The meaning of music and how it manifests through trance.

[TheTranceHistorian]

According to neuroscience, we perceive the world as a series of patterns rather than discrete objects. Objects, in essence, are sustained patterns over time. Our cognitive processes, survival instincts, and neural networks contribute to this perception. The reason why music resonates with us so deeply is because it transcends said sensory limits, revealing a reality beyond our immediate senses. This abstract phenomenon can be best described with the metaphorical concept of the ‘third eye’, a symbol of intuition and expanded awareness. When ‘opened,’ it allows us to perceive energies, truths, and hidden dimensions beyond the material world. Music, by existing beyond the physical realm, can connect us to a higher level of consciousness, enable sublime experiences, and help to relive memories unconstrained by time. In this view, music is the purest form of art.

Instrumental music, including trance, offers a unique canvas for artistic expression. It bypasses cognitive filters by liberating itself from linguistic constraints like lyrics and vocals. This creates a language anyone can understand and elevates the experience into something that is more intimate, profound, and open to interpretation. Listeners can explore emotions, memories, stories, and inner landscapes without explicit guidance. Trance’s focus on melodies, rhythms, and sonic textures transcends our usual sensory experience, revealing hidden realities and creating otherworldly, sense-awakening moments. If music is the most representative form of art, then trance is one of its strongest demonstrations.
​

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This is a rough and short draft for one of the many chapters and themes I would like to explore in my trance book.

Sources:

Jordan Peterson - How Music Conveys Fundamental Meaning
Psychology Today - See The World Through Patterns
Idea Pod - 7 Ways Observant People See The World Differently
PsychCentral - Patternicity: What It Means When You See Patterns
Frontiers - Towards A Neural Basis Of Music Perception - A Review And Updated Model
Oxfordre - Music Perception
ISB Science - Music Cognition, Perception, And Pattern Recognition
Academia - Music Perception And Cognition: A Review Of Recent Cross-Cultural Research
Beatportal - Beatport's Definitive History Of Trance
Wikipedia - Trance Music
Wikipedia - List Of Trance Genres
Bing AI​

 

[Bobby Summa]

My thoughts. Let me know if you would like me to extend (or attempt to clarify) on any points.

I would agree with what you have said and referenced.

-. I also recently found an article (scientific) explaining that ‘everything in the Universe’ has a vibration. Is ‘Resonating at a frequency. The article states that this in effect is a sound. (Or creates a sound).
There has been a surge of videos on youtube which have types of healing music set to frequencies. At first i wondered if it was gimmicks because everyone on youtube want to monetize their channel. But No, there is definately a lot in this. I have always had an interest in the concept of Chakras, of which the ‘Third Eye’ is one of them, said to be between the eye brows. Because when someone mentions stuff like ‘Energy Centres’ its easy for some to see it as nonsense. But sometimes thats because of the lack if knowledge in how they were described by a person, or assumptions they make. To me, they have recently become totally real I feel.

All this (and i could go on and on about this) relates to vibration and frequency in a very significant way. And as mentioned, everything ‘is thought’ to have a vibration and frequency which relates to sound. (i will try to find that article im referencing to)

What is at the centre of it? Well. We can assume, with relevance to the question posed, that it is ‘us’ We, the experiencer of life, the experiencer and user of various energy forms. ( known and unknown) Life which has all the sound experience we enjoy and process. ‘Us as individuals’ who ‘interprets’ it. Us as an individual energy form takes it, processes it, reacts to it, then often uses it.

So how does this relate to trance music?

Fractals, The universe & Hypnotic Experience. Fractals infinitely recreate. ( perhaps like the Universe & life as an organism itself) A never ending cycle. A Cycle represented as a circle as it loops and unless interupted by intervention, never ends.
The flower of Life has a circle within it. - The flower of life is scientifically and mathmaticly relavent to the universeas described here. It is Sacred Geomatry.

Overlapping circles grid - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Now Trance music is hypnotic. Hypnosis can induce us to deeper states of perception and insight and more. Meditation too in a related but slightly different way. We mostly all know this. So in essence, perhaps Trance music is the most true of modern electronica to actually representing life and some of the concepts for how it exists. It encompases all the ingrediends for hypnosis, and we can all agree im sure, if done right ( that 1% of true incredible trance music) will elevate us to a state that is almost imposible to describe. But most definitely hypnotic and with meditative elements. Music and its effect is very often simply beyond words. A state, a feeling, a knowing and much more.

