno has (as you acknowledge) achieved so much is that he has bought his own rather unsentimental modus operandi to lots of different situations. If he had gone about his business behaving like Beethoven or Kanye , I suspect we'd never have heard of him. PC

[@polycentric6726]

@@EarOpener Eno doesnt know his moon is rolling. So he speaks bullshit.

[@polycentric6726]

1748hertz=goosebumps making stemcells. Never made them listening to almost everything he made.

[@polycentric6726]

Love you anyway Earopener ;)

[@EarOpener]

We're definitely going to disagree on this. Eno is a fabulous provocateur (he certainly provokes you!) and quite a few artists made their best work with him in the room, provoking them. (my fave example 'Once in A Lifetime' ). Whatever you think personally of his solo work, he has been a part of many many projects that have made a difference to how music is made now, and has certainly earned a right to talk about it. Having spent a little time with him, discussing work that he finds very very exciting [eg the basslines of Aston Barrett], I think I can assure you he knows the moon is rolling. However, he is certainly watching it through a different telescope to yourself. But each to their own telescope. PC