There is an old expression; “MUSIC SOOTHES THE SAVAGE BEAST”. What that expression really means is that music has the unique ability to alter one’s mood, to calm the heart, stir the emotions, lift the spirit, change the mind and move one to action! Very little can compare with the impact that music has on mankind as a whole.

Music started millenniums ago even before men had any way of recording history. They had music before they knew how to read or write. One can consider that the voice was the first musical instrument, along with the clapping of hands and the stomping of feet. And, one might say that music and the human body go “hand in hand”, for the human body itself is a rhythmic thing. The pulse of the heartbeat and chanting or beat of a drum in song both have rhythm. It is something that people the world over can understand and it conveys a message almost like language itself.

All music has two things in common---sound and movement, as does nature. There is the sound and movement of the wind, of brooks and oceans, of falling rain as well as the sounds of many living things. The birds sing songs, the rooster crows and the dog barks, all of which have sound and movement in rhythm that are “in order”. And that is the way it is with music.

Therefore, music has a history all of its own, and it can be discussed in many ways. There is music for the voice, be it solo or choral. And there is music produced from many various forms of manmade instruments. Then, there is the music produced from the combination of the two. Operas are a special form of vocal and instrumental music combined with the dramatic show of acting. In instrumental music, we find several categories: music for solo instruments, music for small groups of instruments and music for orchestra, or many instruments combined.

In the history of ancient nations, we have much diversity. Early Egyptians loved the great size of chorus and orchestration which sometimes numbered more then six hundred people playing harps, lyres, lutes, pipes, tambourines and trumpets. They used music in their festivals and armies. The ancient Hebrews used their many musical instruments and vocals almost entirely for religious purposes. The olden Greeks primarily used two instruments, the lyre and the pipe and their music was involved in everyday life---from the teaching of their children to the rhythm of their work and sports festivals. Their famous music was poetic and also used in their renowned plays. The early Roman music was primarily what they learned from their Greek conquests, and enjoyed playing music rather than composing it. Ancient Hindus, Arabs, Chinese, Japanese Burmese, Javanese and Siamese have all enjoyed music for hundreds of years---music with little in common with the Western world and their instruments, but nevertheless magnificent as well. Early English music was said to have developed slowly. But the development of printing in the 1400’s influenced the evolution of music profoundly. Madrigals, which were fine, poetic, non-religious choral verses were popular and musical composers wrote beautiful accompaniments for them in the late 1500’s and 1600’s. Later, instrumental music became popular in England and its composers worked out thousands of compositions for harpsichords, virginals, recorders, and viols. The well-educated Englishman was known to play a variety of instruments and composed music as well. Queen Elizabeth 1 was said to have granted two gifted composers---Thomas Tallis and Byrd a monopoly on the printing of music and music paper for some time. But, as music spread to the plain folk, they created music for their “folk dancing”.

The invention of better instruments called for the composing of more “refined” music as well, and these composers blossomed in Italy, France, England and Germany. Three Italian families from Cremona made the violin and their work has not been surpassed even to this day. Violin sonatas were written in Italy. Also, harpsichords and clavichords had been perfected which were the forerunners of the piano or pianoforte (meaning soft-loud).

In 1685-1750 Johann Sebastian Bach became one of the most famous musicians the world has ever known. This man was an organist, violinist, and player of both the harpsichord and clavichord. He composed music, taught it and directed choirs in Leipzig; wrote over 300 cantatas and numerous accomplishments for the organ, harpsichord, clavichord and for small orchestras!

George Handel (1685-l759) was a composer, as Bach, but was most well known for composing Italian operas and English oratorios.

Their style of composing was an era unto itself, and thereafter came the classical music. Bach’s sons and others composed sonatas.

