Smoking club

[Jedediah Knox]

Knox bristles as Christine speaks. “Ah of course intended to cause no offence, Miss Daye, although Ah expect we all attend this meeting with an expectation of havin’ our viewpoints challenged. Perhaps you forget yourself a little, however: you may recall that mah Sahre - Sir Caiaphas Redfern,” he adds for the benefit of those new to the domain, “someone we all respect and would do well to strahve to emulate, was quahte given to pinning butterflahs to boards. And none loved insects so much as he, but he knew that to understand something, you must very often do it harm. Close observation of exotic beasts captive in zoological gardens, the physician who carves up a cadaver the better to aid the living, the punishing routines of military training. Ah imagine you yourself have produced some unwholesome notes from your normally angelic instruments from tahme to tahme as you strove to discover the limits of their capabilities by pushing them beyond.

At the risk of causin’ further distress, Ah feel Ah should mention also that devahces exist to exhibit a series of photographs in such quick succession as to fool the aah into seeing motion - so, whahle perhaps a picture in a book does not adequately substitute for the flow of music through tahme in this thought exercise, a dance can also be seen precisely identically again and again.

Indeed, this is one of the major reasons for establishing these meetings! Tahmes and our situations are changing, and it is useful to examine which of our old assumptions remain relevant and which need to adapt.

Now, to consider the concept of a scientific aspect of music, perhaps Miss Daye would be best positioned to answer this. In composition of new music, are there certain chords or progressions or techniques that tend to invoke particular emotions in the listener? Ah know little of music mahself, to mah shame, but the distinction between major and mahnor notes is often spoken of.”

[Jean-Jacques]

Jean-Jacques turns between Christine and Jedediah

“Jedediah, you are correct indeed that one of the tenets of our meeting here, under the gracious host Annabelle, is that of listening to each other without prejudice or indeed judgement.”

“Indeed the fact that we can meet and share in such an environment ought offer freedoms of thought amongst those that wish only to hear and oft be heard with opinions without recourse.”

[Christine Daye]

"Mr Knox, let me hasten to assure you that I meant no disrespect to your sire, may he rest in peace," unconsciously her hand sketches the sign of the cross "...no, none at all! He was a good man, and spoke always with the most kindness and courtesy, and we are all the poorer for his loss."

She looks sad for a moment, but rallies.

"But to answer your question, and at risk of diving down a rabbit hole of music theory - for let me assure you that your question has had libraries of books written on the subject! Yes, it is well known that some chords, some intervals, some combinations of notes will arouse different emotions in the listener. Major and minor are well known - they are related. The major is bright, lively, active, while the minor is softer, more melancholy, reflective. I can get into the differences between the modes, even the difference between the melodic and harmonic minors, but such things are best demonstrated, and alas, I do not have my harp with me.

"The same for cadences - for they are chords. I am sure that you are all aware of the feeling of resolution that one gets at the end of a musical piece, that anticipation in the final chords that is finally released with a flourish and a sense of completion. That is a perfect cadence - dominant, back home to the tonic.

"For those with a religious upbringing, the plagal cadence is very familiar - it is the notes of the sub-dominant going to the tonic - the Amen at the end of each hymn.

"The chord sequence for Pachabel's canon in D major is D A Bm F#m G D G A" she hums the notes "...or, if one prefers tonic – dominant – submediant – mediant – subdominant – tonic – subdominant – dominant. The ending on the dominant ideally positions one to return to the start of the sequence, back to the resolution of the tonic."

She stops for a moment, perhaps recognising that she's probably getting a bit technical.

"...um... and that is not even taking into account the different keys, which many authorities feel have their own tonal and emotional colour... though there is much argument... um... for example the distinction between A major, called joyful and pastoral, and A minor, described as tender and plaintive... um... yes... this topic has been much studied and much written about for many, many years."

[Jedediah Knox]

Jedediah seems to follow half-to-three-quarters of the simplified explanation.

“So it seems to me then that a composer can set out with a clear goal of evoking some specific emotion in the listener, and base his - or, uhh, her! - approach strongly on trahed and tested techniques. This then gets to the matter of how we defahne art and scahence - perhaps a useful starting point is that science is the triahl and testing of techniques and setting out to achieve a specific result, whereas art is prahmarily intooitive and its main intent is the expression of something for the artist.

If that be the case, and Ah fully admit Ah may be well off the mark on that, it would follow that music is a combination of both, and can be approached with a greater bahas in either direction depending on the individual.”