This short opinion paper seeks to give satisfactory definitions of work, creativity and ideology, aiming to show that there is a relationship between them all and suggests these elements  exist in the Arts. The myth about artists and creativity is explored: the definitions help us understand the Arts and the creative process and how the “mystery” of creativity comes about. This “mystery”, I suggest, is educationally and economically defined by the  birth of a competitive, commercial bias in Western Society, and now, all over the world, replacing religion, or as some may argue, incorporating it into broader society. This process started at the end of the 15^th century. In running a business, competition is a prevalent characteristic, meaning that openness is not an option. The possibility of ideas and products being copied or stolen mainly for profit make for data protection and a false façade of commercial sensitivity. This latter culture then implodes into all areas of life and communication. It leads to the proliferation of false ideas which by definition amount to not telling the truth. The education system that backs this unfortunate state of affairs has to be academic; ideas bred in the mind, devoid of reality. What Herman Melville in Moby Dick says illustrates this: “A staid, Steadfast man, whose life for the most part was a telling pantomime of action,” would be the honest practical person whereas the opposite would be a dishonest person whose life is based on an existence  justified by a “chapter of words.” 

For too long, this secretive element in society has evaded scrutiny and now, as the world population increases to ever dangerous levels there is always available capacity for the generation of enormous wealth. This wealth is falling into fewer and fewer hands simultaneously creating increased poverty. We have now seen the effects of an inefficient organisation in the world allowing Coronavirus and future pandemics to arise without adequate defences to fight them. We are now learning that there is a scientific renaissance coming about to fight such problems: the new aspect of science is its necessary ability to unite on a world scale to fight disease in all areas of the world. This, in turn, has led to a discovery of the ability of the human race to coordinate its educated and other able resources universally and with great speed. We are talking about the resolve of the human race to battle for its very survival – a new openness to data and experience. As this process works itself out, it becomes imperative that all other disciplines follow. Humanity is crying out for the necessary responsibility of each individual not to be overwhelmed by a political class or working environment. These organisations, as representatives of capital, have brought the planet, as we know it, to its knees by unruly economic exploitation; this includes, not only the unreasonable destruction of the animal kingdom, but increasing poverty and a frustrated work-force. Also, the aimlessness inbuilt into the future and uncertain opportunities for our young people who are drifting into inertia as a result of lack of a future in challenging work- related opportunities. The Arts are similarly needing to redefine itself due to these same pressures.

Let us use the relevant definitions of work, creativity and ideology to understand the above process.

Work: 

Dictionary Definition:

• Physical or mental effort directed towards doing or making something. 
• Paid employment at a job or a trade, occupation or profession.
• A duty or task or undertaking
• Something done or made as a result of effort or exertion. 

The implication of the use of the word ‘work’ is used in a general sense not necessarily related to a contract that involves payment.

The word ‘work’ is an inclusive term under any circumstances that involves physical and/or mental effort.

When working on an original project that is new or novel, the lack of familiarity and relevant experience calls for a creative approach. 

Creativity – the noun is derived from the verb create:

Dictionary Definition:

• To create is to cause something to come into existence – a product of human intelligence or imagination
• To be engaged in creative work
• One also has to consider ‘traducianism’ beginning with The Creation – God’s act of bringing the universe into being.
• Traducianism is a doctrine that ascribes the origins of all things to God’s acts of creation rather than to evolution. This concept of Creationism, a religious doctrine holding that the world and all nature, animate and inanimate, was brought into being by a single act of creation. This biblical story is of the creation of everything in the space of six days. The theories and laws of the Conservation of energy and the work of Darwin on the origins of the species cast a different take on ‘the creation’.

Creativity is not necessarily unique to the arts.

Creativity is the fusion of mental effort with an objective that is immersed within the category of work, having an end in sight.

