Memorable Music - Learning to Appreciate It
Music is personal.
So to try to foist one's views upon others is a waste of time.
However, like many best practices, music around the world has some common attributes that makes a composition memorable.
Here are some tips on how to recognize and enjoy memorable music.
1.
Simplicity.
There is a reason Sinatra and Elvis's music endures while many rock stars of the 70's and 80's have faded away.
They and other great crooners like them took simple lyrics and turned them into music.
"I did it my way" and " All shook up" are but two examples.
Beatles also composed their music along simple, hum-along tunes.
2.
Resonance.
They say when you hear a piece, whether vocal or instrumental, it has about 15 seconds in which to be accepted or rejected.
Very few pieces "grow' on you.
That is, very few pieces of music will sound better the second time.
The only assumption is that you have listened to it when completely relaxed.
3.
Timber.
This means harmonic and vocal strength.
Listen to Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.
It grips you with the four chords, it shows that the composer and the players are in complete command of the surroundings.
That is what creates instant ambience.
4.
Anticipation: That is what classicists call "point, counter-point".
A vocalist does the same thing with his or her voice.
With the first strains that you hear, your mind must be inquisitive as to how the passage is going to proceed.
Listen to the old country song " Take this job and shove it"--how many of us can resist finding out what happens next? With balladeers like John Mellencomp, it is the story line which grips you.
5.
Message: The more superficial the melody or lyrics, the more forgettable the music.
The reason Glinka endures is because of the stress he brought to his music, particularly his overtures.
Same with Souza's music, which is brimming with theme or themes--some patriotic, some folksy, some martial.
I wish you all enjoyable listening to some memorable music.
So to try to foist one's views upon others is a waste of time.
However, like many best practices, music around the world has some common attributes that makes a composition memorable.
Here are some tips on how to recognize and enjoy memorable music.
1.
Simplicity.
There is a reason Sinatra and Elvis's music endures while many rock stars of the 70's and 80's have faded away.
They and other great crooners like them took simple lyrics and turned them into music.
"I did it my way" and " All shook up" are but two examples.
Beatles also composed their music along simple, hum-along tunes.
2.
Resonance.
They say when you hear a piece, whether vocal or instrumental, it has about 15 seconds in which to be accepted or rejected.
Very few pieces "grow' on you.
That is, very few pieces of music will sound better the second time.
The only assumption is that you have listened to it when completely relaxed.
3.
Timber.
This means harmonic and vocal strength.
Listen to Beethoven's Fifth Symphony.
It grips you with the four chords, it shows that the composer and the players are in complete command of the surroundings.
That is what creates instant ambience.
4.
Anticipation: That is what classicists call "point, counter-point".
A vocalist does the same thing with his or her voice.
With the first strains that you hear, your mind must be inquisitive as to how the passage is going to proceed.
Listen to the old country song " Take this job and shove it"--how many of us can resist finding out what happens next? With balladeers like John Mellencomp, it is the story line which grips you.
5.
Message: The more superficial the melody or lyrics, the more forgettable the music.
The reason Glinka endures is because of the stress he brought to his music, particularly his overtures.
Same with Souza's music, which is brimming with theme or themes--some patriotic, some folksy, some martial.
I wish you all enjoyable listening to some memorable music.
