Why Beauty Matters 美，为什么？- Roger Scruton - BBC documentary (2009

From BBC2:

"Philosopher Roger Scruton presents a provocative essay on the importance of beauty in the arts and in our lives.

In the 20th century, Scruton argues, art, architecture and music turned their backs on beauty, making a cult of ugliness and leading us into a spiritual desert.

Using the thoughts of philosophers from Plato to Kant, and by talking to artists Michael Craig-Martin and Alexander Stoddart, Scruton analyses where art went wrong and presents his own impassioned case for restoring beauty to its traditional position at the centre of our civilisation."

Here is the soundtrack listing, for the curious:

INTRO
Organ from performance kelvingrove
Pergolesi stabat mater -- Salve Regina in C minor -- Cologne chamber orchestra

POST TITLE INTRO
Giovani Sollima, Track 1 -- Terra Aria, album -- Works

ARTISTS OF PAST
Max Richter, Track 4 -- The Twins Prague, album -- memory house

MODERN ART
Collean, track 2 -- Ritournelle, album -- everyone alive wants answers

JOKEY MUSIC OVER HOW CAN AN IDEA BE ART
Danielle Pemberton, track 2 -- light fingers, album -- a curious case of drama

DUCHAMP INTERVIEW ARCHIVE
Colleen, track -- The Heart Harmonicon, album -- the golden morning breaks

ART TODAY AFTER MCM INT
Battles, track 11 -- race out, album -- mirrored

KID ART
Back Cello suit #1 In G, artists Steven Isserlis

DAVID GARDEN STATUES
Animal Collective, track 2 -- my girls, album -- merriweather post pavilion

ROGER IN CAFE
Johann Johansson, track 2 -- Melodia, album -- fordlandia

TRAIN STN
John Adams, track 2 -- china gates, album -- Gloria cheng-cochran, piano music of john adams and terry reiley.

ADVERTISING
john cage, track 48 , disk 2 -- factory preset (09) album -- a chance operation, the john cage tribute. artists -- Robert ashley
groove armada, I see you baby

ARCHITECTURE
Rachmaninoff, The Isle of the Dead -- symphonic dances London philaharmonic orchestra, Vladimir jurowski.

artist -- bang on a can. album -- Industry 08, track -- industry.

composer -- Shostakovich, album -- Shostakovich String Quartets 7,8 & 9, performer -- Brodsky Quartet, track -- String Quartet No.7 11. Lento

AFTER 60'S BUILDING EXPLODE
artist -- Kraftwork, album -- computer world, track 3 -- numbers

REDING FORGE
album -- Teaism Music Inspired By the Art and Culture of Tea, track 10 -- teapot waltz, performer -- Lord Jim, written and produced by Curtis Leaver

PARK
artisits -- Jonsi & Alex, album -- Riceboy Sleeps, track 5 -- boy 1904
EMI Records

PLATO
album -- Goldberg variations 1981 recording, performer -- Glen Gould, track 10 Variation 9 A 1 Clavier Canone Alla Terza

MEN WITH BINOCULARS
Danielle Pemberton, track 2 -- light fingers, album -- a curious case of drama

LIFE DRAWING CLASS
composer -- Montiverdi, performers -- Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi viii,
disk 2 track 1 -- sinfonia non avea Febo ancora, a tre voci (doi tenori e basso)

ROGER WITH POETRY BOOKS
track 47 -- Evening Soiree, CHAP 311
Danielle Pemberton, album -- a curious case of drama

BIRTH OF VENUS
composer -- Vivaldi, album -- Nisi Dominus, Salve Regina. Concerto In C for strings. track 2 -- adagio

CHURCH
album -- Teaism Music Inspired By the Art and Culture of Tea, track 10 -- teapot waltz, performer -- Lord Jim, written and produced by Curtis Leaver

SHAFTESBURY
composer -- Vivaldi, album -- Vivaldi Concerti Alla Rustica
track 17 -- Concerto In G for 2 Mandolins
performers -- James Tyler, Robin Jeffrey, Trevor Pinnock.

