Video+Article+-+Music+and+Emotion

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 * Video Article - Music and Emotion Through Time **
 * Michael Tilson Thomas is the Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony. In addition to conducting, he has distinguished himself as a composer and pianist. **
 * In this video he looks at how music has evolved through the ages and what its emotional impact has been. Watch the video and share your thoughts about what he as to say. (Feel free to agree or disagree!) **
 * Consider the following questions, but also feel free to raise your own questions or comments: **
 * **Name any piece of music you have performed or will perform in the near future (solo or ensemble). What would you like to pass on to the audience through the performance of this piece?**
 * **Tilson Thomas uses the story of the elderly man who recalls the first time he heard Beethoven's Violin Concerto as an example of the emotional power of music. Is there a piece of music--from //any// genre--that you think will "stick" with you for 60 years? Name the piece and give your reason(s).**

Brian Liu The emotional power of music is undeniable. However, for emotions and melodies to last, a certain memory or connection must be made. In the case of the elderly man, I imagine that the Beethoven Violin Concerto is something that represented his youth and therefore so precious and memorable for him. In our technological advanced world with CDs, recordings, and YouTube, music in any genre has become so commonly accessible that we sometimes do not appreciate the singularity of each piece or attempt to associate our emotions with it. A song or a piece is heard once and often disregarded until we happen upon it some later time. So for me, every melody has a fair chance of sticking for 60 years. Maybe it will depend on my mood, my circumstances; I cannot say for sure. Melodies that definitely stand out for me are the ones in the second movement of Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No.2; their simplicity and beauty are absolutely mesmerizing.

Thomas mentions that Classical music distills and condenses music to its absolute essence and creates a new language that speaks unflinchingly about who we really are. The first piece that comes to mind is Beethoven's Egmont Overture. In 347 measures, Beethoven is able to pass on, through his music, the turmoil of Spain-occupied Netherlands, the resistance led by Count Egmont, the persecution of the Count, and the eventual triumph of the Count's spirit and the people of Netherlands. The piece does it with so much emotion and clarity that any amount of explaining in writing cannot ever equate the power of this particular example of Classical music. (Although Beethoven himself was probably the greatest composer of all time and his music the most enduring examples of Classical music.)

Allan Liu My upcoming solo on Legende by Wieniawski is a tremendously powerful piece. The story goes that Wieniawski's engagement to Isabella Hampton was not approved by the bride's parents. However Wieniawski composed this piece as proof of his musical talent and the parents soon offered their blessings. Legende clearly reflects the sentimentality and longing that would have occupied Wieniawski's mood at that time, Imagine a well-established man denied by the parents of his lover. Frustrated but hopeful, he sets out to capture all his emotions and express his love for Isabella through this piece. On top of this, he adds in the technical brilliance that he was known for and successfully moves her parents With this in mind, my performance of Legende will seek to recreate the sorrowful passion for the audience and I will seek to impress just as Wieniawski would have wanted to impress.

Thomas highlights the "what"s and "how"s of the different musical time periods and provides some insight into how musical performance has changed over the years. However, he focuses on a lot of history and facts (music notation, ends of phrases, minor and major chords), leaving out the practical side to this topic. How do we play music to evoke powerful emotions? What does it mean that music is becoming more instinctive? What are the implications of the profound endurance of musical phrases?

Although Thomas doesn't really explain how music is able to evoke strong emotions, one of his thoughts stuck in my mind after the video. “What happens when the music stops? What sticks with people?” This has made me realize that performing music for an audience is not about playing the notes or feeling the music for yourself, but about sending out the message in such a way that the audience can empathize with the composer or performer.

Jason Sohn

Music sometimes describes my humors and characteristics deep inside me. My upcoming solo piece called Variations on One String on a theme by Rossini composed by Paganini is one of the most technical and playful piece for cello. Paganini was a great composer and a violinist of the Romantic era. His ability to control the violin is hilarious, in a good way .The performance of this piece can satisfy both audience's ears and eyes. I can display playful expressions with lots of rubatos through YoYoMability to control the cello. The audience will enjoy the various sounds that cello can manipulate. Just to put a happy little smile audiences' face.Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfMGGwECwgI Haydn cello concerto in C major is the most meaningful piece in my life. It is probably reason why I still play the cello. The performance with this piece was my first official concert with a professional orchestra. I was 13 and It felt good. Still good. If I have a chance I will play this piece again.

