Stefano Oliva on the Mystical, Language, and Music

In an interview, Stefano Oliva, professor of aesthetics and researcher, discusses his work on the mystical, language limits, and music. He draws on Ludwig Wittgenstein and Simone Weil to argue that the mystical is not opposed to rationality but reveals a fundamental, felt condition central to aesthetic experience. Oliva explores the 'sentimental character' of the mystical, distinguishing it from everyday perception by a different way of feeling the world. He examines the relationship between mysticism, aesthetics, and psychoanalysis as 'losing' sciences that challenge dominant scientific models. On music, Oliva applies Luigi Pareyson's theory of formativity and Wittgenstein's later philosophy to argue that music is a self-contained form, not a vehicle for emotions. He suggests music, as a 'language of languages' (Luciano Berio), sheds communication to become pure gesture and voice.