Living Tones: Music, Creative Collaboration and Psychoanalysis

Sarah Cahill, Discussant Deborah Melman, PhD

Friday May 10, 6:30 AM – 8:30 PM
In-person event at Berkeley location

Bay Area pianist Sarah Cahill’s creative process in interpreting and playing the music of living composers demonstrates how music can be transformative—for the musician and the audience. For Sarah, playing music is a creative practice in which dissonance in music can be a spiritual experience. She is attracted to composers like Ruth Crawford ((1901-1953), Mamoru Fujieda (1955 -), and Dane Rudhyar (1895 – 1985), whose music contains a mystical element. Rudhyar writes: “The quality and the psychic intensity of the tones are of the utmost importance… The performer should . . . allow [the tones] to resonate into his own inner being . . . It is a music of ‘tones’ rather than one made up of ‘notes.’ Everything therefore depends on the quality and the sustained intensity—the ‘livingness’ of the tones.” Psychoanalysis is also a creative collaboration between an analyst and patient. The shared music, rhythm, and dissonance expands and moves, allowing moments to be heard and felt in a new way. How is the wordlessness of music—that affects so many of us at a deep level—equivalent to the deep listening of psychoanalysis? Please join us as Sarah performs some of these “living tones.” She will speak about creative collaborations with composers and the nuances of translating new and old classical works.

CE Credits offered: 2

Course Objectives

After completing this course participants will be able to:

1. List elements of the intersection between psychoanalysis and music focusing specifically on rhythm and prosity.
2. List ways that the wordlessness of music—that affects so many of us at a deep level—equivalent to the deep listening of psychoanalysis.

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The Psychoanalytic Institute of Northern California (PINC) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. PINC maintains responsibility for this program and its content. Visit db.pincsf.org/policies for policies and disclaimers.