PMPFM Q&A
WHAT IS PMPFM?
PMPFM stands for Positive Mindset Pop Fusion Music, which aims to use music and music making as a positive tool for self-improvement, and lifelong personal development, physically, mentally, emotional, and possibly even spiritually. PMPFM is related to PMGAM (Positive Mindset Guided Advanced Musicianship), which aims to level up instead of dumbing down music making, music appreciation and, above all, music enjoyment.
WHAT DOES LEVELLING UP MEAN IN MUSIC?
It means music audiences and fans can improve their enjoyment of music by improving their level of understanding of more genres and styles of music, and good example can be set by the music creators themselves whom the fans look up to for guidance on such matters. It is true that the more styles and genres of music you understand the more your appreciation and enjoyment of music generally. This can have a positive beneficial effect on almost everything you do in life, especially if you also make it a point to learn and keep learning positive lessons in life about how to be happy, healthy, reasonably smart, self-motivated, and successful in your own way.
HOW DOES PMPFM LEVEL UP?
PMPFM encourages levelling up in two ways.
First, it encourages higher standards and wider range of musical skill, knowledge, appreciation, and enjoyment.
Secondly, it links music to principles of personal development and self-improvement like good management of health, happiness, lifelong learning, goal-setting and goal-getting, humanity, and each person not only succeeding in his own way, but also making a contribution no matter how small to the betterment of the world.
HOW DOES ILORD MAX/MAX ALPHA KING PRACTICE PMPFM?
First, he bring into popular music more advanced techniques in harmony, melody, polyphony, musical forms and structures, sound and silence, etc.
Secondly, he broadens the themes of his music to include more songs on positive mindset principles like personal harmony, positive world outlook, etc.
Thirdly, he encourages musical appreciation beyond an over-simplified commercial approach that seems to undermine and underestimate the average person’s ability to appreciate, enjoy, or understand more advanced musical skill and craftsmanship.
Fourthly, he shares how he has been able to retain his broad musical skills as maestro of both classical and popular musical genres, in order to encourage others, no matter their age or background, to develop theirs.
In popular music, he writes both the music and words of his own songs. He also arranges cover version of popular standards some dating back to the 1950s, folk, traditional songs, and seasonal songs. He sings the songs, performs or programmes the backing instrumental tracks, and produces the audios and videos, all in his own studio. This is the kind of dedication and perseverance he hopes others can match or even surpass.
In classical music he plays the standard classical piano repertoire as befits a graduate of the Royal College of Music, London, arguably the world’s top music conservatoire. At the RCM he had also studied composition, giving a public performance of his Concertino for Piano and Orchestra at a well received concert with a local orchestra. And yet, he had to train and qualify as a chartered management accountant in order to earn a decent living, whilst still keeping up the improvement and development of his musical knowledge and skills over many years. Eventually, with enough confidence in his broad range of musical skills and knowledge, he moved back from accountancy to music. His current music and positive psychology projects are the result of his decades-long study, practice and knowledge consolidation.
His musicianship is strengthened not only by his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in musicology, but also by his postgraduate qualification in music education that enabled him to learn more about, practice, and teach to students of all ages a wider range of musical styles and genres, including folk and traditional music from across the world. Perhaps unusually, he has also found the time to learn and qualify in many diverse fields such as medical hypnotherapy, fitness instructions, nutrition, as well as taking uncertificated courses in yoga, qigong, biofeedback (EEG, EMG, and RSA for mental, physical, and emotional training), and others.
WHAT DOES PMPFM REQUIRE OF PEOPLE?
PMPFM encourages each person to level up their knowledge, appreciation, and enjoyment of music. It invites you to broaden your interest in a wider range of musical genres and styles. It also draws your awareness to how you can use music to improve your own health, happiness, lifelong learning and thinking skills for decision-making and problem solving, goal-setting and getting, and the success of your life generally, in your own personal way, from within your own heart, mind, and soul.
IS PMPFM REALLY NEW?
Well, the description and branding is new, but the principles are based on age-old wisdom about music being a “universal language”, “the food of love”, etc. Many ancient civilizations believed music possessed profound goodness, attributing to it the power to influence emotions, shape character, and even harmonize with the cosmos. Some saw music as a tool for moral and spiritual development, capable of influencing human behaviour and fostering emotional balance. PMPFM is updating the ancient wisdoms for the modern audience, using modern methods.
Fortunately, Max Alpha King/iLord Max has in his lifetime acquired the broad range of skills and qualities needed to present PPPFM as a positive contribution to the betterment of humanity.