Thus from the concept of work, we have the concept of Creative Work:

This is the process of human activity in which new material and spiritual values are created. The human ability as characterised by work enables creativity: using the material supplied by nature and on the strength of knowledge of the laws of the objective world leads to  a new reality that satisfies the multiform requirements of society. The imagination and skill to realise creative design is increased by training and practice.

The basic concept of work in a familiar situation implies repetition without much thought or unforeseen input. The generally accepted and basic approach to work is mechanical and tends to be mindless in varying degrees.

The reason for this process is that it is brought about by an economic system that structures itself on such a model.

However, artists cannot be categorised in this way, as their work calls for reflection. This process of review, based on the experience of living, is therefore considered to be creative.

Creativity is work that is not of a mechanical nature. Apart from imagination and practice, it also requires knowledge.

Ideology – 

Dictionary definition:

• A body of ideas that reflects the beliefs and interests of a nation, political system and underlies political action. Under this heading there would be legal, ethical, aesthetical, religious and philosophical rules, evolved over time and experience.
• The set of beliefs by which a group or society orders reality so as to render it intelligible

Ideologies vary throughout the continents. This is reflected in the cultures of these continents. The Arts will illustrate this point by their variance according to the different cultures. Where ideologies contain different classes, there will be different subcultures representing the different class systems.

Finally, before concluding this paper, it is important to define what we mean by the arts.

Definition: The arts are a reflection of the tensions brought about by the act of living. The interpretation of these tensions normally requires a solution that brings the work of art to a conclusion, the resolution of tensions. Thus all good art combines form and content; this brings out the unity, integrity and development of material objects. 

Talking of “good art” it has to include truth: Beauty is truth, truth beauty. Truth is beauty. This philosophical statement means that the real beauty of a thing lies in its permanence and that there is only one ultimate beauty in this world. Truthnever perishes. The remaining, though they seem to be beautiful, are not really beautiful as they are perishable.

To put this into a practical situation, the act of living, is subjected to the scientific theories drawn from reality and through practice are being constantly perfected. The developing daily practice or experience of society is capable of confirming or completely refuting the ideas engendered by man. The Arts are is the same position – only time can prove the truth expounded in a work of art. Art only exists if it generates interest through audience participation. This cycle continues and, ultimately, confirms or rejects the objects of truth and beauty.

Creativity in the arts has long been misunderstood due to the influence of religion dating back to the Romans. This is exemplified by the reference to ‘traducianism’ as above. The creation of the world in six days does not define creativity in the same way as practical life and human experience defines creativity. The “mystery” of creativity is brought about by the long-held beliefs influenced by religious ideas and the mighty power of God. Science has had to review its ideas starting with Galileo. His ideas on heliocentrism were considered “foolish and absurd in philosophy, and formally heretical since it explicitly contradicts in many places the sense of Holy Scripture”. Galileo ended up in permanent house arrest because he upset the church.

The concept of the Arts have been going through a similar torment. I suggest that the Arts have yet to totally liberate itself from the religious connotations influencing the concept of ‘the creation’. This liberation will only be complete when ‘artistic creation’ is firmly understood as human invention in the public domain and not confused with ‘the creation’ from the religious domain.

Conclusion: The arts are a product of society. The process of living is enhanced by work. Without work there can be no creativity. The organisation of society is organised into an ideological form that is socially cohesive. Whilst , work, creativity and ideology are separate entities, their sum total define the culture of a society and broadly define the parameters within which the arts function. 

Art and Creativity  are therefore explained. The cultural influence in the form of ideology has also been alluded to.

Ron Tendler December 2020

A book by David Blum

Introduction by Paul Tortelier

Forward by Anthony Hopkins

This valuable book was published in paperback form by the University of California Press in 1980. Despite this ageing of some 40 years, its topicality is as relevant today as when first published.

Pablo Casals (1876-1973) was regarded as one of the greatest cello players and composers of the twentieth century. He refused to be classed as a “cellist” as he described himself as a “musician”. He was also an active protester against oppressive governments (those that misuse their power and mistreat citizens), including that of the Spanish tyrant Francisco Franco (1892–1975) from which he had fled.

Anthony Hopkins starts the forward by stating that “to become a legend in one’s lifetime…The phrase has become a cliché, debased by the ease with which the media of today can create legends for a public ever hungry for new idols of worship. Yet such legendary figures do exist and have existed, figures whose stature is more enduring than that of the television interviewer, the newspaper columnist or the pop star. The true creators, writers, painters, sculptors and composers are ultimately judged by the value posterity places upon their work; thus, the Work is in the long run more important than the Maker.”

Further to this, in the introduction to the book, Paul Tortelier notes, using the words from T.S. Eliot: ”the communication of the dead is tongued with fire beyond the language of the living”

David Blum was a conductor born in 1935. Blum was mainly associated with the Esterhazy Orchestra, based in New York, whose name implies an interest associated with Bach, Haydn and Mozart. Casals was very interested in Blum’s work becoming Honorary President of the Esterhazy Orchestra in1961. Blum died in 1989.

The latter period covered by Casals life’s work was one in which I grew up – how times have changed! Casals wrote, “I will say only elemental things, nothing complicated – as everything ought to be, beginning with life. But you must know that the simplest things are the ones that count”. The world, then, was, in many ways, a far simpler place to understand. Commercially, life was booming, as there was a need for the world economy to expand due to population expansion. This meant there arose a need for a greater number of people to become educated for participation in the economic boom that took place. It was an age where opportunity for much social mobility attracted those who aspired to greater opportunity in education leading to greater financial reward. The sophistication and complications that it has finally brought about with its maturation in the 21^st century could never have been anticipated in Casals time. To confirm this, with almost naïve-sounding contrast, Casals wrote:

“I have an idea…a plan for the education of children…It is so simple, yet we have never thought of it…as soon as the child can understand the meaning of a word, he should be told that this word represents a miracle. When we speak of the eye, we should explain what a miracle it is to be able to see. We should explain what a miracle it is to be able to speak. What a marvel are our hands!  When the wonder of each word has been made clear, then every child should be taught to realize: ‘I am a miracle – and he is also a miracle. I am a unique being; there never has been a person like me since the beginning of the world – nor will there be until our world comes to an end. And he, too, is unique and will be until our world will end. Therefore, I cannot kill him – and he cannot kill me’. Only in this way can we do away with the impulse for wars. At school they teach that that two plus two equals four. That is not what life is all about”… Real understanding does not come from what we learn in books; it comes from love – love of nature, of man. For what is learned in that way is truly understood…”As a humanist, I cannot accept the final words used in this very moving statement, however Casals continued: “…I cannot believe these marvels which surround us – the miracle which is life – can come from nothingness? The miracle must come from somewhere. It comes from God” Quoted in the heading of the final chapter, Epilogue, of this book is the following: “In music, in the sea, in a flower, in a leaf, in an act of kindness…I see what people call God  in all these things.

In terms of interpretation, the  basis of this book, Casals commits himself to extremely practical conclusions which only experience and talent could arouse. These ideas are discussed by Blum taking us through real examples of Casals interpretation of dynamics and phrases as well as analysis of the emphasis on notation within the phrase – so interesting. How sad that modern technique and bowing problems lead us away from the music and truth.

In conclusion, piecing together a logical thread that feels true from my experience, including that of a life’s work in music and coping with a happy family life as well as all the unwelcome but accepted impositions that life brings, the Work teaches us that the Maker is the same human being as was pointed out by Anthony Hopkins. We cannot explain the folly of politicians who take us to war, nor can we explain the arrogance of educators who impose their theories on us as if the experience of the individual is irrelevant and needs extreme suppression to make the accepted story line untrue and ultimately floored. The Work that commercialism pumps into the Maker in order for it to fit in with the commercialism that society exploits in favour of the few is at the expense of the many thus destroying the true practical potential of all humanity.

Wars, migration, mental health, gender identity, and climate change, as well as poverty to name but a few are the tortuous outcomes of an unhappy impractical world.

