Tokyo String Quartet: Emotions of the Melody

As I listened to the music played by the Tokyo String Quartet in 92^nd Street Y, I could not help but remember the class discussion about lip-synching. I remembered the question of whether or not musical lyrics reflected a person’s mood at the moment when he/she lip-syncs. At that time, I was not sure whether to agree or disagree, mainly because I do not lip-sync, but instead, I hum. However, the Tokyo String Quartet performance provided me with an answer to the question. When one listens to music, the melody, not the lyrics, evokes emotions and often reflects a person’s mood.

As a former active pianist, the speed of the music is written in Italian and can often foreshadow the mood of the music piece. Here I will translate some of the Italian (in the order in which they appeared in the booklet) that I recognized from experience:

Lento: slow

Poco: little

Allegro: fast

Vivace: increase tempo

Molto: very

Adagio: slow

Scherzando: playfully

Presto: very fast

Andante: moderately slow

Musical pieces played in allegro or in presto were often joyful sounding. In fact, allegro is translated to “joyful” in Italian. However, pieces played in lento or in adagio sounded depressing and dark. The transition of lento/adagio to allegro/presto created a dramatic effect and sometimes created a sense of being chased. In addition, in the beginning of the performance, I noticed that each instrument created its own separate “voice,” producing a chaotic effect. However, towards the end of the entire performance, the instruments were played in-sync and produced a harmonic effect. That harmonic effect created a playful tone in combination with the speed (allegro). To me, that melody evoked a sense of joyfulness in my thoughts, whereas the pieces played in lento or in adagio evoked depressing/angry thoughts.