David

It is definitely true that music can capture emotions, but I’ve found that some pieces can be very rich in emotion while others are duller and paled in comparison. Of those that are rich, Dark Tango is one of the first ones to come to mind, setting a dynamic and sometimes turbulent scene to revel in. (We, the performers, are the revellers.) Another is Variation 5 from Variations on “The Sad Violin Song,” which yields a sense of conflict with its shrill cries and lively buildup. These pieces never seem to stop moving, inspiring that feeling of excitement and flare in Dark Tango and an operatic feel to Variation 5.

Thomas went into how from the absolute essence found in day-to-day music (which is distilled and concentrated in Classical music), a language is created that reveals a bit about who we are. A statement like that asks for connections to be drawn from it, and I felt like I learned a bit about myself from examining the music that I like. Dark Tango, Variation 5, Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton, and Walk Around the Lake by Lost in the Trees are just some of the works of music that have meaning to me, and each one reveals some part of myself. It becomes apparent that we develop an attachment to music with meanings that speak to us.

Later on in the video, Thomas made a claim that music is just a pattern of sounds and silences, each sound to a measurable pitch, loudness, and position in time. I believe that his claim has some truth to it; though, it doesn’t take away from the music but rather, it brings a bit of magic to the idea that these sounds of definite proportions can elicit an emotional response because of some meaning that is not intrinsic in the music itself, but that is in some way a characteristic of the music in terms of how we receive it. As he put it, “37 freakin’ vibrations” are all that are needed to change the feeling of a C5 triad.

Earlier, I had mentioned Tears in Heaven and Walk Around the Lake as two songs that I have come to like and that have meaning to me. I feel confident in making the assertion that they will probably stay with me for a long time, not only because of the direct meaning that they hold for me, but also because of the history that has come with my listening to these two songs.

Rose

The upcoming piece that i will be performing is Accolay's violin concerto. This piece demonstrates strong emotions especially portrayed in the slides and legatos. Although there is no story behind this piece, it is clear that this piece is meant to have a powerful impact on the audience. In addition, because Accolay was a composer from the romantic era, his pieces are composed with great emotion in order to fit the theme of the era. With my performance, I wish to portray such factors by following the dramatic dynamic contrasts and the using lots of bow for a richer sound. I strongly agree with Thomas that music is a language that expresses who we are, and is also a language is still evolving. This thought is very intriguing because in a way, music truly is a language. Just like how we have English to communicate, music is a way for most people to express their feelings and deliver a certain message. In addition, it is true that it is a constant evolving language because we know that the music people enjoyed in the 11th century, as stated by Thomas in the video, may not sound appealing to our 21st century ears. In addition, I agree that music has a way to allow us to connect with ourselves and also allows us to have a "fragile and personal moment", such as the beethoven violin concerto which he used as an example. Certain pieces have the ability to trigger feelings and emotions

Bethany

In the TED talk, Michael said, “Classical music … creates a new language, a language that speaks very lovingly and unflinchingly about who we really are.” I very much agree with it and I would like to generalize this by saying that, the music we listen speaks and reflects who we really are; our experiences, values, and emotions are closely tied with the music we listen to. For instance, classical music might be tied with the experiences from playing instruments in childhood or intensified movie background music tied with different movie themes. Music speaks different ideas and emotions to us, like a language, it allows us to connect with experiences we have in life, which in turn reflects who we are on the personal level.

Canon in D by Pachelbel is a sentimental piece to me; it embedded the memories of my childhood that it will always be nostalgia to me. When I was six years old, my brother, Breandan, first introduced me to the violin and that’s how I started my journey with music. I begun to learn the violin and practiced very hard in order to catch up to my brother’s level. Eventually, I was able to fake it and play the music he plays. He introduced me to Canon in D and also taught me how to play. It was a lot of fun because it was my first time playing in a duet. Playing music is fun; however, playing with others is twice the fun. Not only did we enjoyed it, my parents were also very proud and touched when Breandan and I would practice together in the living room. Canon in D is for sure a piece that would stick with me forever because of the memories and experiences I had while playing with my brother, which is what makes music so wonderful.

Kelly No

I will be playing “Allegro” from Brandenburg Concerto #2 in F major by Bach for my approaching ensemble performance. The main features for this piece involve a bright tempo and a solid rhythmic drive throughout the music. In addition, several lines are heard at the same time, an effect known as a polyphonic texture. Furthermore, the repeating theme (ritornello) works to enhance the unification of the movement. Since these features are important and distinctive to the piece, I would like to convey these unique characteristics to the audience. Initially, the cheerful and emphatic style of playing will show off the bright tempo and the rhythmic drive. Moreover, playing different lines between the first violin, the second violin, and the cello will allow the polyphonic texture to surface. Also, emphasizing the recurring theme will help to unify the movement as well. Also, I thought that the development of the notation system was very fascinating because it was fascinating to the notes in the music scores evolve from the 10th century.

Sandy

There are always these certain songs that will remind me of past memories. The one song I feel like that I will forever remember is Big Big World by Emilia. This song had sentimental value from when I first arrived at Canada, my dad would have this on his CD and I would just love this song every time I hear it. I remember how time passed by so fast and I, eventually, have be on my own. I remember as a little girl watching my parents work so hard to bring me here and provide me all that I have. This song was the one that I grew up with along with some others that I would never get tired of. I didn't know much of classical music back then and even now, so most of my favorites are from modern music like pop. Music is a way that crosses all races and cultures, connecting us as we have the same way of expressing ourselves. It makes us feel the same feelings or just happens to be the song that was playing during an important/significant event. It reminds us about our past and who we are or were, this other language that could reach into the deepest memories and make us remember something that was long forgotten. Even in our darkest moments, it is always there to help us to organize and word our tangled thoughts into something beautiful.

Lucy Right after we performed the Egmont at Kiwanis, I heard a kid who was sitting on the side of the auditorium say to his friend " woah that was awesome" and I realized that was exactly the reaction I wanted to get from the Egmont. I really like the Egmont, I find it exciting, intense, and well, awesome. I want to pass my feeling on to the audience so they are completely captivated and slightly blown away by the piece and the strong emotions in it. I think 60 years from now I will still be able to sing along to lots of songs, lyrics stick in my head, but I don't know which song will stand out because of a true connection. I think my future experiences could make one song stand out. I have several songs that I associate with memories or and I think that years from know when I hear that song I will be reminded of a specific time. Overall I found the video interesting. It is strange to think how musical tastes have changes, what would sound like a nice ending to a piece by everyone today would have been considered a bad ending by everyone years ago.

Emma Li

The first time I really took notice of a musical performance was also coincidentally my first time in a concert hall, at the age of 8. This particular hall was a grand hall, and in the middle of the stage was a big Steinway piano. The lights were dimmed and turned back on as a young girl slowly walked on stage. She was an ordinary girl, yet that thought left my mind as soon as her hands touched the key of the piano. The piece performed that day was Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu; although I was clueless of that at the time. I hadn’t yet started piano, nor did I know of Chopin and his many musical accomplishments, yet that day, something in that music reached me and grabbed hold.  I didn’t know it back then, but that was the start of a very long and fruitful journey into the world of music. I started piano shortly after and spent years drilling techniques and theory, hoping that once again I’ll be able to feel what I felt in that room, inspire someone as I’ve been inspired. Yet what I was searching for came years later, at my first solo recital in a concert hall. I played Chopin that day, and messed up on quite a few minor details; yet I was ecstatic. Some call music the universal language, and I truly believe that sometimes it may be able to convey more meaning and expression than simply speaking. I’m not sure if I will still be playing music in 60 years; however, I know I will never forget the lingering notes of that very first piano performance.

Malcolm

One piece that I think will stay with me for the next 60 years Beethoven’s Piano Concerto no.5 “The Emperor.” This piece is extremely important to me because at the time I first heard it, I was entering an entirely new phase in my life. It was early 2013 and I had only been at North Toronto for a few months, and I was working on a Music History project with a Grade 12 student named Lindsay Davies White. At that point, I wasn’t familiar with classical music at all. I had heard it before but found that I couldn’t maintain focus for the entire duration of a piece, but I knew that it was something I could come to love if I just gave it a chance. Of course, at that point I had absolutely no idea what symphonies, concertos, sonatas or movements were, so I would have to do quite a bit of research if I was to be of any help to my group. What astonished me though was Lindsay’s seemingly endless breadth of knowledge on the subject we were researching (The Classical Era). I would listen to him talk about all of the different musical forms and composers but had very little idea of what all of it actually meant. So, I did a lot of research, and started becoming familiar with different composers’ personalities. I enjoyed reading about the life stories of various composers, and was especially captivated by Beethoven’s. It was only then that I began to truly understand Classical music, and how greatly it was influenced by the composer’s personality. Of course, I was also amazed by how brilliant a lot of it was, so I started listening to it. Then one day I clicked on a YouTube video of Glenn Gould (who is to this day my favorite pianist) performing the Emperor Concerto, and was in awe for the next half an hour at the outstanding displays of virtuosity, and just how glorious and beautiful the whole thing was. I also play piano so that probably had something to do with my reaction. I wouldn’t stop harassing my Dad until he watched the whole thing with me, and eventually he came to appreciate classical music as well. So, essentially, the reason Beethoven’s 5th Piano Concerto is so special to me is because listening to it is what marked the beginning of my infatuation with Classical Music.