Introduction to classical music #8: How classical music talks to us.

Like most art forms, classical music tries to make us feel emotions to communicate its ideas. Personally, I have a weakness for romantic composers like Rachmaninof or for impressionist composers like Ravel. Why? Because their compositions make me feel various states like sadness, joy or even a sense of mystery.

If what I just said sounds weird to you, well remind yourself that, often, listening to classical (without words) is a little bit like listening to film music; the only thing is that the film is happening inside your mind, and that the music doesn't have to follow an action frame by frame.

Naturally, each classical composition comes from a particular context, but I assure you that it is absolutely not a necessity to know the details of that particular context to enjoy any classical music. When I talk about context, I'm thinking about compositions such as Shostakovich's 8th symphony, that is in fact a musical version of the Stalingrad victory. But without this information, it is possible to really enjoy that symphony, which will have different persons feel different things.

Anyway, there are always clues that will tell you about the composer's intentions, like the musical genre itself, the title or the structure of the music. As an example, Prokofiev's ballet Romeo and Juliet tells that well known love story, with titles like Arrival of the Guests or Young Juliet; there is also Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony, which is really... pastoral; I'm also thinking about Bach's famous religious compositions, like the Magnificat, that is at the same time gracious and spectacular (according to me). Of course, all the variations, the contrasts and the ruptures in one single classical composition can make you fell various emotional responses, and that contributes to a rich and diversified musical experience.

One thing is for sure, if you ever listen to a classical piece that makes you feel absolutely nothing (or if it repulses you), well maybe you've just discovered a style, a genre or a composer that you will never like, or maybe you are really not in the mood to listen to music. Whatever the case, never force yourself to listen to music that doesn't make you feel anything. There are so many choices in classical music that it is almost impossible that someone doesn't find something to like.