Techno hudba: psychologický rozbor – anglicky

Mysterium Musicus

“In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order”

[Carl Gustav Jung]

[1]

Growing popularity of techno music understandably creates a question what is about this “technoculture” – as it calls itself – so attractive that it fascinates people practically around the whole world.

The name “techno” refers to the fact that it is based on computerisation of music. Technomusic or electronic dance music originated in the United States, Detroit, during the mid to late 1980s.  The initial take on techno arose from the synthesizer-based music with various African American styles such as Chicago house, funk, electro, and electric jazz; added to this was the influence of futuristic and science-fictional themes that were relevant to life in American society of late era of capitalism. From U.S. this style travelled overseas, to England, where it settle and divaricated into dozens of various techno styles, depending on the “typology” of dancer (raver). But its characteristic feature, a “rhythmic drum”, on which is this music basically built, remained crucial in all of them. Different styles, such as “acid”, “house”, “drum-and-base”, “trance” and so on differs only by its heaviness and speed, but the main point, – i.e. gradation, or dramatisation of theme, then climax, followed by stereotypical phase – remains practically the same. Older generation would probably – and rightly – say that this music lacks melody. In this music is the form, which gives other music melody irrelevant. What is allowed by neo-cortex, like creativity and complex inventiveness is in this case basically useless: what matters in technomusic is rhythm and repetitiveness. By its structure and rhythmicallity it resembles an African tribe music used in initiation rituals where it serves purpose of inducing ecstatic trance. We can say that this music appeals to the most archaic level of our psyche, or that from this depth emerges. Basal vibrations which could be observed on most fundamental organic and inorganic molecular level are by this music exaggerated and amplified, then projected and imposed on raver with such intensity that it is virtually impossible avoid synchronous movement. Indeed, the rave parties are more shamanistic rituals than dance parties in classic terms. In rave, harmony with technique or norm is not important, only norm is purely subjective: raver has to find his own individualized movements synchronized with rhythm to express his emotional experience and to be able dance for many hours without stopping.

Expressive performance is clearly individual. The goal of raver is not performing for audience, but only to achieve an ecstatic trance.  We are not talking here about song in classical sense, but one long compact rave lilt which is played without stopping even for 12 hours. Those who really achieve trance can really dance the whole time. Music is created right in the dancing hall. D.J. makes the music out of his repertoire based on needs of the dancing audience. An unconscious connection between D.J. and dancers is soon created. D.J. is the witness of the drama of creation, but also member of the crowd with which he inevitably identifies. Let’s not be mistaken, it is a dialog and not one-way communication from machine to the man. Machines become live in the hands of man. Dancing crowd, which becomes one body, dictates tempo and gradation to the D.J. and D.J. dictates that to the crowd. After a while it is impossible distinguish what was first, the chicken or the egg… It is very hard to describe this experience to those who have not been “in” it. Party would take place in huge hall where 15 to 20 thousand people would dance surrounded by high-tech sound speakers, clouds of smoke and fast blinking lights without access to the outside world. Dancer’s clothes are usually soaking wet. I’ve seen sweat dripping from the sealing and about ¼ of inch of human sweat flowing on the floor. It is like a bathing in one’s own self. But it is also an experience of participation and unity, where aggression and hostility practically does not exist…

You might ask: what is the philosophy of techno movement? Answer is: there’s no philosophy about this movement. Only “philosophy” is an individual experience. Exodus – the rave movement originated in U.K. – has some goals: to spread love, communitas and friendship through the mankind. In the case of techno music these ideals are not achieved by rational philosophy, but through abaissement du niveau mental. We can speak about regression to primitive initiatory techniques, where drumming, intoxication and trance played its crucial role. While ritual objectified unconscious processes and reproduced acts of gods, technoparty only reproduces formless and frameless situation. It reproduces primitive experience of chaos.

