Tune in and turn up the music!

I'm starting this post with an obvious observation, but one that still needs our attention. There’s something uniquely powerful about music. When you think about what makes music different, it's the only artform that bypasses the left brain and gets to where we really live: the right brain, where dreams, visions, and inspiration come from. All of our affections, attachments, and affirmations in life start there. Sure, we need analysis and logic to make our way through the world, but a healthy mental life requires us to be open to music's power to reach our emotional center directly.

Shakespeare certainly thought as much. In his plays, music is more than a metaphor—it’s a moral compass. Music just doesn't work on any of his villains. The word never even crosses their lips. For example, the greedy, envious and scheming Shylock of The Merchant of Venice is someone who fits this pattern. As Lorenzo warns us,

The man that hath no music in himself,

Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds,

Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils;

The motions of his spirit are dull as night,

And his affections dark as Erebus:

Let no such man be trusted. Mark the music.

In today's world, there's music everywhere, but how many of us actually surrender to the power it has to make us better? If you're still reading this you're probably one of those who do. In a world filled with constant noise, it’s easy to let music slip into the background. But those of us who truly listen—who feel its attraction in our bones—know that music has the potential to do more than just fill the silence. It can inspire, heal, and elevate us, connecting us to beauty, harmony, and even a sense of purpose.

While writing this post my childhood experiences with music came to mind. My mom told me that the day I first learned to crawl, I made a straight line to the old Magnavox and put my hand on the the speaker grille. She told me she cherished the look of delight and wonder that was on my face when I touched the music.

Later on, when I was in grade school I would get into my mom's collection of classical albums. The Magnavox stereo had an wooden album case where there was Mozart, Hayden, Handel, Beethoven and some others. I’d grab a strand of dried spaghetti out of the kitchen cabinet and stand in front of the stereo, conducting as if the entire symphony orchestra was there. Even then, I could sense that music was something bigger—something magical. It wasn’t just notes and rhythms; it was a way of communicating with the universe.

Reading a novel, a poem, or viewing a painting are processes that require a linear, critical engagement before the emotional impact sets in. Music, however, flips the script. With the right song or melody, the connection to our deeper selves can be instant, visceral, and deeply personal. With music, we have a chance to plug into the universe.

This idea isn’t new. Ancient philosophers like Pythagoras and Plato believed in the Music of the Spheres—the idea that the universe itself is composed of harmonic vibrations, inaudible but profoundly influential. Plato described music as something that “gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything." For him, music wasn’t just sound; it was the audible reflection of a cosmic order, capable of aligning our emotions with something greater than ourselves.

I felt that cosmic connection myself when my mom took me to see Handel’s Messiah at a local Protestant church when I was eleven years old. For her, a devout Catholic, it was an unusual choice, but for me, it was life-changing. Sitting there, surrounded by the soaring voices and the power of Handel’s music, something inside me shifted. Thomas Dolby may have been blinded by science but I was smitten by George Frideric Handel, and still am. That night it was as if the universe had opened the door to the rest of my life. That experience showed me that music wasn’t just something you listened to—it was something you felt transforming you from the inside out, transcending time, along with arbitrary cultural and religious boundaries.

Music draws us closer to the world around us and to the deepest parts of ourselves. It bypasses the mundane, the logical, and the linear, and taps into something timeless and universal. Whether we’re conducting imaginary orchestras with strands of spaghetti or being moved profoundly by a live performance, music connects us to the divine harmony that runs through everything.

So, the next time you hear a melody that stirs something within you, lean into it. Let music be your guide, your teacher, and your connection to the universe. After all, as Plato believed, it’s not just sound—it’s the soul of the cosmos, the silent music of the spheres.