Ancient Tribes knew this effect of Trance and music with their drumming, musical instruments and chanting. With Elements big and small The Modern version of this can often be heard in the ‘Best’ Trance music.

 

[Bobby Summa]

 

[Bobby Summa]

 

[facade1984]

gonna give a typically cynical façade take: this sounds great and all to a point but I still find it really weird when people talk about trance as if listening to it is some kind of elevated experience. to some it might be i'm sure, but as far as music goes it's one of the easiest genres to make. the only purpose I see this serving is that it'll make some 13 year old kid who just discovered metta & glyde templates become delusional enough to think that he's mozart in the flesh. I love trance and stuff (otherwise I wouldn't be here still making music after 25 years), but my perspective is that it's just dance music and is by definition not that deep, and for me there's a huge disconnect between the average trance track and discussions about fractals and spirituality. I don't mean to cause any offence but to me it just seems very self-aggrandising and kinda pseudo-sciencey

again really not trying to cause offence here but the feeling I get from a lot of trance fans is that they can't see the wood for the trees and trance is all they really listen to. sometimes it's helpful to remember that trance is suuuuuper fucking niche and not as accessible as it used to be, so I would take that for what it is and try to gain some big picture perspective

source: am a 39 year old music producer/stoner who doesn't rock with joe rogan

 

[TheTranceHistorian]

gonna give a typically cynical façade take: this sounds great and all to a point but I still find it really weird when people talk about trance as if listening to it is some kind of elevated experience. to some it might be i'm sure, but as far as music goes it's one of the easiest genres to make. the only purpose I see this serving is that it'll make some 13 year old kid who just discovered metta & glyde templates become delusional enough to think that he's mozart in the flesh. I love trance and stuff (otherwise I wouldn't be here still making music after 25 years), but my perspective is that it's just dance music and is by definition not that deep, and for me there's a huge disconnect between the average trance track and discussions about fractals and spirituality. I don't mean to cause any offence but to me it just seems very self-aggrandising and kinda pseudo-sciencey

again really not trying to cause offence here but the feeling I get from a lot of trance fans is that they can't see the wood for the trees and trance is all they really listen to. sometimes it's helpful to remember that trance is suuuuuper fucking niche and not as accessible as it used to be, so I would take that for what it is and try to gain some big picture perspective

source: am a 39 year old music producer/stoner who doesn't rock with joe rogan

To see where I'm coming from, I try to explain first what I mean by the word trance, what this genre is and capable of in my opinion. Keep in mind that I'm strictly talking about classic trance here since the overwhelming majority of modern (post-2006) productions have nothing to do with the artistic intent, principles, and spirituality of the genre.

Trance is an infinitely abstract genre that is much more about the emotions and experiences it brings to the surface than specific, structurally verifiable elements you might find on Wikipedia (e.g.: the 4-to-the-floor rhythmic pattern). True to its name, trance is about transcendence, a heightened experience, an altered state of mind, and euphoria. Trance takes the listener on a soul-stirring journey from one point to another. It is filled with energy, dynamically propelling forward with a multitude of interwoven and harmonious sounds, ultimately leading the listener to catharsis. Melody and musicality, along with their emotional charge, play a paramount role. If vocals are present, they serve a supportive purpose, leaving space for the sounds to evoke feelings and tell stories. Essentially, the same principles that applied to classical music centuries ago still hold true, but with the distinct twist that trance comes alive through electronic instrumentation, amidst a much greater danceability.

Trance had lost its identity nearly 20 years ago, becoming a faceless, soulless amalgamation of sounds, musical trends, and opposing genres. That's undeniable. But the values that are present in all the greatest classical music from hundreds of years ago are also present in the best trance tunes made in the '90s and early 2000s. And just because those values are now packaged and presented in an electronic form, doesn't make them any less worthwhile.

I'm mostly listening to trance music though, so that's true, but I'm listening to it specifically because this is the genre where I can most often find a level of emotional, spiritual, or intellectual fulfillment I'm constantly looking for - something I'm looking for in every form of art, let it be video games, movies, series, or music. An emotional experience, with catharsis, and meaning. That being said, I listen to many other genres, including rock, hard rock, punk rock, metal, and heavy metal from the 60s till the 80s, 80s pop, synthwave, ambient, orchestral movie, and video game scores, some 50s music, etc.

 

[Jetflag]

Theorem 1 in summary: Music, any music, resonates with humans due to their innate pattern recognition features and tribal nature.

agree.

Theorem 2 in summary: (both @TheTranceHistorian ’s aswell as @Bobby Summa ’s overall)
Trance as a genre is unique or especially well-suited for this:

disagree.

Case in point: had it been then most of homosapien planet earth would judge it as their favourite genre by now, and since they don’t.. well

source: logic

edit: I do genuinely love both you guys thoughts about it, it’s a pleasure to read as opposed to grumpheads like me and @facade1984 ’s take on this

edit2: and i will buy that book if you finish writing it, hardcopy or no.

 

[facade1984]

I really am a genuinely happy guy. I have a great life and all that but let's be honest if trance was a food it wouldn't be steak or bacon. rock & roll would probably take that category. trance would be more like fois gras in that it's not very common, is alright in small doses and there is a small number of people that won't ever shut up about it. as for me? well i've tried all the food and right now i'm more hungry for tacos or pizza instead of duck livers. how's that for a weird analogy

 

[TheTranceHistorian]

if trance was a food it wouldn't be steak or bacon

disagree.

Case in point: had it been then most of homosapien planet earth would judge it as their favourite genre by now, and since they don’t.. well

I try to be more precise here to make my point (I sometimes find this hard due to language barriers, since I'm not a native English speaker). When I say that trance is one of the strongest demonstrations of what music can be, I'm not necessarily saying that it's the best or most enjoyable type of music you can listen to, nor that is a genre where you can find the most high-quality tunes relative to all the tracks produced in said genre (as these things are either subjective or based on data).

I'm merely saying that trance (and I'm strictly speaking about classic trance here), as well as some other forms of instrumental music (e.g. ambient) perfectly and purely encapsulate the concept and philosophy of music as an art form. This is because instrumental music is not burdened by things such as lyrics or vocals, thus, it can breathe, expand, and evolve freely and can invite the listeners to a deeper and more intimate, abstract experience. And, on top of this, trance with its hypnotic qualities and euphoria-inducing sounds is able to further amplify the transcendent sensory experiences associated with listening to music.

Think of it this way: Drive from 2011 is one of the strongest realizations of what a movie can be because it uses the medium of film to its fullest potential, or, at the very least, it uses the unique qualities and strengths of said medium to its fullest potential. There are many writings and essays about it. It primarily uses the audiovisual canvas (so sounds, music, visual symbolism, the position of the characters, the moving of the camera, etc.) to evoke emotions, build characters, and tell a story. So it uses very few words and there is barely any dialogue between the characters (which would bring it closer to a written novel). Does it mean that Drive is the best movie ever made? No (I love it, but Donnie Darko is still my number 1). All this means is that it knows how to utilize its artistic medium to the fullest. And I think the same is true for tons of trance records produced in the 90s and early 2000s.

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disagree.

Case in point: had it been then most of homosapien planet earth would judge it as their favourite genre by now, and since they don’t.. well

Also, I think it's generally quite well understood that the shorter and less complex a piece of artistic work is, the higher the likelihood that it will resonate with more people, and most people will either not care about its shortcomings, or won't notice its quality deficiencies. What do I mean by this? A piece of music typically ranges from 2.5 to 5 minutes (trance is mostly an outlier with 7-8 minute tracks and more). Music tracks like Gangnam Style, random Justin Bieber productions, and commercial trash pop that gets produced daily will more than likely get many views and have huge success, despite the fact that their overall quality wouldn't exceed 2-3 points on a 10-point scale from a more objective standpoint.

How about movies? Well, movies tend to be 1.5-2.5 hours long (nowadays, 3 is also starting to get more common). Aside from music and perhaps lyrics/vocals, they also include dialogues, story, characters, locations, and many more. They are significantly more complex and deeper. They have way more elements so it multiplies the likelihood that certain elements will stick out to viewers quality-wise, effectively degrading their experience. Thus, on average, you won't really see any movies below 4-5 points out of 10 become successful.

As for games... games can range from a few hours to even hundreds of hours. They are infinitely more complex and include millions of decisions a player can make, so problems can stick out even more in the world of video games. Because of this, it's very unlikely to see games below 6-7 points become successful.

