Music

“Sight isolates, sound incorporates. Whereas sight situates the observer outside what he views, at a distance, sound pours into the hearer.” (1961) Walter Ong.

One cannot simply escape sound; even deaf people will perceive sounds (albeit differently to hearing people). It is immersive and cannot be truly shut out. As I sit in my apartment on my own, I can hear traffic, the hum of my computer, clocks ticking and my fingers tapping. Sound is not something we can merely live without; it is our warning beacon, our emotional soundtrack and our intimate lover. Is it any wonder, then, that sound is so prevalent in art. That video that made you weep is nothing without a soundtrack, for without sound, our emotions are never fully aware how to react. Any change in tempo, or tone and the visual has a completely different meaning. To throw in a pop culture reference, think of the motif in Scrubs that is played during a melancholy scene and remember how just by hearing that music you know it is sad, or going to get worse. That cue is necessary to make the audience know that there is a change in the feeling of the show, which until probably thirty seconds before was funny.

Sound is subjective, one person my like a sound that another may not. It is far beyond the vibrations, medium and timbre that physically make the sound. Sound pulls emotion from people. A building site outside your bedroom can make you angry and similarly, a piece of piano played with minors at a slow pace can make you sad. Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho” would not be the same without it’s score, film is enhanced by the sound, and silence (a forgotten sound) plays an integral part in denoting suspense, as well as dissonant notes played softly. Sound effects (foley) play a huge part to portray how things should sound. A lot of times, these effects are made with objects like sheets of metal and tin cans. For films with non-musical scores foley is fundamental in getting the emotions the director wants across; because just having a video on a screen is no longer excitable, and hasn’t been since Bruce Forsyth was a child. 

Music tells a story, even before scores for films there was the Romeo and Juliet Overture from Tchaikovsky (based on Shakespeare’s play). It told the story through musical instruments, like listening to the music from Tom and Jerry cartoons. You know what is happening without even seeing the images. It appeals to the sight, sound and even touch, as bassier frequencies will help you FEEL the music.

John Cage once said, “All sound is music, music is all sound” and he demonstrated it with his piece ‘4’33”’. This aggravated people’s perceptions of music and made them think. I have had discussions with my housemates about whether this piece is musical or not but for me, I find it incredibly interesting. It proves a silence is never silence. Even sounds of the restless audience, the rustle of clothes and programs, have a musical feel to them.