Joseph Haydn (l732-1809) was often called the father of the symphony and string quartet.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) who was considered to be the greatest musical genius of all time by many was a classical writer as well as Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827) who wrote Classical and Romanticism. Mozart was known throughout Europe as an infant prodigy and died very young, leaving behind numerous compositions for symphony, sonatas, string quartets, concertos, Masses, and operas. Beethoven started writing music that sounded like that of Haydn and Mozart (classical in style) but lived through times of revolution and war, thus reflected more emotion or romanticism.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828) was another musical genius. He wrote symphonies, chamber music, piano sonatas and short romantic pieces. He actually wrote more than 600 romantic songs.

Karl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) is named the Father of German Opera, and was the first to write them in German romantic as opposed to Italian style.

From 1809 to 1813 there were five marvelous composers who really influenced the history of music. Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (l809-l847) was famous for his piano writings and orchestral music.

Robert Schumann (l8l0-l856) wrote romantic piano with descriptive titles.

Frederic Chopin (l8l0-l849) was of Polish origin and wrote outstanding piano music.

Franz Liszt (l8ll-l886) from Hungry wrote orchestral works---shorter symphonies with descriptive titles; and known to be one of he greatest pianists in the entire world. He and Hector Berlioz (l803-l869) a Frenchman, aided the development of music with at title (program music) which was inspired by a story, legend, event, picture or scene. It was the opposite of the sonata, suite, fugue or symphony. Berlioz is sometimes called the Father of modern orchestra.

Richard Wagner (l8l3-l883) was the greatest German opera composer music reflected the great drama it enhanced.

Johannes Brahms (l833-l897) His music reflected that of Beethoven, but was called a neoclassicist that disapproved of romanticism. He was one of the greatest writers of the l800’s.

In the late l800’s, Brukner, Mahler, Wolf, Strauss, and Sibelius were great composers of various styles and Sir Arthur Sullivan, Sir William S. Gilbert and Sir Edward Elgar and Frederick Delius wrote important music. In the United States, MacDowell, Chadwick, Kelley, Beach, Parker, Fooze and many others wrote fine compositions. In Russia, Scriabin created beautiful piano works.

Since the beginning of the l900’s, there have been many musical changes and trends. Polytonality (writing in two or more keys at one time) and atonality (writing in the chromatic scale without a tonal center) are titles that have been given to newer music that has been developed.

Claude Debussy, a Frenchman tried to put into musical feeling what the poets and painters were expressing and it was called impressionism. There were a group of others who did the same: Chausson, Vincent d’Indy, Faure, Franck, Satie, Honegger, Milhaud and Poulenc.

British composers became renowned in the 1900’s including, Sir Arnold Bax, Britten, Williams and Walton.

Europe gave many composers such as Spain’s Falla, Italy’s Dallapiccola, Bartok, Bloch, Enesco, Manuel d Falla, Hindemith, Janacek, Kodaly, Martin, Martinu and Nielsen.

Arnold Schonberg developed a severe style based on the twelve tones of the chromatic scale. Russian born, Khatchaturian, Prokofieff and Shostakovich have received musical recognition. And in the United States, composers such Samuel Barber, Bernstein, Cage, Carpenter, Copland, Harris, Ives, Menotti Piston, Schuman, Sessions, and Thomson have written in all styles and musical thinking. Latin-American composers of the l900’s include Villa-Lobos of Brazil, Carlos Chaves of Mexico, and Lecuona of Cuba.

Has reviewing the list of composers above "boggled" your mind? Well, many men of genius through the ages have pleased and inspired mankind, and are too numerous to mention! But one thing is certain, life without music in our hearts would certainly be ever so bland and monotonous. To this day in the 21st century, we have an explosion of all kinds of music. And, the fact that so many men of genius have spent their whole lives involved and devoted to it shows what a vital part it plays in our lives. We can also be assured that because of its very existence in nature and the heart of men, it is beyond a doubt the product of a magnanimous creator who has given his gift to us. Therefore, please learn to appreciate its value; hence, choose it and use it to motivate you wisely!