From Lullaby to Elegy
Our first encounter with music is the lullaby sung by a
parent, a grandparent, an elder sibling or a nanny. Lullabies across the world
and across the ages, regardless of the words, use the same singing tone, accompanied
by a rocking motion, in time with the rhythm of the heartbeat and breathing.
Perhaps the comforting effect of music throughout life is a memory of that
first lullaby. Brahms composed a lullaby
that quickly became popular with mothers putting their babies to sleep. Lullabies
follow a 6/8 time which many musicians used
like Woodie
Guthrie’s ”Hobo’s Lullaby” and Bob Marley’s “No Woman No Cry”, Queen’s “We are
the Champions”, Beatles’ “Norwegian
Woods” and Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sound of Silence”.
While lullabies have a soothing melody, very often the lyrics are
quite dark and even frightening. They become an outlet for the mother to voice
her own fears and concerns. In Iraqi
musical tradition, lullabies are commonly composed, in “wazn al na‘i,” or
“meter of lamentation”. We come across this contrast between soothing melody
and sad or angry lyrics in Ballads, Blues songs, and Rap music.
People who enjoy music see it as an
emotional experience, that may send chills down their spine , move them to
tears, awaken feelings they never acknowledged, energize or soothe. Work songs, war songs and national
anthems inspire strength and unity, music concerts or songs shared at social
gatherings bind communities together.
The universal love of music is an
enigma. Scientists and psychologists have shown how all parts of the brain are
engaged variously when listening to music, how it lowers the heart rate or
improves efficiency. Yet none of it explains the passion and commitment to
music and the extensive industry that has developed around it. Music
establishes strong memories that never fade even in patients with Alzheimer.
As
one of the performing arts, in music performances, the listener and the
performer are intrinsically linked. Michael Jackson said “People ask me
how I make music. I tell them I just step into it. It’s like stepping into a
river and joining the flow. Every moment in the river has its song.” Beethoven recognized this spiritual nature of
music and saw it as a “mediator between the spiritual and sensual life”.
Most religions express devotion through chants or use cadenced
intonation. The Sufi Sama is described by Abu Hafs ‘Umar Suhrawardi as the realisation of wajd (ecstasy) without
shattering the inward silence, self-control and contemplative sobriety. Sama
demands proper time, place and brethren (zaman, makan and akhwan).
Music has a transformative power, whether it is a simple child’s
rhyme or the magnum opus of a composer.
Shakespeare speaks of “savage eyes turned to a modest gaze,/ By the
sweet power of music”. During Covid lockdowns, comfort was spread by opera
singers serenading the neighbourhood from their balconies, and popstars sharing
songs online.
For young people the world over, music helps them to understand
their feelings and feel connected to others. A young blogger writes, music
“makes me feel whole. It has been what has built me up in most tired moments,
given me strength when I could not stand, and taught me to pause and enjoy what
is around me.”
The music scores of films such as Doctor Zhivago, The Good, the
Bad and the Ugly, Titanic, The Godfather, Jaws and Star Wars have become
iconic, and horror movies would lose their suspense without the accompanying
music. The songs of Mughal e Azam, Umrao Jan Ada and now the haunting melodies of
Ertugrul Ghazi are unforgettable.
Film songs, qawwali and contemporary renderings of folk songs and
Sufi music permeate South Asian society. Dr Rauf Parekh reminds us of the South
Asian tradition of songs composed for every stage of life: songs to put a child
to sleep, to wake to, songs for every event of a wedding , pregnancy, the
changing seasons, work songs and finally mourning songs for the dead.
Durriya Kazi
23 May, 2021
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