Ecstatic spontaneous dancing among primitives is well documented. After such shamanic dance healing process took place. Eliminating of consciousness brings about activation of the inferior function. It is as if the whole unconsciousness flooded ego-consciousness. Trance which resembles psychotic noxa has something to do with temporary disintegration of rational system: partie supérieure. While evolution of consciousness is gradual movement from massa confusa towards more differentiated state, in trance libido flows regressively towards unconscious where it awakens sleeping gods. Activated contents of unconscious are contained only through the dance, not rational integration.  Raver thus maintains an affective relationship to contents of unconscious. Whole experience is certainly very interesting. It activates the most archaic emotions. While experience of other kind of the music evokes refined emotional responses and images bound to previous experience, in techno, raw and undifferentiated emotionality overwhelms the raver.  It is regressus ad uterum. Techno music invokes “timelessness”. Past and present are in this unseparably connected. Dancer thus descends to primordial chaos, to the time where space, time and causality were one; to the times where creation of consciousness began. This experience has character of fascinans et tremendos. Unconscious wholeness attracts the dancer as a magnet, hypnotising voice of sea Limousine. On one hand we can describe the state as a “fall”, because raver feels irresistible urge to give up one’s own rationality, identity and conscious continuity of self-experience and merge with infinite universe of collective unconsciousness, on another hand he experiences a fear that all that he has will be lost forever. Name, age, sex, parents, friends, location, that all has to be forgotten in trembling and sweat. It is terrifying like a death, but once is dancer in the train, there’s no slowing down, before it reaches it final destination… Raver has to trust the process and hope that it will have a good end.  Even though ritual seems formless it still has an immanent structure in itself. There are three components of this experience. It is: 1) descendus at inferno – descend to the unconsciousness, or if you like, an activation of unconscious. A sacrificial lamb has to be offered in order that could happen. What has to be sacrifice in this phase is extroversion. Relation to the outside world has to be abandoned; only relation what exist now is relation to one’s own unconscious. 2) Experience of unconscious where ego is extremely relativised and humbled. It is a phase where raver experiences complexio oppositorum of archetypal power through the inflation and identification. It is a state with which he has to “deal”. It cannot be solved rationally only acted out through bodily movements. It cannot be known, judged or understood it can only be seen by the eyes of the dancer. 3) Resurrection – restoration of ego, a state which is usually experienced towards the end of the party, when music is “ascending” and liberational; it also is experienced after the party. It is a state of deep silence, calm and peace which follows vibration and massive energy intake of the party.

It is certainly not an accident that roots of techno reach to the psychedelic era of America’s 60’s.  Techno revolts against individualism and materialized world, against government and rationalized spirituality. Techno restores unconscious need for participation and social interaction; it does so, on very primitive level, but nevertheless it brings about those feelings which lied unrealized in the unconscious. I believe that experience of the party is therefore compensation of one-sided position. Techno attracts more young people than churches and sport events together. It is considered to be spiritual, and there lies its power: it fascinates and devours. It is westerner’s experience of the Mecca ritual. Techno partying, though, should serve as a means in achieving higher consciousness, as a means of creating individual consciousness, not as an end. Numinosum once discovered and touched is to be starting point for young people on their road of individuation. Archetypal experience of unconscious wholeness should become motivation for seeking conscious wholeness. Introverted experience of numinosity has to be translated to extroverted life. Without applying acquired “knowledge” to the world, without discrimination and further development of moral consciousness dancer would remain an addict slavishly caught in this mysterium musicus.

Vlado Šolc

Autor: Mgr. Vlado Šolc – psycholog v USA, dříve lektor vzdělávací agentury AMOS www.KamPoMaturite.cz

Autor vydal knihu Psyché, matrix a realita: v ní netradiční formou ukazuje, co je to duševní vývoj a jaké je nebezpečí, když vývoj ustrne. Tyto problémy Vladislav pojímá z pohledu analytické (jungovské) psychologie, oboru, ve kterém je odborníkem. Knihu si můžete objednat na http://www.kampomaturite.cz/index.asp?menu=621&record=26134

Vladislav Šolc je psycholog. Vystudoval klinickou psychologii na Filozofické fakultě Univerzity Karlovy v Praze. Od roku 2003 působí v USA, Milwaukee, kde pracuje jako soukromý psychoterapeut a také jako psycholog v centru závislosti v USA (Wisconsin). Je členem Institutu C.G.Junga v Chicagu (Illinois), kde se připravuje na jungovského analytika. Osobní stránky autora: www.TherapyVlado.com.

[1] An airplane shot of Berlin technoparty “Loveparade” attended by more than 2 million people.