Cross-modal experience in music and visual art: their correspondences and a new perspective of appreciation in education
Kalaly Chu BA (Music with Hons) MA (Music Education) School of English, Media and Performing Arts
Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
The University of New South Wales 2008 Original Statement
I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and to the best of my knowledge it contains no materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma at UNSW or any other educational institution, except where due acknowledgement is made in the thesis. Any contribution made to the research by others, with whom I have worked in UNSW or elsewhere, is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis. I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own word, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project’s design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged.
Signed: Kalaly Chu Date: 29-1-2008 Copyright Statement
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I have either used no substantial portions of copyright material in my thesis or I have obtained permission to use copyright material, where permission has not been granted. I have applied/will apply for a partial restriction of the digital copy of my dissertation due to where permission has not been granted. Acknowledgement
I would like to specially thank Professor Robert Walker for his supervision and his belief that I will accomplish this research. His vision has made this dissertation into a finished product. I would also like to express my thankfulness to the University of New South Wales, the Graduate Research School, and the Faculty, which generously supported and funded me to attend overseas conferences in Istanbul, Bali, Malaysia and Thailand. Further, the University Student Union, which assisted, supported and funded me for the organization of several exhibitions for the University and the University’s Artsweek since 2005.
My thanks also go to Art Gallery of New South Wales which offered me an invaluable experience and opportunity to learn and work for them as a student ambassador for the past three years. All these experiences have nurtured my knowledge of understanding and presenting the arts.
I would also like to extend my gratitude to all the participants of the test: “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting” in this research. Without the helpfulness of Coast Senior Centre and their administration committee, Sylvania Anglican Church and Young Artist Workshop, this test would not exist in this dissertation. Thanks for all those directly and indirectly inspired and supported me for the making of this dissertation.
My thanks also go to my mother, who introduced music and visual art in my life. Julia Kable, an experienced teacher, who provided invaluable suggestions for my linguistic skills and the encouragement that she has given to me for the past years.
Lastly, my thanks go to my church, and the church members who kindly supported and prayed for me during my apprenticeship. They are the bonus of my research journey.
This research is the accumulation and the synthesis of my cross-modal experience in the arts. I dedicate this dissertation to the heavenly Father. By grace, I finish this research Abstract
The originality and significance of this research is to use a‘cross-modal’ perspective to experience the ‘multi-dimensional’ nature of the arts, specifically in the area of music and the visual arts. This research will focus on investigating common cross- disciplinary attributes and apply them in the realm of ‘appreciation’ in aesthetic education in music and visual art.
The three major research problems and issues in this dissertation are as follows: (1) What are the common elements in music and the visual arts? (2) Do people make correspondences between music and painting by using the work of painters and musicians? (3) How do we define the role of music and its adaptability in linking with other expressive forms in contemporary education? Ultimately, the entire dissertation serves to redefine the ‘value’ and uniqueness of the arts (music and visual art) in the holistic development of an individual, in particularly in moulding and enhancing the skills of personal and cultural expression.
The aims in this research are taken from various angles which correspond with the questions about “interdisciplinary study” and the ideas of “changing teaching and learning” in the 21st century. Interdisciplinary Studies has been a term which has provoked a great deal of controversy in current educational development, particularly in Asian countries, and especially in music education.
The originality of this research lies in three areas. First, a cross-modal perspective is used to explore the common elements in music and visual art, especially in the dimensions of ‘brightness’, ‘intensity’ and ‘line’. Second, a cross-modal perspective in music will be adopted. Instead of focusing on the melody, harmony and form of music repertoire, sensory qualities, such as ‘brightness’, ‘intensity’ and ‘line’ will be used as musical vocabulary to interpret cross-modal perception in experiencing the arts. Third, this dissertation will investigate the art experience, especially the thinking and cognitive appraisal in viewing the arts, of the creators and the spectators. Content of the dissertation
Prologue The originality and significance of the research
Chapter 1 The educational implication of cross-modal experience and its role in art experience 1.1. Cross-modal experience as a means of knowledge acquisition 1.2. The limitations of sensory abilities and their influences in our perceptual and learning experiences 1.3. The multi-modal dimensions of sounds: viewing from a cross-modal perspective 1.4. The cross-modal experience in the arts: the emergence of the image
Chapter 2 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of observation in the palette of the Impressionists 2.1. The facets of observation: a process of selective thinking 2.2. Cultivating the skills of observation: capturing the light in the palette of the Impressionists 2.3. (a) The brightness in Debussy’s music and Whistler’s painting – a multi-modal dimension in ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’ the arts 2.3. (b) The different facets of intensity in Debussy’s music: his treatment of performance directions and dynamics 2.4. The other facets of cultivating the skills of observation in the arts --- from a historical perspective
Chapter 3 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of expression in the palette of the Expressionists 3.1. The palette of inner emotion: Schoenberg’s music and Kandinsky’s painting 3.2. The colours in music and painting: the colour concept of Schoenberg and Kandinsky 3.3. The intensity in music and painting: Schoenberg’s Der kranke Mond and Munch’s painting 3.4. A comparison of the palette of Impressionists and the Expressionists: Portrait of the moon.
Chapter 4 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of imagination and metaphor in the Japanese animation 4.1. The role of imagination and metaphor in art experience 4.2. The synchronization of sound and colour: the facets of metaphor in Japanese TV animation opening and ending songs: 4.3. Analysis of the Japanese animation opening and ending theme songs 4.4. The educational implications of media: the synchronization of music, visual images and words
Chapter 5 The cross-modal experience in music and painting A test concerning the perception of ‘Brightness and Darkness in Music and painting’ 5. 1. The purpose of the test 5.2. The procedure and design of the test 5.2.1. Part 1 of the test: Semantic Differential Questionnaire 5.2.2. Part 2 of the test: Rating the Brightness and Darkness of music excerpts and paintings 5.2.3. Part 3 of the test: Matching music excerpts with painting examples 5.3. The background of the subject 5.4. Results 5.4.1. The results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire 5.4.2. Results of Brightness and Darkness in music excerpts 5.4.3. Results of Brightness and Darkness in the painting 5.4.4. The correspondence in the matching of music excerpts and paintings 5.4.5. The subjects’ preference in each music excerpts (Table version) 5.4.6. Music and painting analysis 5.5. The educational Implication of the test, “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting”: the value of expression in art experience Chapter 6 Music linked to other expressive forms: redefining the essence of contemporary aesthetic education 6.1. Music as an educative force 6.2. Chinese and Western perspectives on the educational function of music 6. 3. The role of listening and seeing in Arts Education 6.3.1 Listening 6.3.2. Seeing 6.4. The function and value in art experience 6.5. Cross-modal experience in learning and teaching
Coda: Conclusion and recommendations Redefine the values of appreciation in aesthetic education and in our life 6.2.1. The facets of appreciation: the sensory side, the cognitive side and the emotional side 6.2.2. The cultivation of appreciation in aesthetic education 6.2.3. The essence of interdisciplinary learning in aesthetic education Prologue
1. The originality and significance of the research
The originality and significance of this research is to use a‘cross-modal’ perspective to experience the ‘multi-dimensional’ nature of the arts, especially in the area of music and the visual arts. Although the relationship between music and the visual arts has been an object of study for a long time, however, this research will focus on investigating the common attributes in these cross-discipline areas and apply them in the realm of ‘appreciation’ in aesthetic education.
Owing to the changing epistemological nature of human knowledge in the 21st century, the article, A Pedagogy of Multiliteracies: Designing Social Futures (The New London Group, 1996) brings our attention to the importance of developing innovative teaching pedagogy. The article mentions that “all meaning-making is multimodal (Ibid, p.81)”. The modes of representation transcend beyond language alone, thus including visual (images) meanings and audio (music, sound effects) meanings. Therefore, the crucial and current problem concerning acquiring knowledge is suggested as follows:
Teachers and students need a language to describe the forms of meaning that are represented in Available Designs and the Redesigned. In other words, they need a metalanguage --- a language for talking about language, images, texts, and meaning-making interactions (Ibid, p.77).
This research functions to explore a new dimension and vocabulary in viewing and expressing the arts. The arts are perceived from an interdisciplinary approach, from the dimensions of music, visual art and psychology.
The originality of this research lies in three areas. First, a cross-modal perspective is used to explore the common elements in music and the visual arts, especially in the dimensions of ‘brightness’ and ‘intensity’. An empirical test is conducted to investigate the common elements (such as brightness, intensity and line) in music and painting. Also, the facets of brightness and intensity are illustrated and analysed with music and painting examples, especially by viewing the artworks and compositions of the Impressionists, Expressionists and Japanese animation.
Second, a cross-modal perspective in music analysis will be adopted. Instead of focusing on the melody, harmony and form of music repertoire, sensory qualities, such as ‘brightness’, ‘intensity’ and ‘line’ will be used as musical vocabulary to interpret perception. ‘Brightness’ and ‘darkness’ are obvious in the perception of music and in the visual arts. However, brightness and darkness have not been discussed in great detail in music, and little research has been done with musical samples matching brightness and darkness in the visual arts. Third, this dissertation will investigate the facets of observation and expression in art perception by studying the art making of various composers, painters and the perceptual experiences of the beholders.
Regarding the design of the dissertation, there are six chapters (excluding the prologue section) in this research. The structure of the dissertation is divided into three components: exposition (Chapter 1), development (Chapters 2-5) and recapitulation (Chapter 6). Metaphorically, the function of each main component resembles the format of “sonata form”.
As in the structure of sonata form, the exposition functions as an announcement of the main theme (subject) of the composition. Therefore, in the prologue section and in chapter one, the purpose and originality of the research, the facets of cross-modal experience (a universal human perceptual experience) will be discussed from the perspective of knowledge acquisition in daily life and in the arts. The concept of a ‘multi-modal dimension’ of experiencing the arts is interrogated in these two chapters.
In the development section (chapter two to five), the material in the exposition section (the prologue and chapter one) will be examined in various dimensions with music and painting examples as explanation and analysis. In chapter two, the cross-modal feature of ‘observation’ is examined through the palette of the Impressionists painters and composer, Debussy. In chapter three, the cross-modal facets of ‘expression’ in art making is discussed through the works of the Expressionists, particularly the compositions of Schoenberg and the paintings of Kandinsky and Munch. In chapter four, the cross-modal characteristics of ‘imagination’ and ‘metaphor’ are explored through the discussion of Japanese animation, with a focus at the synchronization of sound and image.
In chapter five, the results of an empirical test, “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting” are used to address the research problem: Do people make correspondences between music and painting by using the work of painters and musicians? Further, the internalized images of music and painting will be discussed through analysis the subjects’ perceptual experiences.
Chapter six, the final chapter will serve as the ‘recapitulation’ of the entire dissertation. The focus of this chapter is to redefine the role of ‘music’ in the realm of aesthetic education and the ‘value’ of music education as a means of cultivating the senses and the holistic development of an individual. In this recapitulation section, the main themes in this research will be defined and the research problems will be addressed.
Eventually, similar to sonata form, a coda will be provided in this dissertation which serves to round up the ‘purpose and argument’ of the entire work. The conclusion of this dissertation is a response to Eaton’s (1989, p.178) statement that “art involves seeing the world on a large scale: Aesthetic cannot be understood in isolation from other human concerns and experiences”. Therefore, this dissertation interprets and discusses the facets of ‘cross-modal experience’ we encounter in the arts, especially in the area of music and the visual arts. Indeed, this research is a manifestation to the reader that the arts can be touched and felt (from a cross-modal perspective) for they speak to our sensations in a very distinctive yet unique way
Chapter 1 The educational implication of cross-modal experience and its role in art experience
1.1. Cross-modal experience as a means of knowledge acquisition
According to Aristotle (Marks, 1978), senses do correspond and share information with each other in perceptual experiences. The term ‘common sensible’, which Aristotle adopted, referred to certain attributes of objects or events which are compulsory to the experience of most (or all) of the senses. It is a human tendency to share information among sensory modalities in obtaining knowledge from the world. The resemblance of an object or an idea can assist the perception of another object or idea.
From an educational perspective, Comenius (1967) asserts that sensory interaction plays a significant role in knowledge acquisition. Comenius (Graves, 1971) insists that knowledge of the world relates and depends on the cultivation of the senses. Comenius (1967, p.23) states that “nothing entered the intellect except through the senses, and that all learning depended on a prior basis in adequate perceptual experiences”.
Further, Comenius (1967, p.18) concluded his concept of “education as organic continuity” or the cultivation of human perception skills, in one of his most important educational treatise, The Didactica Magna (Great Didactic), as follows:
From birth to maturity, consequently, man should follow the laws of inner development, through a sequence marked by increasing acuity of perception, as well as by improvements in physical and motor skills and in linguistic competence. All human growth followed stages --- infant, child, youth, adult --- indicated by corresponding patterns of behaviour. (p.18)
Regarding the role of senses in education, Comenius believes the cultivation of the senses from infancy to adulthood plays a major role in the process of “totality of experience”. The cultivation of the senses can be reflected from Comenius’s (Graves, 1971) idea of education as follows:
Even in the mother school, it is expected that the infant shall be taught geography, history, and various sciences; grammer, rhetoric, and dialectic; music, arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy; and the rudiments of economics, politics, ethics, metaphysics, and religion; as well as encouraged in sports and the construction of buildings. The attainment at this stage is, of course, not expected to be as formidable as the names of the subjects sound. It is to consist merely understanding simple causal, temporal, spatial, and numerical relations; in distinguishing sun, moon, and stars, hills, valleys, lakes, and rivers, and animals and plants; in learning to express oneself, and in acquiring proper habits. (p.41- 42)
Besides, Comenius (Graves, 1971) states the effectiveness of teaching and learning are also based on the proper ordering of knowledge, such as the allocation and usage of teaching materials. Also, to ensure a stable two-way communication between teacher and student is another important factor for successful learning. Comenius insists that the teaching materials and information should be something which the students can be related with their daily live and experiences.
The idea of sensory realism is fully reflected in Orbis Sensualium Pictus (The World of Sense Objects Pictured) when Comenius uses pictures (visual images) as a ‘representation’ for explaining vocabulary and grammatical concepts. Pictures of daily objects are paired with new vocabulary to deepen the understanding of a particular word. For example, the word ‘window’ is paired with a picture of window. Orbis Sensualium Pictus’s significance lies in its attempt to make the teaching materials (especially visual aids) realistic enough for a student to associate with his sensory experiences. The success of the text owed much to Comenius’s (Graves, 1971) mastery of using visual images to formulate visual thinking in explaining abstract ideas and concepts. This also reflects Comenius’s cross-disciplinary approaches (visual arts and linguistics) in his teaching materials. Comenius’s idea of Pansophism (the unity of all knowledge) can be traced back to the period of Plato. In Laws (Lippman, 1999), Plato insists that music is inseparable from mathematics and other subjects such as astronomy and geometry. A typical example is when he concluded “a vibrating string is an audible unity of number and length, of arithmetic and geometry.” (p.85) Plato’s concept that all sorts of disciplines can be inter-related to each other is reflected in his sayings as follows:
He who has not contemplated the mind of nature which is said to exist in the stars, and gone through the previous training, and seen the connection of music with these things, and harmonized them all with laws and institutions, is not able to give a reason of such things as have a reason. Indeed it may very well be music that is responsible both for the unity of mathematics and for its ethical value.
Plato’s idea that ‘concept’ is formed from sensory interactions before they are converted into knowledge is further highlighted by Locke (Graves, 1971) in his An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Locke states that knowledge is acquired and moulded through sensory interactions with the existing world. Locke (ibid, p.59) interprets that “knowledge is real only so far as there is a conformity between our ideas and the realities of things”.
A typical example of using senses (cross-modal experience) in teaching is illustrated by Anne Sullivan, the teacher of Hellen Keller. With unlimited persistence, Sullivan illustrates her ‘touch teaching’ by spelling out the words (using sign language for the deaf) into Hellen’s palm and attended lesson with her. By feeling the shapes of the words in her palm, Hellen manages the linguistic skills. Sullivan’s teaching module emphasises personal sensory interaction, especially in a cross-modal dimension, with the supplement of teaching materials. Anne Sullivan and Hellen Keller’s sensory adventure had continued for 50 years until Sullivan’s death in 1936.
Sensation and perception play important roles in detecting information around the world. For instance, Pomerleau-Malcuit & Clifton (1973) state that during feeding, the baby is exposed to stimulation in all sensory modalities, such as oral, tactile, auditory and visual. Even young infants are already capable and exposed to various kinds of sensory interactions. According to Walker-Andrews (1986), Oster & Ewy’s study stated that a four and a half month old infant can distinguish photographs showing sad faces from open-mouth smiles. Further, Walker-Andrew (ibid) concludes Oster & Caron’s study that infants at around 4-7 months old often use the mouth area, to discriminate facial expressions. Furthermore, Walker-Andrews (ibid) quotes Bradshaw&Wallace’s, Ellis’s studies that adults may use the eye area more to identify faces and expressions (at least in photographs). In other words, “sense” plays an important role in the observation of ‘object relation’ and ‘emotion’ in perceptual experiences.
Furthermore, even though at a young age, infants reveal their sensitivities and discriminative powers in their sensory experiences. Lewkowiez &Turkewitz (1981) summarized the reports from various studies and concluded that the factors influencing visual preferences in early infancy include brightness, contour, size and auditory stimulation. Infants tend to look significantly longer at bright stimuli.
Regarding cross-modal experiences, evidence revealed visual-auditory correspondence in infants as they increased attention to moving objects that made sounds compared to silent ones. Hollenbeck & Slaby’s study (1979) state that infants tended to spend a longer time watching television when both sound and picture (audio and visual) are provided than when only picture or sound is presented. Walker- Andrews (1986) also concludes that seven month-old infants increased their response (such as fixation) to a facial expression when it was sound-specified. Further, Pomerleau-Malcuit & Clifton (1973) notice that older infants’ heart rate decelerated when they encountered both auditory and visual stimulation.
1.2. The limitations of sensory abilities and their influences on our perceptual and learning experiences
The limitation of our senses may affect our perceptual experiences and knowledge acquisition. According to Gratch’s (1972) research results, the tactual-visual transfer of 6 months old infants may not yet fully developed. Most of the 6-months old infants they tested, failed to recognise that they were holding a toy when an opaque cloth covered the hand that was holding the toy. However, if a transparent cloth was provided, the infant could unfold the cloth and grasp the toy, which was still in his hand. This incident indicates the different levels of cross-modal experiences. Some of them take time to cultivate and learn.
Koenigsberg (1973) states researchers found that 4-5 years old children have great difficulty in discriminating orientation, especially the discrimination between left- right reversals, such as “b” and “d”. This may be due to the immature development of the visual and sensorimotor cooperation. Further, Koenigsberg (1973) concludes as follows:
At the earliest stage, children discriminate form but not orientation. Thus, b, d, p and q are confused with one another but not with other letters. At the next stage, they are able to attend to one dimension of difference, the direction of the stem, and b and d are no longer confused with p and q. Finally, they attend to both dimensions of difference, the position of the stem and the position of the circle relative to the stem, and can discriminate b from d and p from q (p.765).
Aurally, Walker (1990) states that the limitation of human adult hearing is around 12,000 Hz for adults and 20,000 Hz for young children. He also mentioned that from the age of 20 onwards, the upper range of sound frequencies started to decline according to the normal aging process and exposure to different sorts of noise in the environmental surroundings.
Visually, Rudel and Teuber’s (Marks, 1978) Muller-Lyer illusion shows us that we can’t always depend purely on our eye-sight to distinguish between the visual lengths. Optical illusions may deceive us in a sense that we doubt our judgement even after using our fingers or rulers to measure the length of the two horizontal lines (Figure 1.1). Figure 1.1 Muller-Lyer illusionY However, prior tactile experience can influence later visual experience. For instance, Gregory &Wallace (Marks, ibid) used a blind man who lost his sight at 9 month’s old, and later regained his sight to demonstrate that early touch experiences could transfer to vision even many years later. The man could recognize objects which he had prior tactile experience.
Cultural difference also contributes to the interpretation of sensory information. Take the drawing of the “devil’s tuning fork” (Coren, Ward, Enns, 2004) as an example. This study demonstrated that except African people, most people after looking at the diagram for 30 seconds, they perceived the diagram as three-dimension instead of two-dimension. This is due to African people’s sensation and perception not being trained to see pattern as three-dimensional figures but only pattern as flat lines.
A further example included the extensive usage of two dimensional painting techniques of Japanese painters. Their perceptual concept differs from that of the western artists. For instance, the concept of traditional Japanese Screen Painting stresses the horizontal surface instead of depth in three dimensional perspectives (National Gallery of Australia, 2001).
Though cultural practice may influence our perceptual habits, however, Deregowski’s (Coren, Ward, Enns, 2004) study proved that ‘learning’ can shape our perceptual habits even though we are under certain cultural influence. Deregowski’s study is based in Malawa, a country in southwestern Africa, as follows:
Take a picture in black and white, and the natives cannot see it. You may tell the natives: “This is a picture of an ox and a dog”, and the people will look at you and look at you, and that look says that they consider you a liar. Perhaps you say again, “Yes, this is a picture of an ox and a dog. Look at the horn of the ox, and there is his tail!” And the boy will say, “Oh, yes and there is the dog’s nose and eyes and ears!” Then the old people will look again and clap their hands and say, “Oh yes, it is a dog.” (p. 498)
The study above demonstrates that some people in isolated regions may not have any concept of photos in black and white; therefore, explanations or clues should be given to the subjects for them to grasp the content of the picture (even those objects exist in their daily life). They do not see black and white in daily life.
No matter from a physiological, psychological or cultural point of view, the limitation of human sensation will influence our perception experiences. Some of these sensory limitations can be altered through learning and adjusting. However, some of them are unchangeable regardless of how much effort we invest on it. For example, human being can recall possibly no more than a 7 digit number in their short term memory. From these different examples, we are assured that sensory interaction plays a significant role in the acquisition of knowledge in our daily life.
1.3. The multi-modal dimensions of sounds
One of the purposes of this research is to identify the common elements in music and the visual arts through the perspective of cross-modal experience. Cross-modal experience is inseparable from our daily life. For instance, a lemon is associated with sourness or the colour ‘yellow’, and ice-cream is linked with coldness or sweetness. Everyday, we are encountering different dimensions of cross-modal experiences, such as visual-auditory correspondence.
In brief, cross-modal experience is the transferability of sensory information from one sensory modality to another. When we view the following photo, it corresponds with Hornbostel’s (Marks, 1978, p.11) claim that: “movement can be perceived by sight, by sound, or by touch”. Reading is another cross-modal experience. Rudnick & Street (1967) quoted Geschwind’s saying (1964) as follows:
Reading is learned nearly always after speaking. While one learns in speaking to name objects with which one has had both tactile and visual experience, learning to read is almost exclusively dependent on pure visual-auditory connections (p.586).
Cross-modal experience lies in the fact that senses correspond with each other in perception experiences. According to Cytowic, 1999, p.86), Aristotle asserted: “our senses give us a world of objects of various sizes and shapes, in motion or at rest, and related to one another in space in a variety of ways. Our experience of these objects includes many more qualities … their colours, the sounds they make, their roughness or smoothness, and so forth.” Can you imagine a world without hearing any noises, without seeing anything when you’re walking in the street? Even for the congenitally blind, they use their auditory and tactile sensation to feel, to sense and obtain knowledge in this world.
By nature, human beings have a tendency to share information across different modalities. Zwimpfer (1988, p. 427) states “the senses of sight and hearing seem to be especially closely related.” For instance, the relationship between sound and colour is a typical example. Zwimpfer (1988) uses two patterns to illustrate the cross-modal transfer between colour and sound. The pattern which composed by using red, yellow, blue and green in small sub-divided squares is perceived as brighter, louder than the black, white, brown and grey squares. The right hand one is perceived as still and quiet. Terms such as dark and bright are frequently applied to musical sounds, especially to timbre.
Historically, the relationship between sound and colour has been observed from the time of ancient Greece. Aristotle mentioned that colours are similar to sounds in his De Sensu. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, inspiring by Newton’s colour experiments, spectrum colours were linked with the notes of the diatonic scale. According to Gravies (1952), the invention of the colour organ by Louis Bertrand Castel (a Jesuit monk, physicist and mathematician) in 1755 marked the first attempt to unite sound and colour in musical performance. Castel pairs each musical note with a colour as follows: C (blue), C# (pale green), D (green), D# or Eb (Olive green), E (yellow) and F (golden yellow). Although Newton tried to use a scientific method to study colour and light, however, his conclusion about certain colours evoking certain pitches aroused opponents and disapproval. And the colour organ, which once enjoyed certain popularity in Europe, started to decline towards the end of the 19th century.
According to Marks (1978), towards the end of the 19th century, colour-hearing became a popular topic. The nature and content of colour-hearing shifted from medical, physiological dimension to psychological dimension. During the late 19th to early 20th centuries, painters and composers started to investigate the psychological relationship between the eye (visual) and the ear (auditory). A notable example is Kandinsky’s and Schoenberg’s cross-modal perception of sound and colour. According to Boehmer (1997), both of them believed in the psychic effects and the symbolic meaning of colors in music and the visual arts.
Kandinsky (1982) insists that each pitch has its own colour and each dot has its own individual sound. On the other hand, Schoenberg (Boretz&Cone, 1972) uses colour as a dominant musical entities instead of pitch in his Five Pieces of Orchestral Op.16 No.3, which he entitled as Faben (Colour music). In Five Pieces of Orchestral Op.16 No.3, the colour lies in the timbre (tone colour) of the music. According to Kennedy (1990), timbre refers to tone colour, which distinguishes the quality of a tone or voice. Also, different instrumental timbres suggest different intensity of brightness and colour (further details are explained in Chapter 3).
Take Walker’s (1978) Sound Projects as an example. The timbre (high/low pitch) and the dynamic (soft/loud) of different instruments and their way of playing (in slow or fast manner) are used as a metaphor to describe the natural world, such as the waterfall. In the chapter concerning the “sound picture of a waterfall”, Walker used low pitch instruments, such as bass/big drum, to depict deep rumbling of the sea or in shallow water; and bass xylophones and low notes on the piano to illustrate the bubbling sound of water. For the image of water spitting (brighter when compared with deep rumbling of the sea), glockenspiels, xylophones, small cymbals (play high notes in rapid movement) with metal beaters are being used. Finally, the sound of the waterfall is kept constant by controlling the intensity of loudness, with no crescendo or diminuendo. Irregular music intervals are permitted (in an improvised manner) to represent the swimming of fish or other nature events.
Regarding the relationship between brightness and sound, Hornbostel (Marks, 1978) insists that bright sounds evoke bright photism. Marks’ (82, 87) states people have a tendency to match brightness of lights to loudness of sounds and vice versa. The relationship between brightness and loudness is also illustrated in the subjects’ image of day and night, and a sneeze (bright) and a cough (dull). On the other hand, Marks proves that a mismatch of loudness and brightness through training and learning is possible. However, the subjects need more time to adjust their responses.
Further, the relationship between brightness and loudness occurs in linguistics. Marks’ (1975) testified “the brightness of the induced visual ‘sensation’ is a direct function of the pitch of the vowel. Vowel brightness correlates with the distinctive features of acuteness. Acute (high-pitched) vowels evoke bright colours while grave (low-pitched) vowels yield dark colours. Further, Marks’ (78, 87) empirical observations define the visual-auditory phenomenon as follows:
A. Pitch and brightness 1. the higher the pitch, then, the brighter the evoked image 2. the lower the pitch, then, the dimmer and softer the evoked image. B. Loudness and brightness 1. Increase loudness, then the brightness of the evoked image increases. 2. Decrease loudness, then the dimmer and softer the evoked image. C. Pitch and size 1. The higher the pitch, then, the smaller the size of the evoked object. 2. The lower the pitch, then, the bigger the size of the evoked object.
Sounds evoke not only visual aspects (such as colour) but also other sensory modalities, such as tactile correspondences. Take the example of the sound of “cutting vegetables on the chopping board”, the sound of “frying food” or the sound of “opening a door”. The quality of touch (sharp, crispy, dull) is transferred to us through cross-modal experiences.
According to Merriam (1964), Edmonds and Smith link musical intervals (from perfect octave to perfect second) with various tactile sensations. In addition, these sensations of touch can be paired with their corresponding visual objects such as:
Taking the intervals in the same order, smooth, like polished glass; harsh, like fine sandpaper; no term for the sixth; coarse, like tweed suiting; harsh, like crushed paper or crash; no term for the third; gritty, pebbly, like pebbles in the fingers. Finally, the interval of the fifth was most frequently described as hollow. We believe that this term had reference to the sound of the experience (p.95-96).
The idea of auditory-tactile transfer of sound corresponds with Aristotle’s (Marks, 1978, p.12) perception of sensory experiences. He proclaimed that “the perception of magnitude, figure, roughness, smoothness, and sharpness and bluntness, is the common function of all senses, and if not all, then at least the common function of sight and touch.”
Also, sound (such as musical intervals) extends to the sensory dimension of taste. As Merriam (1964) states:
The octave smooth; the seventh astringent, sharp-rough, hollow-astringent; the sixth luscious, juicy-mellow, succulent; the fifth dilute, hollow, harsh; the fourth rich, harsh, coarse; the third mellow, sweet (no taste); the second gritty, grating (p.95-96).
In De Sensu (Ross, p.53), Aristotle pointed out that “taste is a species of touch”, which is a typical cross-sensory experience in daily life. Simply and naturally, Coren, Ward, Enns (2004, p.v) cite George Berkeley stating that if you “take away the sensations of softness, moisture, redness, tartness, and you take away the cherry”. George Berkeley’s statement reflects Aristotle’s argument that touch, taste and visual modalities correspond with one another.
An association of sounds with various flavours of food are described by Merriam (1968) as follows (Figure 1.2):
Taking the intervals in order from octave to second they would be smooth, like smooth ice-cream or smooth molasses; astringent, like the feel of a green persimmon; luscious, like a juicy succulent fruit; dilute, like a clear soup; rich, like whipped cream or like ripe cantaloupe; mellow, like a ripe but not juicy fruit; gritty, like corn flakes or other coarse substance in the mouth (p.95-96). Figure 1.2 The association of sounds and the flavours of foods.
(Perfect Octave) (Perfect Seventh) (Perfect Sixth) (Perfect Fifth)
(Perfect Fourth) (Perfect Third) (Perfect Second)
On the other hand, sounds not only emerge in our sensory perception, but also reach our emotional level. F.Hand (Hanslick, 1974, p.30) states: “Music represents emotions. Each feeling and each state of mind has its own inherent sound and rhythm, and these have their objective counterpart in music.” The psychological implications of different musical pitches are stated by Christian Schubarts (Steblin, 1983). These emotional descriptions is further divided into positive and negative dimension (Figure 1.3), suggested by the author as follows: Figure 1.3 The positive and negative e motions that music keys may suggest or create to the listeners.
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‘Sound’ has the power to ‘suggest’ concrete and abstract objects and feelings. If we can fully explore the ‘facets’ of sounds and make these characteristics explicit enough for the spectator to grasp and feel them, it could make a difference in the realm of understanding and appreciating music.
1.4. The cross-modal experience in the arts: the emergence of the image
So, what is the role of cross-modal transfer in experiencing the arts? The interaction with the arts and music often project a melange of sensations to the audience and unfolds new perspectives to them in perceiving the world. The cross-modal experiences between art and music are obviously interpreted by Schumann (Roberts, 1996, p.3) as “the composer converts the painting into sound. The aesthetic process of the one art form is the same as that of the other; only the raw materials differ.” Take conducting as an example. The moment when the conductor uses his/her body language (instead of verbal language) to communicate with the orchestral players is already a form of cross-modal experience. In other words, the conductor is transferring dynamic properties into the composition. Or, if we recall Michael Jackson’s music video Billy Jean, he sings it with the accompaniment of break dance. The image and the mood of the song Billy Jean is made alive through the combination of visual-auditory-kinetic interactions.
In the realm of the arts, cross-modal experiences frequently evoke sensory images during the process of art making and in art appreciation. The ‘observation of an image’, ‘formation of an image’ and the ‘completion of an image’ are crucial in art making. The formation of an image is inseparable from sensory interaction.
The creator’s observation and thinking towards a specific object or event is reflected in the image of an artwork. The term image is extensively applied in the realm of visual arts, which has been stressed by Jeanne Rollins (Music Educators National Conference, 1994), Chair, Task Force for National Standards in the Visual Arts as follows:
[S]tudents must develop their capacities to communicate effectively in the increasingly visual world. This goal will be realized through comprehensive study that enables students to develop visual and other perceptual skills, to create visual works that effectively express their own thoughts and ideas, to understand various cultures and historical relationships, and to critically evaluate and judge the visual products that influence their daily lives (p.30).
The importance of image in music education is argued by Wing (1993) when she shares her inspirations from the report of The Arts, Education and Americans Panel (1977) as follows:
I don’t think that many of us see the real or potential environment of music teacher education very clearly. We are not using all of the senses available to us as we go about our work. My use of the term sense here is as in image or thought and as in sentient or thinking and being thoughtful. Our failure to bring the appropriate images and thinking to our perceptions of and work in music teacher education provides us with a view of the enterprise which is sterile and devoid of the colour, song and dance that should be integral to its life and quality (p.52).
Take listening to music as an example. Listening is one of the most common musical activities in school music curriculum. During the process of listening, Flowers (1990) states that listeners often experience images evoked by the sounds. However, the images differ according to the beholder’s subjective experience. Everybody perceives and explores the ‘image’ in their own way.
Schopenhauer (1883-86, p.3) states that “What we know is not a sun and earth, but an eye that sees the sun and a hand that feels the earth.” Further, Schopenhauer stated, “all that exists for knowledge is only an object in relation to a subject, the perception of a perceiver, in a world, idea.” Therefore, even working side by side together and using the same theme La Grenouillere as model, Monet and Renoir painted in their own individual way. Similarly, Turner (Dunstan, 1976) depicted the ‘image’ of a stormy sea from his personal experience when he was in the ship on a stormy night in his painting, Snowstorm: Steamship off a Harbour’s Mouth. Art critics regard Turner as a pioneer and a pre-impressionist, for he was the one who inserted light and actually painted light on the canvas. In this painting, Turner has drawn the mist, light and movement of the sea and storm.
On the other hand, Schopenhauer regards music as a direct image of the world, an intimate fusion with nature, which serves not to reproduce a perfect reality, but to release an image of the reality. Take the following music rehearsal incident as an example. Debussy (Roberts, 1996) once demanded conductor Camille Chevillard (who was conducting his Nocturnes, orchestral version in 1901) by saying “I would like that more hazy” (ibid, p.39). However, the misinterpreting of the term and the ‘image’ of ‘hazy’ can be glimpsed by their conversation as follows:
“Faster?” asked the conductor. “No hazier.” (Debussy) “Slower?” (Conductor) “Hazier.” (Debussy) Eventually, the conductor failed to satisfy Debussy’s expectation because of the insufficient imagery clues. From this incident a question emerges, that is: how to express and understand the ineffable qualities in music? The word ‘hazier’ can be perceived in a more concrete manner if an appropriate visual painting (for example the haziness of the impressionist drawing) or other relevant image is used as clue or suggestion.
However, even when an image is provided, as Locke (Yolton, 1970) concluded “we can never say our ideas are conformable to the real essence of an object, but every actual sense perception gives us reason for saying the sensory ideas confirm to some real existence” (p.107). In other words, images serve to suggest an idea rather than entirely depict the object.
Images, whether they appear as pictures or symbols, can transfer emotional content to us. According to e-article, Sharing Feelings, Richard Gabriel (2006) states that in order to find a more ‘aesthetical’ way to tell a joke and create a sense of humour, scientist Scott Fahlman used the (visual) emoticon in an e-mail the first time in 1982. The following visual examples (view them in anti-clockwise manner) are frequently used in e-mails to depict the mood or facial expression of the writer. For instance, the sign : - ) means joy and happy. These emotional images as follows reflect that picture can depict psychological states.
