Music is Alive

Music is Alive

Music is universal. It can unite people. People across different cultures, races, and regions can instantly connect through music. Just turn on that radio or jukebox and you'll hear people - different people - singing or humming along, clapping and tapping their feet. All in unison. Isn't that just beautiful?

Music is instinctual. If you haven't noticed yet, you'll soon realise that you actually sing without thinking. Even if you don't know the lyrics or if you're afraid of people shouting at your ugly voice or for whatever reasons you can think of, you hum to the melody of your favourite music. Some people are not singers or hummers, but interestingly enough they play the music in their mind. Not too sure how that works? You've most likely have done it before - when you're alone studying, walking along a street, or staring out the window of a bus and suddenly the tunes, melodies, rhythms, and beats form in your mind that it's almost like you're listening to the real thing. Everything starts from your head. Singing and humming are merely manifestations of these music 'visualisation'. You don't even have to consciously tell yourself to sing. It comes to you mechanically. The next thing you know you're already singing. Isn't that just amazing?

Music is emotional. Try watching a really sad movie on mute and I bet you won't shed any tears. While the actors and actresses give emotions to the dialog, the soundtrack gives you that atmosphere. Music alone can really stir and evoke your emotions. I remember once I listened to this piano piece with my eyes closed and when it reached the ending, my cheeks were wet. Music can make you feel sad and melancholic. It's a powerful driving force into making you cry watching Titanic. Music can also make you happy and cheery. If you've listened to Mika before you know what I'm talking about (Grace Kelly is FUN). And music can lift your spirits soaring high. It's the very reason why the military has a band. Imagine experiencing an emotion from a blank state just by listening to the right music. Isn't that just incredible?

Music is inseparable from human lives. It is intricately weaved into our lives. Almost like how yarn is harmoniously knitted into a sweater. Music IS part of our lives. Pull that yarn away and you will be left with nothing.

That said, I myself cannot recall a single day where music is absent from my life. Sometimes when I'm on the tram alone and a hint of melancholy touches my heart, I would amplify that emotion with just the right playlist on my iPod. Or when I'm strolling down the city street at night, I'd switch to another playlist to induce excitement and then an  imagery of hustle and lights comes to mind. With every bit of emotion that I feel at any moment, I like to complement it with music. It makes the experience of those emotions so much powerful and (most importantly) memorable.

After all, emotion is what makes a human human.

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(I do wonder if I'm the only one with music having effect that strong. Let me know if you're in the club!)

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(credits to photographer Vince Walter [1st photo],

source from "Singin' in the Rain (1952)" [2nd photo],

credits to LGBT Domestic Abuse, Laurent, Kingdom of Heaven [3rd photo])