Interview:

To give any sort of reflection of the connection between music and spirituality, I must first ask myself about the spirituality alone. As someone truly non-religious, or more accurately anti-religious, I’m likely to be disqualified from the contributors to this anthology right after this very passage. I have certainly been disqualified from various society events or groups for being inappropriate. As I was for being single by choice, non believing in marriage, and pretty much for practicing and living anything “unconventional”. But all that is, perhaps a subject for a different book. Or is it? Because for me, spirituality IS “unconventional”. A search. A solid amount of ever-present curiosity. An urge to learn, discover, question, and HOPEFULLY find. Once found, the essence of it, the grain of truth that so unmistakably hits the space right inside your ribcage stopped by nothing, that slides like a brisk, fresh breath of some friendly beast, THAT’s what I call spirituality. It is the truth and it is honesty. As a musician, composer, and performing artist, I find it my responsibility to keep searching for spirituality, and to find a way to spread it and teach it. There is too much intellectualism in twentieth century music and not enough syncretism. Music and performance need to reach the audience on a spiritual and emotional level, without being over-simplistic or “popularized”. We need to educate our audiences and help them grow without underestimating them. The music that’s true, honest, and meaningful to the artist that creates and shares it, will not fail. It is not the notes in the score, or the harmonic progression, it is not it’s material content that makes or breaks it; it is the soul of its creator weaved into its texture and selflessly released, to be experienced by many.

“As a musician, composer, and performing artist, I find it my responsibility to keep searching for spirituality, and to find a way to spread it and teach it.”
– Milica Paranosic, composer, conceptual artist, and vocalist