musical collections

I think it'd be an interesting and fun experiment to listen to the musical collections of various people, those you know well and more importantly those who are not yet as familiar.  I think the music we listen to is very telling of who we are as individuals.  Imagine exploring the many twists and turns of another person's musical tastes...at the very least you could get a sense of how well you might get along with collection's owner.  The music we listen to makes up a part of who we are as individuals...it's defining in a way.  It can show what moves a person, what a person responds to on an emotional as well as intellectual level.  It's all the more revealing when you don't know a person very well...but it's also fun to see how much sense it makes that someone you know well listens to certain songs.

I made an effort at doing something along these lines once.  I'd recently started dating a girl and suggested that we make mixtapes for each other, but not in the traditional lovey dovey or whatever manner.  It wasn't about trying to make a mix that someone else might like but rather about compiling mixes of each of our favorite songs as a way of getting to know one another better.  It was pretty fun to make such a mix and also listen to one someone else made...and interestingly I learned a bit about myself making my mixes.

An obvious limitation on this whole idea is that music is often a very personal experience.  It is difficult to know why a song resonates with one person or what emotional connection someone has to any song.  A song can end up in someone's musical collection for a variety of reasons.  I know that many songs speak to me on a level that I wish others knew and that I could share more easily, but that's part of what makes it so personal and meaningful.  While these many unknowns may exist, I think it's still possible to learn much about someone from what they listen to and enjoy, at least on a general level.  No matter why someone listens to what he or she does, your reaction to it is reflective of each of you as individuals and can speak to how you will interact, at least in certain circumstances.

Aside from the interesting concept of getting to know someone through music, I think one of the great possibilities about this wishful experiment would be all the great music you could discover.

All of this makes me wonder just what my collection of music says about who I am.  I know that these days it's in a sad disorganized state, full of too much stuff I still need to really explore as well as some stuff I should probably just get rid [of as it lacks any significance to me].  But I think my collection generally reflects more than many might realize.  There's the stuff I drive around listening to and play when I'm partying with friends...and then there's a lot of other stuff that is more personal and serves different roles in my life.  I hope it's a multi-faceted, if in many ways uneducated and lacking, collection of songs that speaks to the many moods of life.  But I openly admit that i'm an hip-hop and r&b kid at heart...I just need something with some soul to it.

So, if you'd like to send me a mix [or even just a list of songs] sampling your musical collection or favorites, please let me know as I'd be geeked to check it out.  And if you want to know a bit about my collection I would happily do the same for you.