Music and mood

Winter, by Alexei Savrasov

Mood is consistency.
And often that.

Often, music sends you to some thought. Then, as the music plays, you are lost in that thought.

I use Alfred Schnittke's 'Story of an unknown actor' to drive home this thought. It is scored for a film of the same name. [Music at end of article, you may play now and read further].

Alfred was a Russian classical composer who used his talents in films. And the music he made

A note of suggestion

Composer Erik Satie's music inspired the modern day ambient music - that is music characterised by mood and atmosphere; it is music that is consistent and doesn't jump at you. You can listen to it straightaway even as you read this story. However, I'd like you to pay attention to what wikipedia calls mild dissonances in the music. This means that even though the music is consistent, and sets an ambience, some of the swaras (notes) very subtly

Soothing classical music

There is something soothing about 'uniform' classical music -- music that is mostly consistent throughout its running length. It stays peaceful, or sad or mellow. It is not mellow one instant and joyous the another. Which is why it is consistent music. You may be fans of lounge music, much of which sticks to a theme and relaxes you; it is consistent. Likewise in classical music, there is a repertoire that doesn't jump at you. You are assured that the soothing/mellow/sad or joyous quality will persist throughout the running time.

Early on, you are informed by the composer

A chilly winter violin

The violinist in this recording is Federico Agostini, whose work can add warmth to your bones in this chilly winter. He is also the hero of this video, along with the composer Antonio Vivaldi. You must watch this video. Its mood matches the music. What a great way to hone your senses to classical music!

The music changes at the 2:48 mark -- and the mood of the video, the images, corresponds to this shift. And then again at 4:58.

Music evokes images. You can imagine scenarios as you listen to the music. The more you can imagine, the more you will like classical music, or any art, or life. This terrific video will aid you in this quest.

You can also not imagine

Polyphony - many yet one

You read about polyphony in the last article and you are much smarter about it. Polyphonic music is used in films to act against the images on the screen. Remember, here the music itself is not polyphonic. The effect is. If the images are happy, sad music is used and vice versa. This effect is the polyphonic effect. The music needs to just oppose the emotions of the images. The viewer is made to take notice of the dichotomy of emotions. Films can also use actual polyphonic music as a standout piece. Here's an example from the remarkable film 'All About Lily Chou Chou'.

You already know about polyphonic music

You definitely know about polyphonic music in films. It's when the background music does not complement the action on screen. The music, as well as the images, has an independent line of thought.

Imagine a scene wherein the city is under destruction. People are yelling and dying, and definitely in that order. You can put in homophonic music (homophony) that complements the images; sad music or anything that complements the doom on screen. Or you can put in happy music, that does not complement the images but 'does its own thing', that is, it is independent of the images on screen. Happy music and destruction on screen, that would be polyphonic music. Also vice versa. (Here's a violent example from Reservoir Dogs. One minute mark onwards.)



Polyphonic music was first written around the year 900 in London, as per recent discoveries. Let's step out of the

A Czech in America

"My own duty as a teacher, I conceive, is not so much to interpret Beethoven, Wagner, or other masters of the past, but to give what encouragement I can to the young musicians of America. I must give full expression to my firm conviction, and to the hope that just as this nation has already surpassed so many others in marvellous inventions and feats of engineering and commerce, and has made an honourable place for itself in literature in one short century, so it must assert itself in the other arts, and especially in the art of music." - Antonin Dvorak  [source]

This post is about a foreigner defining the musical soul of another country; a foreigner creating native music of/for another country.