We need to seek the love and naturalness, the basis of our indestructible humanity once again.

Music has got the same problem as the rest of the issues tormenting us all. Abstract music, relaying corrupted and impractical feelings ensures the elitist nature of music and not only its move away from nature, but its inevitable decline; it portrays the same lie that society is propagating.

Technical complexity of music is not necessarily about the awesome dexterity of the performer, a cult in the performers favour; technical dexterity should be used to make the feelings behind the music strong and communicative not to overpower the audience into awe-struck submission by a lie lacking in genuine feeling, the truth.

How we overcome these problems is up to society, every person on the planet, solving them altogether without the extreme individualism that numbs us all into acquiescence.

We all need time to reflect on life, to realise our talents by becoming socially and objectively excited by nature which is reality. A guaranteed practical and creative role for all people is the only way out of the general crisis.

Ron Tendler October 2019

In modern society, there has always been a gap between the dual sophistication of the educated and their culture as opposed to the less or should I say differently educated and their culture which appears more popular and even more commercially successful; I suggest this latter category appears happy to be entertained whilst the former consider themselves cultured and more discerning. This article attempts to explore the differences between culture and entertainment with a view to understanding their roles in what seems to be a society divided by different cultures. The aim of this item is to be more that of an open and on-going discussion rather than definitive.
John Ruskin,(1)* writing about art, noticed this disparity in 1843 when he wrote: “ When public taste seems plunging deeper and deeper into degradation day by day, and when the press universally exerts such power as it possesses to direct the feeling of the nation more completely to all that is theatrical, affected and false in art…it becomes the imperative duty of all who have any perception or knowledge of what is really great in art, and any desire for its advancement in England, to come fearlessly forward, regardless of such individual interests as are likely to be injured by the knowledge of what is good or right, to declare and demonstrate wherever they exist, the essence and the authority of the beautiful and the true.”(2)*
Similarly, in 1975, 132 years later, Shostakovich wrote, “Great music, the receptacle of all the greatest spiritual insights of mankind from ancient times up to the present, will not, of course, perish under pressure from the avant-garde. It is not the first time it has been rejected, reviled and ridiculed, but it has always stood firm… Great music is eternal, like life. Every new generation makes its own contribution to the treasure-house of world art…Music becomes a fact of life, alive and effective only when it is heard and is understood by those for whom it is written…We must never lower our criteria of art. Otherwise art will degenerate to the level of amusement, of empty, mindless diversion. The danger exists in modern society, which is bombarded with all sorts of sounds. The ‘ninth wave’ of second-rate pop music is constantly crashing against the pillars of great music, threatening to pulverise them and wash them away.” He goes on to explain that an aesthetic code is inherited and addresses the human heart, and through the response of this heart it gains immortality. “Music unites people and helps each person to become more aware of himself, it enriches his thoughts and feelings…these days, music – like all other forms of art – is going through a complicated period; it is seeking to express our unsettling but glorious modern age…Of course, in all art forms new paths must be developed. If art were to stop in its development it would be its downfall. It is reassuring that art today knows many new paths, but only those which are based on the great classical traditions have any future”.(3)*
Culture can be simply defined as “the total of the inherited ideas, beliefs values and knowledge which constitute the shared bases of social action.”(4)* Additionally, to clarify this point as relevant to this article, “the artistic and social pursuits, expression, and tastes valued by a society or class, as in the arts, manners dress etc.”(5)* The complication arises in defining the differences between culture and entertainment precisely because of the class element in society. Within the culture of a society there exists a material element (e.g. machinery, experience in the field of production) and a spiritual one (e.g. achievements in the realm of science, art, literature, philosophy, ethics and education). These combine over the course of time into a succession of socio-economic formations, the arts (culture) reflecting the action of the dominant socio-economic group; the subjugated masses enjoying their different approach often seen as entertainment. Entertainment is defined as “the act or art of entertaining, which can be provided by a professional singer, comedian or other performer who takes part in public entertainment”, the implication being “the provision of amusement.”(6)* This amusement possibly avoids exploring the depths of the material and spiritual elements and relies on conscious inaccuracies of these elements to provide release from the real tensions of life. Shostakovich reminded us, that, at worse: “We must never lower our criteria for art. Otherwise art will degenerate to the level of amusement, of empty, mindless diversion”. Similarly, Ruskin warns of “the theatrical, affected and false in art”.
In comparing the implications of cultural reflection with those that are entertaining, there is a different process at work. I suggest that being entertained releases the superficial tensions that come about through more immediate and generalised sensations of living. More profound processes are at work when the superficial emotion of being entertained is replaced by specific and more complex, reflections of reality. In this process, deeper emotional responses are aroused mirroring a fuller complexity of relations between people and also to the objective world. Emotions are shaped by society and play a tremendous part in what is considered to be acceptable behaviour, practical and involving full cognitive activity. These aspects lead to complete understanding and the concept of truth. Emotions are an indication of success or failure of activity, the conformity or non-conformity of objects or phenomena to ones needs or interests. Sthenic emotions create energy and satisfaction whereas asthenic emotions are negative and unsatisfactory in effect.
Behind the emotional content are interests. These are a purposeful orientation of thought and action reflecting the material and spiritual ingredients, mentioned above, by an individual, social group or historically developed community. These correspond to the objective needs and tendencies of social development, constituting the interests of society. The interests of the dominant class are united by voluntary associations and similar personal interests. Thus, in a class divided society, different social groups will have different interests which will show in their lack of unity of ideas with each other and even become diametrically opposed to the status quo. A stable interest in an economically stable society is an important requisite for a creative attitude, cumulatively leading to a broadening of horizons and enrichment of knowledge.
With current developments where the divisions in the understanding of history, society and the direction of both are not necessarily conducive to stability, direct access to definable material and spiritual ingredients is divergent, it is no wonder that culture and entertainment are not easily nourishing either the thirst of the artist or the audience. So when John Keats wrote “Beauty is truth, truth beauty, – that is all ye know on earth and all ye need to know”(7)* where does this leave us? I suggest that the culture of the dominant class can no longer exploit any former stability in the form of its chosen culture with such confidence as the more commercially led and more readily self-modernising entertainment grows in appeal across social groupings – big changes and influences are realigning socio-economic allegiances resulting in a fusing of opposing cultures.

(1)* 8 February 1819 – 20 January 1900 was the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, draughtsman, water-colourist, a prominent social thinker and philanthropist. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and political economy. His writing styles and literary forms were equally varied. Ruskin penned essays and treatises, poetry and lectures, travel guides and manuals, letters and even a fairy tale),
(2)* Modern Painters Vol.1 3.4
(3)* Dimitri Shostakovich: About Himself and His Times P.334-335
(4)* Collins English Dictionary
(5)* ibid
(6)* ibid
(7)* Conclusion to Ode on a Grecian Urn

Ron Tendler 27 July 2016

These papers come up now and again as I research my work as a composer. I believe that composing music with meaning has to reflect reality. Research raises many issues both musical and ideological. Meaningful music has to be based on ideas relating to the real world as I do not believe in escaping into abstract ideas, an unreasonable tool used to avoid reality and the resulting chaos when expressed thus. This could be seen as a contradictory statement as music is an abstract art. In music, time is a horizontal element characterised by melody whilst space is created by harmony and or counterpoint in a vertical plain. Using this interpretation, music can reflect reality! In fact, I suggest, all art is a reflection of the tensions brought about by the act of living and therefore linked to reality. These tensions can then be resolved through any creative medium (e.g. art, sculpture, drama, and so on) which has a tradition with a common thread into the future. Changes in life redefine the future allowing for endless possibilities in the representation that the arts reflect.

Composing raises so many issues that superfluous ideas, irrelevant to the essence of one composition, can be transferred into documents or other compositions.