"Music Can Alter Moods and Talk to You" - Eminem

I found our discussions in class about the evolution of music to be particularly interesting. I liked listening to the Gregorian chants. Even though you can not understand a word of what they are saying, its is still beautiful, and creates a great imagery of a chorus singing in a dark, old cathedral. I was surprised that the music was sung in church services however, because I did not find it to be particularly uplifting. Of course, I am hundreds of years removed from its target audience, so that probably shouldn’t be surprising. While going through the history of music, I was surprised at how many songs I recognized. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor was familiar from scary movies and video games. I had heard Vivaldi’s Four Seasons before, although I couldn’t recall where from. I knew several of Beethoven’s symphonies from A Clockwork Orange. The main character in the movie loves Beethoven, and is extremely violent. The opening of the symphony and violent actions of the character were juxtaposed, creating powerful and stark imagery. Now I can not picture one without the other. Part of the power of music is its ability to be emotionally moving. I have found this to be especially true when I can tie it in to a particular image. For example, the closing scene of Donnie Darko plays rendition of “Mad World” by Tears for Fears. The scene displays the death of the main character and shows random characters from throughout the film lying in bed crying. Now I can not hear that song without it tugging at my emotional heart strings. This is probably one of the many reasons film has become such a powerful medium. It is able to combine several previous art forms into one fluid composition. Another part of music I love are the lyrics. I have been reading a book called Pink Floyd and Philosophy. It analyzes the lyrics of many Pink Floyd songs and tries to understand the message they were trying to send. It has been cool because it gives me such a greater understanding and appreciation of the music, and I can enjoy it on a whole new intellectual level. Music truly does have the power to move and inform, whether it’s through images, lyrics, or even just by creating an emotional mood.