The Piece of Music I Have Composed, Essay Example

The piece of music I have composed endeavors to symbolize the agrarian lifestyle. In particular, it is to feature the life of an everyday farmer and function as a certain homage to a lifestyle that is often overlooked in society, despite its importance to the latter. The piece thus intends to capture both the importance of the agricultural art, according to a type of proletarian art-form that is all too often forgotten in the technological culture of the contemporary era, while also underlying the importance of this very existence to the greater society as a whole. In addition, a crucial part of the piece is to capture the minute details of the farmer’s life. By this, the piece wishes to convey the arduous forms of labor performed by the agricultural worker, while also demonstrating the certain peace that comes with this work. Hence, there is a synthesis of nature of the worker to the land that opposes the alienation of labor that is common in the techno-culture of our times which the piece tries to bring to the surface.

The opening of the piece thus reflects the daily life cycle of the farmer, noting both his or her individual travails and the way in which this work is a contribution to both nature and society. The piece therefore starts with slower movements that aim to reflect the rising of the sun and the beginning of the work day. A tranquility is meant to show itself in the soft rhythms of major tones that do not challenge the listener, but rather invite him or her into the mise-en-scene the piece attempts to create.

The sparse melodies that reflect the slow ascent of the sun are thereafter complimented by an accompanying melody that represents the farmer also rising to being his day at work. The piece is trying to capture the silence of sleep that is then broken by the sunlight pouring upon the farmer’s face, as he or she begins a new day.

The more tranquil sounds evoked in the first part then transition to a more vigorous and rapid style, which intends to reflect the farmer’s beginning of the work day. Here, the piece wants to talk about the various tasks that the farmer must perform, with a specific emphasis on the physical nature of the farmer’s work. Hence, sounds are intended to reflect the movements of the physical body working on the land, in a total homage to the glory of proletarian life. Yet these sounds that are capturing the workings of physiognomic musculature are not meant to contrast violently with the sounds of nature, but rather occur in harmony with the latter. The piece therefore aims to invoke harmony, since the farmer’s work is not one that exploits nature, but rather employs her bounty to provide life and sustenance to the farmer’s family and his or her community.

These sounds then tail off into a repose, as the midday sun is represented in sounds that contrast with the farmer’s rest for lunch, and even a little snooze. Midday marks the period of rest for the farmer, where he can recuperate energy to continue his work for the rest of the day. Accordingly, the piece then returns back to the melodies portrayed in the part when the farmer works, so as to develop a continuity in the mind of the listener with the previous labor.

As the piece reflects the cycle of the worker’s day, it then moves towards the night. Here, the night is similar to the sunrise, but in more darker tones that symbolize the extinguishing of life. Melodies become slower, as fatigue sets in and the light of the life-giving sun sets. The worker prepares for a tranquil sleep, his or her body relaxed after a grueling day’s work.

By inviting the listener into the scene of agrarian life, sounds attempt to communicate the experiences of the latter. This experience is not portrayed as discordant, but according to harmony, since to work together with nature is the natural state of a man and, moreover, an ecological statement about the interrelations of the biosphere.