How Important is Emotion to the Music of our Lives?
Author: Pamela Cosel
What makes up a song? What are we to feel when we hear the music we listen to? Are we to laugh, cry, be happy, angry, sad or joyous?
Simply: Yes. We are. All of the above.
Does emotion matter?
Yes. It does. Immensely.
Do any of these songs bring any emotion to you?
Read through the following list of just a few popular song titles and see how you react in your mind and spirit.
- I Will Always Love You
- Baby Love
- Barstool Blues
- Don’t Leave Me This Way
- Damn Your Eyes
- Look Back in Anger
- I’ll Be Missing You
- Don’t Worry, Be Happy
- Good Vibrations
- Joyful, Joyful.
And then there are the classical pieces and Broadway show tunes.
- Requiem Mass in D minor
- Adagio for Strings
- The Russian Dance from The Nutcracker
- Put On a Happy Face
- My Favorite Things
- Ol’ Man River.
- ¡Ayúdame! (Venezuelan Plea for Life)
Love. Longing. Anger. Grief. Happiness. Joy.
Emotions are important to us as human beings. Emotions must be the underlying basis of the creation of songs as well as in their execution. Meaningful music cannot exist unless there is emotion connected to its composition. Even playfulness means something to someone in a goofy song!
Once a piece is put to paper, recorded by a voice and/or instruments, emotions are invoked in the listener as a piece is played or performed.
Why are conveying emotions so essential? We want to touch the hearts of the audience, the listeners. That is the goal. Emotions of a piece are what bring an audience to their feet in joyous clapping if the singers have given it their all in their performance or an orchestra has played a piece to its absolute fullness.
We all long to feel something when hearing a piece of music. We want to be moved, to be touched in our souls and perhaps sent to another place in our imaginations. It’s a magical thing! If a piece of music lacks magic, we feel disappointed, passing off such a piece as boring or irrelevant. Powerful songs linger and can change our perspectives, at times. They connect us to our pasts, to people in our lives — and as has been discovered in recent years — can rejuvenate the minds of persons with dementia, bringing them out of darkness through recalled melodic memories.
The next time you hear a piece of music, pay attention to the emotion it invokes in you. Chances are, you will smile – or perhaps cry. One thing for sure, you’ll be touched by the melodies that swirl around you. The emotions of music add richness to our lives. Pay attention to it often and enjoy what you feel.
Author: Pamela Cosel
