Музыка и жизнь /4.Эпохи, стили, жанры.

Салтовец К.К.

Научный руководитель: ассистент кафедры иностранных языков

Анисимова Светлана Анатольевна

Донецкий национальный университет экономики и торговли имени Михаила

Туган - Барановского, Украина

Music in our life

Music is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are pitch (which governs melody and harmony), rhythm (and its associated concepts tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture.

The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of music vary according to culture and social context. Music ranges from strictly organized compositions (and their recreation in performance), through improvisational music to aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into genres and subgenres, although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and occasionally controversial. Within "the arts", music may be classified as a performing art, a fine art, and auditory art.

Can you think of a day without music? We can hear music everywhere: in the streets and at home, over the radio and on TV, in the shops and in the parks. People all over the world are fond of music. They listen to music, they dance to music and they learn to play musical instruments.

Music is one of the oldest arts. The first written music dates from about 2500 B.C. It plays an important part in all cultures. People use music in ceremonies, in work, and in personal and social activities.

Nearly all peoples use music in their religious services. Much church music creates a feeling of distance from the daily world. Sports events, graduations, weddings, parades, and the crowning of kings and queens also use music.

Before machines became important, people had to do much difficult or boring work by hand. Laborers sang songs to help to make their work seem easier. Even today, when machines are widely used, many offices and factories provide background music for workers.

Greek philosophers and ancient Indian philosophers defined music as tones ordered horizontally as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as "the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to. However, 20th-century composer John Cage thought that any sound can be music, saying, for example,

But what is music? Specialists explain that music isn't only a combination of pleasant sounds. It is an art which reflects life. Music reflects people's ideas and emotions. In this world of ours, filled with conflicts, tragedies, joys and hopes, music strives to speak to people of what is most important, urgent and poignant.

Music in the lives of different people is different: some compose music, others play music, and others only listen to it. A lot of people who cannot play any musical instrument love to listen to music either at home or at a con-cert. Different people like different kinds of music. You may prefer pop or rock music, country or folk music, classical music or jazz, but you certainly cannot think of a day without music.

There are a lot of different kinds of music. Some of them appeared long ago, and some are modern. For example, folk music appeared long ago, but it is still alive. There are many local performers, choirs and folk groups. However, this style also includes music being written now, and we may speak of modern classical music. Rap is a modern musical style where the singer speaks or shouts the words in time to music with a steady beat.

Popular music is generally much simpler than classical music. Folk music consists of the traditional songs of a people. Many composers, including Edvard Grieg of Norway and Peter Tchaikovsky of Russia, have used folk music in their works. Country music is derived from the folk music of the whites of the Southern United States and other American traditional music.

Jazz combines the complex rhythms of African music and the harmony of Western music. Most jazz features much improvisation.

Great Britain has produced more popular music stars than any other country. Over the last 30 years rock and pop music have been very popular in Britain. The Beatles, with their style of singing, eloquent and exciting, is still one of the most popular groups. British groups often set new trends in music. New styles, groups and singers continue to appear.

Tastes differ. So people's musical interests range from pop and rock music, which are extremely popular nowadays, especially among young people, to classical music and opera.

It goes without saying that music plays a very important role in people's lives. It reflects our moods and emotions. Music appeals to our hearts and transforms our feelings. It conquers our souls and enriches our minds. Besides, listening to music is the perfect way to spend free time and not to feel bored. You can hardly find a person who doesn't like or need music and who never sings or dances. Music is beauty in sounds; it is our magic source of inspiration.