What's the point I'm trying to make with this? My point is that music is too simple (even if at the same time it can be argued that it's the purest form of art). It's too simple to be able to guarantee that every people will share the same opinion about certain works/genres (there is a reason why it's the most subjective art form out of all). The majority of the people listen to absolutely trash-tier music, less people watch really bad movies, and even less people play awful video games. But it's not reasonable to assume that just because trance (in my opinion) happens to be one of the purest forms/representations of music as an art form, that all people will start listening to it religiously. On quite the contrary, since when it comes to music, most people do not think about tracks as potential pieces of art, they just think about them as tools (like beer, or pizza) to have a few minutes of relaxing/fun time.

 

[Jetflag]

I try to be more precise here to make my point (I sometimes find this hard due to language barriers, since I'm not a native English speaker). When I say that trance is one of the strongest demonstrations of what music can be, I'm not necessarily saying that it's the best or most enjoyable type of music you can listen to, nor that is a genre where you can find the most high-quality tunes relative to all the tracks produced in said genre (as these things are either subjective or based on data).

I'm merely saying that trance (and I'm strictly speaking about classic trance here), as well as some other forms of instrumental music (e.g. ambient) perfectly and purely encapsulate the concept and philosophy of music as an art form. This is because instrumental music is not burdened by things such as lyrics or vocals, thus, it can breathe, expand, and evolve freely and can invite the listeners to a deeper and more intimate, abstract experience. And, on top of this, trance with its hypnotic qualities and euphoria-inducing sounds is able to further amplify the transcendent sensory experiences associated with listening to music.

Think of it this way: Drive from 2011 is one of the strongest realizations of what a movie can be because it uses the medium of film to its fullest potential, or, at the very least, it uses the unique qualities and strengths of said medium to its fullest potential. There are many writings and essays about it. It primarily uses the audiovisual canvas (so sounds, music, visual symbolism, the position of the characters, the moving of the camera, etc.) to evoke emotions, build characters, and tell a story. So it uses very few words and there is barely any dialogue between the characters (which would bring it closer to a written novel). Does it mean that Drive is the best movie ever made? No (I love it, but Donnie Darko is still my number 1). All this means is that it knows how to utilize its artistic medium to the fullest. And I think the same is true for tons of trance records produced in the 90s and early 2000s.

---

Also, I think it's generally quite well understood that the shorter and less complex a piece of artistic work is, the higher the likelihood that it will resonate with more people, and most people will either not care about its shortcomings, or won't notice its quality deficiencies. What do I mean by this? A piece of music typically ranges from 2.5 to 5 minutes (trance is mostly an outlier with 7-8 minute tracks and more). Music tracks like Gangnam Style, random Justin Bieber productions, and commercial trash pop that gets produced daily will more than likely get many views and have huge success, despite the fact that their overall quality wouldn't exceed 2-3 points on a 10-point scale from a more objective standpoint.

How about movies? Well, movies tend to be 1.5-2.5 hours long (nowadays, 3 is also starting to get more common). Aside from music and perhaps lyrics/vocals, they also include dialogues, story, characters, locations, and many more. They are significantly more complex and deeper. They have way more elements so it multiplies the likelihood that certain elements will stick out to viewers quality-wise, effectively degrading their experience. Thus, on average, you won't really see any movies below 4-5 points out of 10 become successful.

As for games... games can range from a few hours to even hundreds of hours. They are infinitely more complex and include millions of decisions a player can make, so problems can stick out even more in the world of video games. Because of this, it's very unlikely to see games below 6-7 points become successful.

What's the point I'm trying to make with this? My point is that music is too simple (even if at the same time it can be argued that it's the purest form of art). It's too simple to be able to guarantee that every people will share the same opinion about certain works/genres (there is a reason why it's the most subjective art form out of all). The majority of the people listen to absolutely trash-tier music, less people watch really bad movies, and even less people play awful video games. But it's not reasonable to assume that just because trance (in my opinion) happens to be one of the purest forms/representations of music as an art form, that all people will start listening to it religiously. On quite the contrary, since when it comes to music, most people do not think about tracks as potential pieces of art, they just think about them as tools (like beer, or pizza) to have a few minutes of relaxing/fun time.

That clarifies matters

 

[Jetflag]

I really am a genuinely happy guy

Uhuh



(insert rage wojak face)

 

[Hensmon]

I still find it really weird when people talk about trance as if listening to it is some kind of elevated experience.

