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# The Theme Dream Machine
- URL: https://musically-novel.ghost.io/the-theme-dream-machine-0cb/
- Published: 2021-11-03T20:54:21.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-02T17:06:55.000Z
- Author: PETER SALTZMAN
- Tags: Podcast, #Migrated-1788368492164, #Import 2026-09-02 17:05

The Theme Dream Machine

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**Leave a comment and share your thoughts:** https://open.firstory.me/story/ckvk002b34j0c0938go4chdbo?m=comment  
  
Musical themes seem to emerge from the sonic abyss almost by their own volition. But where do they come from?  
  
Are they elusive attempts to describe the moment? State of musical mind? Emotion translated into sound? Or are they just, as I discussed in the previous episode, a form of musical memory (and forgetting.)  
After working through this episode, I must admit that while the provenance of musical themes seems to be some combination of all of the above, in the end, they remain somewhat elusive. Melodic ghosts in the machine of our minds.  
  
What I do know is that musical themes *want* to emerge from the sonic abyss. Like everything else in the universe, order wants to emerge from chaos. This is how life happens. And music.  
Which leads me to my next episode: how do musical structures naturally emerge from themes?  
  
**Music Performed or Referenced:**

- Que Sera, Sera
- Fly Me to Moon
- Suite for Jazz Quartet Live (midroll and tag music):https://petersaltzman.bandcamp.com/album/tre-jazz-quartet-live-1999

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