noumeno

Where words fail, music speaks.
-Hans Christian Andersen

Music is a powerful form of communication. With a rich history, found in every known culture, it is thought that music predates language. Sir Charles Darwin proposed the hypothesis that the presence of a “musical protolanguage.” Perhaps it was our evolutionary ancestors that provided us with the framework for our musical inclinations. Either way, if language is seen as the great divide between men, music may be seen as a bridge. The ability music has to touch the listener and convey emotion despite the ability of the listener to comprehend the lyrical message on an intellectual level is profound. The musical pieces chosen for the Golden Record (that rides through the solar system and beyond on the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecrafts) as a representation of humanity span both time and space. In addition to greetings to the universe in 55 different languages, songs from both Western and Eastern cultures, musical pieces both ancient and contemporary, from Bach to Beethoven to Chuck Berry, from Peruvian panpipes and drums to Zaire (a Pygmy girls’ initiation song) can be found floating in space—sent as a form of communication to whatever lucky being may come upon our proverbial message in a bottle. Despise the barrier of language, through music, the messages of joy, sorrow, intrigue, suspense, love, anger, and any emotion in-between can be skillfully conveyed. Though the choice (or availability) of instruments may differ through cultures, the desire to create, enjoy and communicate through music is universal. Perhaps there is a song, yet to be written, that will have the power to bridge the petty fractions that language has created (or the general misunderstanding of each others words)…a song that will make us realize that we have far more in common than we have have differences between us. I look forward to dancing to that music someday.

Melissa S.