Music does offer highly elevated experiences does it not? It's probably the most powerful emotive art form that exists and may be one of the most defining characteristics of humanity - nothing has lasted so long (millenenia) and touched so many people (everyone who ever existed). We gather in huge numbers to dance and sing, the biggest celebrations on earth outside of Religious - although at any given time Music probably beats it (collectively). It is spiritual, nostalgic, tear inducing, euphoric... there's no doubt about that. What else does it to that extent, above from the love felt towards another human?

 

[TheTranceHistorian]

Music does offer highly elevated experiences does it not? It's probably the most powerful emotive art form that exists and may be one of the most defining characteristics of humanity - nothing has lasted so long (millenenia) and touched so many people (everyone who ever existed). We gather in huge numbers to dance and sing, the biggest celebrations on earth outside of Religious - although at any given time Music probably beats it (collectively). It is spiritual, nostalgic, tear inducing, euphoric... there's no doubt about that. What else does it to that extent, above from the love felt towards another human?

Very well said, not to mention that the entire point of the trance genre is to offer an elevated, otherwordly, transcendent experience (so basically experiencing the new dimensions that music as an art form can provide to their fullest). Hence the genre name, although I still agree with Mark Reeder that this genre should have been named euphoria instead, but that's a whole other story.

 

[Bobby Summa]

Theorem 1 in summary: Music, any music, resonates with humans due to their innate pattern recognition features and tribal nature.

agree.

Theorem 2 in summary: (both @TheTranceHistorian ’s aswell as @Bobby Summa ’s overall)
Trance as a genre is unique or especially well-suited for this:

disagree.

Case in point: had it been then most of homosapien planet earth would judge it as their favourite genre by now, and since they don’t.. well

source: logic

edit: I do genuinely love both you guys thoughts about it, it’s a pleasure to read as opposed to grumpheads like me and @facade1984 ’s take on this

edit2: and i will buy that book if you finish writing it, hardcopy or no.

“—-Theorem 1 in summary: Music, any music, resonates with humans due to their innate pattern recognition features and tribal nature.

agree.

Theorem 2 in summary: (both @TheTranceHistorian’s aswell as @Bobby Summa ’s overall)
Trance as a genre is unique or especially well-suited for this:

Case in point: had it been then most of homosapien planet earth would judge it as their favourite genre by now, and since they don’t.. well—-“

……………—————————————————————
Me. -I reckon that you are being too generous to the human race as it currently stands (and mostly always has) here. At a very rough guess i would suspect that over 95% of people lack such awareness of whats actually going on within them, ie: all the energy, emotions, mental states, spiritual states that they aren't in a position to judge fairly.
Not that i think the human race should choose trance as their favourite genre, its just i think there are so many ingredients in it that at those times when people want to go digging inside then trance reflects this incredibly well.

 

[Bobby Summa]

I really am a genuinely happy guy. I have a great life and all that but let's be honest if trance was a food it wouldn't be steak or bacon. rock & roll would probably take that category. trance would be more like fois gras in that it's not very common, is alright in small doses and there is a small number of people that won't ever shut up about it. as for me? well i've tried all the food and right now i'm more hungry for tacos or pizza instead of duck livers. how's that for a weird analogy

Do you remember the first time a trance tune hit you? What was your reaction to it? Surely elevated i would have thought?

i bet if this was the first track you heard, it would elevate you to blissful levels like it does me every time i hear it. Its all good but Heaven really starts to show its face at 2.50m
Lennox- Flying Amongst the Stars. (the best un talked about trance track ever made in my opinion)

@TheTranceHistorian @Hensmon @Jetflag . Be very interested in what you think of this track also?

 

[Bobby Summa]

Just for the record, incase i sounded harsh earlier talking about 95% of peope in the world being rather unaware ( un self-aware) . i think some folk on this forum have a hopeful amount of self awareness. Meaning , we can all improve but many here are interested in improving which is i think, the key.

 

[facade1984]

Never say your honest feelings about trance in a forum dedicated to trance, got it

 

[Bobby Summa]

Never say your honest feelings about trance in a forum dedicated to trance, got it

I dont understand. Have i pissed you off? Start a private convo with me if you wish

 

[facade1984]

Dear lord. I'm really not angry and I'm definitely not that sensitive

 

[facade1984]

All I was trying to point out is that there's a lot of self congratulatory types in trance like "hey look at us being the best genre of music to ever exist" and I always find that kinda funny but also a bit uncomfortable. If somebody like me then comes along and doesn't pretend that everything is all hunky dory amazeballs then it's 'omg he's so miserable"