DANDELIONS
Max Richter, track 6 -- Vladimir Blues, album -- Blue note book

FLOWERS OPEN
Colleen, track -- The Heart Harmonicon, album -- the golden morning breaks

KANT & BABY
artisits -- Jonsi & Alex, album -- Riceboy Sleeps, track 5 -- boy 1904
EMI Records

ROGER SAT ON STEPS, ARCHIVE B&W DOORS OPEN -- INTO RECAP
Max Richter, track 6 -- Vladimir Blues, album -- Blue note book

BIT BEFORE DEATH & FUNERAL
artist -- Colleen, album -- Les Ondes Silencieuses, track 1 -- This place in Time

KISSY KISSY
composer -- Offenbah, album -- Richard Bornynge L'Orchestre De La Suisse Romande, Les Contes d'Hoffman, track -- barcarolle

ROGER ON STEPS SETS UP SEX AND DEATH DESECRATION
composer -- Shostakovich, album -- Shostakovich String Quartets 7,8 & 9, performer -- Brodsky Quartet, track -- String Quartet No.7 11. Lento

PERGOLESI
composer -- Pergolesi, album -- Stabat Mater Salve Regina
track 12 -- Quado Corpus Mortiet. NAXOS

MANTEGNA
Max Richter, Track 4 -- The Twins Prague, album -- memory house

DELACROIX
Giovanni Sollima, track 3 -- LBFiles: Concerto,

EMIN BED
Collean, track 2 -- Ritournelle, album -- everyone alive wants answers

Colleen, track -- The Heart Harmonicon, album -- the golden morning breaks

POUNDBURY
Savalas music, track 3 -- Annotations, composer -- Colin Broom

SOHO SQ
Giovani Sollima, Track 1 -- Terra Aria, album -- Works

PERGOLESI
performance






[随想]

美是可见的，可触摸的； 也是看不见的，摸不着的
美是形状，规则的，不规则的
美是理性的，但更多是非理性的
美是语言，也是非语言
....
当我越想越想不清美到底是什么的时候，只有往天上看

美是Divine，圣灵的在人间大地的散现和存在形式
美伴人生
美，是造物者给与我们的benediction 祝福， peace平和， harmony和谐


我不知道为什么我喜欢音乐，喜欢往画廊跑，可能是美那巨大神秘的巨大的磁场吸引着我，好像我听到一小声音在什么地方在召唤：《草草，常来听我们看我们啊》；《好啊，没问题》。

从来也没想过我的生命中会有这些名字出现，他们是几百年前Boheme艺术家，大多数很落魄， 他们不认识我，我却在画廊中找寻他们：Da Vinci，Michaelangelo，Raphaelo， Geovani Bellini,
Caravaggio， Titian， Veronese， Tintoretto， Gainsborough， Turner， Constable， FransHals，Rambrant，  Ucello， Vuillard， Vigee Le brun， Murillo,  Ruben,  Ingres,  Monet,  Pissaro，Manet,  Degas... 这些天才，这些美的传播者,美的圣徒，一年多前我都不知道他们是谁，除了几个经常被媒体说的名字， 在画廊听他们叙述的故事是那么让人入迷。

出了画廊，音乐厅，自己会失落， 看到商店里销售的美是那么平淡甚至乏味， 自己变得有些不食人间烟火，挺好，可以少花钱， 好在以前已经猛食过人间烟火， 知道人间烟火是什么味道,  人间烟火是暖胃的暖身的实用的， 现实社会的价值是以实用为基础的， 而美不能说不实用，也不能说是实用，真正的美是超越我们的理性的，美是神圣的，疗伤的养神的暖心的

行走奔跑在自然中， 自然的一切的造型，颜色， 形状， 传出的神韵都是那么无可挑剔，有时看到一棵大树，形状是那么美，那么高的树，肯定没人修剪，园丁只有一个，是风雨，上帝的使者

人间的真，善，美也深深地撞击着我的心灵，感动着，

是，人来到这个世界会有痛苦， 甚至会有难以忍受的折磨， 而上帝也给我们送来医治痛苦的良药：美

每日，美从各种渠道渗入我的视觉听觉触觉味觉心觉神觉（看，读，听，闻，触摸，对话，心灵感受）打动我，让我感知美的存在，美的伴行， 上帝的神奇。

曾与教堂的乐迷说，为什么现代音乐就没那么好听，那位老者说：是因为没有带着荣耀上苍的心情，当人谦卑，感激的时候，微不足道的东西都是那么美，

昨天我那《野蛮的》法国女友跟我说，她有时会盯着路上的小石子看半天，然后会流泪，然后她觉得她的生命被改变, 刷新, 再写，行，还有比我更dreamy的人， 俺自己感到对自己放心也点了

见过美，听过美，读过美，尝过美，创造过美（生过孩子啊）， 培育过美（种花种菜培育孩子）， 传递过美...应该是没有白活过吧， 美，也是我们存在的理由, 是生活的意义所在。

我们都在寻找美，美也在寻找我们....因为上帝一直在blessing我们，召唤我们。

感恩自己找到了美，并被美包围着...La Vie est Belle ......