The Arts in New York City
At the beginning of the Tokyo String Quartet, I expected a bland, unmoving performance. I judged my expectation of the performance based on not only the prototypical expectation for a string performance, but due to the typical demographic of the audience. The audience composed primarily of elderly people and when I was seated to watch the performance, most of the heads I say were either bald or graying.
But little did I know that I was wrong, extremely wrong in fact. The beginning of the Tokyo String Quartet played dreary, sad music. I closed my eyes, thinking sad moments reflecting the thoughts and then strangely, I started to cry. The other performance after the first performance started to be subsequently happier, and my sad mood started to become a bit more elated over time. I realized that I started to become connected to classical music, something that I thought I never would become connected to in the way I felt connected to pop music.
I then realized that Nietzsche in his work The Birth of Tragedy was absolutely right. Before this performance, during one of the Macaulay Seminars, I said that words tend to connect to emotions much more quickly than music ever could. I said that because I was closer to a writer than a singer or a musical performer, thus I was connected to the words I write. I still am. But I realized that ever since this performance, my opinions on what can cause emotions changed. I learned that sometimes, music can connect one to emotions more than words ever could.
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I completely agree with everything you wrote regarding the Tokyo String Quartet event. People’s tastes differ from generation to generation, and this adopted notion is clearly apparent based on the first impressions most of us had of the event prior to the beginning of the performance. A majority of the audience consisted of older people, made evident by the sea of white hair that surrounded us. Also, I can empathize with you on the experience you had about being able to connect to the chamber music. Rather than finding myself bored and sleepy, I was so immersed in the music that my eyes were affixed on the swaying motion of the quartet members and the movement of the bows as they went down-stroke and up-stroke. It was as if the music was manipulating the moods and thoughts people were having as they were listening to it. Although Nietzsche’s The Birth of Tragedy was difficult to interpret due to the sophisticating and lyrical language he employs, the allusion to Nietzsche certainly makes his point on music reflecting emotions better than words understandable, and this can be justified by the internal experience that occurred inside of us.
I am glad that I wasn’t the only one that noticed the gray sea of hair with an occasional bald spot here and there that was hovering in front of me during the entire event. It was something that actually drew my focus away from the performers. I realized that a lot of people who come to these events were elderly folks, and I questioned why younger people don’t come to enjoy the beautiful music. I think the hour or so sitting listening to music and lack of social interaction might have something to do with that.
The simultaneous coughing after every pause kind of irritated me. I don’t know why, but I think the occasional cough during the performance would have been less excruciating to hear than the whole room nearly gaging at every pause. However it was a very considerate gesture not to interrupt the performance, so I cant really complain. I actually arrived a minute late to the performance, and was forced to sit outside. Maybe that’s why the music seemed less dreary to me. I thought it was more tranquil than sad, which raises an interesting point of how much the music differs live, and on the screen. Coming in after the first break, I certainly enjoyed the performance more than sitting outside hearing it through speakers. There is something strange about the sound of a real violin that makes it more enjoyable to hear than a simple recording of it. Although I was unable to get into the performance as much as you did, I definitely enjoyed it.