“Continuum” (Jaco Pastorius)

Via Cantor’s logic, a finite set is never equivalent to its own subset(s), while all infinite sets are. Equality, then, only appears amid infinite particularities without exhaustion. Given this, a continuum properly thought must have no limit point, no possible incarnation or subjectivity to mark either terminus. Repetition of root braces the four-note ascending figure in multiple registers (whose only differences are in timbre and vibrato). Improv section approaches relation via timing (phrases eventually beginning in the last quarter of the bar, for example). Track ends with root and harmonic ringing out simultaneously, with the latter endless—proving that the note, physically, is a node which initiates relation by remaining still (and in the middle).  Presence, presently, registers positionality and not (proximal) possibility.

 

One thought on ““Continuum” (Jaco Pastorius)

  1. I really enjoyed this line “a finite set is never equivalent to its own subset(s), while all infinite sets are.” I think about the body as a finite set made up of infinite cells that die and multiply. This song has a continuum. It does not seem to end or begin unless you press the play/pause/stop buttons.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *