What is the nature of music?

What kind of music does it have in character? There is hardly a clear answer to this question. The grandfather of Soviet music pedagogy, Dmitry Borisovich Kabalevsky, believed that music rests on “three pillars” – this.

In principle, Dmitry Borisovich was right; any melody can fall under this classification. But the world of music is so diverse, filled with subtle emotional nuances, that the nature of music is not something static. In the same work, themes that are absolutely opposite in nature very often intertwine and collide. The structure of all sonatas and symphonies, and most other musical works, is based on this opposition.

Let’s take, for example, the well-known Funeral March from Chopin’s B-flat sonata. This music, which has become part of the funeral ritual of many countries, has become inextricably linked in our minds with bereavement. The main theme is full of hopeless grief and melancholy, but in the middle part a melody of a completely different nature suddenly appears – light, as if consoling.

When we talk about the nature of musical works, we rather mean the mood that they convey. Very roughly, all music can be divided into. In fact, she is able to express all the half-tones of the state of the soul – from tragedy to stormy joy.

Let’s try to demonstrate with well-known examples, what kind of music is there? character

• For example, “Lacrimosa” from “Requiem” by the great Mozart. It is unlikely that anyone can remain indifferent to the poignancy of such music. No wonder Elem Klimov used it in the finale of his difficult but very powerful film “Come and See.”
• Beethoven’s most famous miniature “Fur Elise”, the simplicity and expressiveness of its feelings seems to anticipate the entire era of romanticism.
• The concentration of patriotism in music is, perhaps, the anthem of one’s country. Our Russian Anthem (music by A. Alexandrov) is one of the most majestic and solemn, filling us with national pride. (At the moment when our athletes are being awarded to the music of the anthem, probably everyone is imbued with these feelings).
• And again Beethoven. The Ode “To Joy” from the 9th Symphony is filled with such comprehensive optimism that the Council of Europe declared this music the anthem of the European Union (apparently in the hope of a better future for Europe). It is impressive that Beethoven wrote this symphony while he was deaf.
• The music of E. Grieg’s play “Morning” from the suite “Peer Gynt” is idyllically pastoral in nature. This is a picture of early morning, nothing major is happening. Beauty, peace, harmony.

Of course, this is only a small part of the possible moods. In addition, the music can be different in nature (here you can add an infinite number of options yourself).

Having limited ourselves here to examples from popular classical works, let’s not forget that modern, folk, pop, jazz – any music, also has a certain character, giving the listener a corresponding mood.

The character of music can depend not only on its content or emotional tone, but also on many other factors: for example, on tempo. Fast or slow – is it really important? By the way, a plate with the main symbols that composers use to convey character can be downloaded here.

I would like to end with the words of Tolstoy from the “Kreutzer Sonata”: