Music 01: Classical Addiction

Recently, I've become addicted to classical music. It's so delectable to the ear! One cannot overindulge on the strings, brass, and percussion. It all began when I tuned into my local classical station around three months ago and heard Johannes Brahms' Hungarian Dance Number 5. I was enthralled! It's so exciting, and it evokes images in my mind that I never would have imagined beforehand. I've gained ideas for my Dungeons and Dragons sessions multiple times from such pieces, as well as calmer, more reverent pieces such as Pachelbel's Canon in D Major. What's simply astounding is that each and every piece draws a different image or invokes a different feeling for every person. While many may have a similar experience, not one is exactly identical. Comparing this to our media today, which often provides very uncomplicated material for one to ponder, music is a mentally stimulating playground that anyone with a taste for it can experiment and play upon.

My appreciation for such music has also probably been significantly improved by the music theory classes that I've been taking at my high school. We've learned about pitch, key, rhythm chord structure and progression, to name but a few things among many, and it's greatly improved my playing ability, as well as my perspective on the inherent difficulty in writing beautiful music.

One particular anecdote that displays perfectly the power classical music has gained over me is what happened to me one night during a concert I was playing in for an honors band at a local college. We were playing pieces about death - Rest - and veterans in the army. As my uncle had recently passed on, I couldn't help but think of him. My thoughts trailed also to my grandfather, who was a veteran from World War Two that survived reconnaissance on D-Day at Normandy...I was so touched by the beauty of the music we were playing and the power of my memories that tears welled up in my eyes.

Music has a special kind of relation with humans in this sense: it brings out strong emotions in many of us. It truly is a shame that nowadays, the only music a large majority of the population is exposed to is what the pop and rock stations play on the radio. My father, who had never been exposed to symphonic, chamber music, or orchestral pieces before I began my interest, is in love with it just as much as I am. He's made multiple attempts at becoming musical himself, and has bought guitars and bass guitars. I admire his determination greatly and I'm very happy he's taken an interest in the performances and eloquent mode of expression I have.