HELP Turning off the Left Brain


Its been over 25 years since I bought my first stereo. All my friends wanted wheels, I just wanted to play my records on something other than my parents stereo console. After spending over 25 years training my ears to distinguish between the tiniest differences in and between components, cables, room acoustics et al (and yes I believe for the most part it is a learned skill), I now find it very difficult to sit down and just ENJOY THE MUSIC without always critiquing the presentation. As a matter of fact, a lot of the music that I originally enjoyed when I was among the great unwashed masses, I can't stand listening to anymore. I always thought that at some point the equipment would allow the music to transcend the medium, but regardless of the quality of the presentation, the left brain always whips out the notebook.

Has anyone found a way to stop the madness?
Ag insider logo xs@2xmusicfirst

Showing 2 responses by johnrob

Musicfirst--- Have you formed left brain plan to turn your left brain off yet?

John
I'm serious with this suggestion ... Take up mindfulness meditation. An excellent book by Jon Kabat-Zinn (Full Catastrophe Living) will take you through exercises that dampen the left side of the brain. This type of meditation is excellent for overly analytical people (like myself). I've had excellent response from my clients who have studied AND PRACTISED mindfulness meditation. (I'm a psychotherapist) You need to give yourself several months of practice to get the hang of this way of perceiving the world.

John