Figure 1.4 Some of the emoticons in the e-mail (left hand side in red)
! " During the forthcoming chapters, the images (especially their ‘intensity of brightness’) of various composers and painters will be discussed by using music scores and paintings. The reason why the facet of the ‘intensity of brightness’ is chosen for special investigation owes much to their suprasensory nature in perceptual experiences.
Regarding the definition of suprasensory attribute, Marks states (1978):
Despite the salience of the phenomenal differences among qualities of various sense modalities, there are a few properties of sensation held in common. Some attributes are suprasensory. Suprasensory attributes are those categories or dimensions of experience that are not limited to a single modality, but that apply to most or to all modalities (p.5).
Marks (1978, p.52) insists that extension (spatial magnitude of sensations), intensity (strength of sensations) and brightness (piquancy of sensations) are suprasensory attributes in human sensory experience. Throughout Marks’s forty years of empirical studies of human perceptual experiences (especially cross-modal transfer), he asserts and demonstrates that (1978, 82, 87, 90) “brightness” is an attribute which is shared by most of the sensory modalities and is most obviously manifest in the visual and auditory domain.
Brightness and intensity occur in the visual-auditory perceptual experiences and manifest in the visual-auditory materials in music and the visual arts. Visually impaired or blind subjects can still feel the intensity of brightness or darkness in their sensory experiences. The ‘intensity’ of ‘brightness’ manifests itself in the materials within the compositions and artworks. The ‘intensity of brightness’ in music and painting is metaphorically illustrated by Kandinsky (1982) as follows:
It may be suggested that in music, line offers the greatest store of expressive resources. Here, line operates in exactly the same temporal and spatial ways as is to be seen in paintings.
Further, Kandinsky (ibid) states: The scale of values from pianissimo to fortissimo can be expressed by increasing or decreasing intensity of line, or by its degree of lightness. The pressure of the hand upon the bow corresponds perfectly to the pressure of the hand upon the pencil. (p.618)
Through studying the creators’ image in the making of the arts, our understanding of the arts will be enriched. An appropriate knowledge of the object (both external and internal features) is necessary for appreciation. Appreciation, as Parsons (1973) insists, requires the ability to aware, grasp the characteristic of the image. Codd (1982) interprets appreciation as a matter of “seeing as” or “bringing an object under an aspect”, which is inseparable with cognition and imagination. In the order words, what to look for in an artwork/music repertoire?
Further, Parsons (1973) asserts that ‘appreciation’ is a skill of cognition, which can be cultivated and refined. However, Parsons (ibid, 1973) asserts that the cultivation process requires lots of ‘tacit knowledge’, a term interpreted as knowledge not attained and learned in a formal and articulated format. Systematic guidance and practice are necessary for attaining the skill of appreciation.
Therefore, “to engage in the act of appreciation” (Goolsby, 1984, p.17), or as Reimer (1984, p.17) states “to systematically develop the ability to perceive the aesthetic qualities of things”, is the ultimate purpose of this dissertation. Schopenhauer (Fubini, 1990, p.467) states that “art is the highest achievement of the human intellect and the supreme form of knowledge”, and this process unfolds a new way for us to observe and understand the relationship of objects in the world. For how can we find other subjects, apart from the arts, that can ‘echo’ humanity more creatively? Chapter 2 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of observation in the palette of the Impressionists
2.1. The facets of observation: a process of selective thinking
The aim of this research is to explore cross-modal experience in the arts, especially in the realm of music and the visual arts. Appreciation is inseparable from sensory interaction. Regarding the value and the shortcomings of arts education, Arnheim (1968) states:
Art education cannot expect to receive its place as a respected equal among the academic disciplines as long as it remains narrowly conceived and taught as an ‘aesthetic’ matter. Once perceptual imagery is recognized as the vehicle of productive thinking in all disciplines, art instruction will be considered the prime training ground of visual thinking, visual cognition, and visual experience (p.1)
So what is thinking? McKim (1980) concludes that the characteristic of ‘thinking’ has several dimensions. First, thinking is extremely difficult to observe because of its abstract nature. Since most thinking operates at the unconsciouness level, this makes thinking even more difficult to study. Second, thinking is inseparable from body, mind and feelings. Third, self-observation is a way to learn about thinking. Through self-observation, one can ‘watch’ and ‘observe’ how one thinks.
However, McKim (1980) states that the ‘thought process’ can be displayed in various forms of representation, such as through body gestures, a sensory image, feeling, emotion or a symbol.
What is the role of thinking in learning and teaching, or in the field of education? McKim (1980, p.5) raised an issue of a shortcoming in education as follows: “Education rarely encourages flexibility in levels of thinking. In school conscious modes of thinking are usually stressed, and subconscious modes are rarely even mentioned” (as most of the thinking operates in the unconscious level). So, what is the definition of flexibility in thinking? Can we obtain this kind of thinking style through learning? McKim proclaims that effective thinking is related to the accuracy of information acquisition and flexibility in thinking: mastery of analysis, synthesis and induction. McKim (1980, p.5) uses a metaphor to illustrate flexibility in thinking as follows: “As a skilful carpenter masters many tools and, matching tool to task, expertly moves from one tool to another, so the productive thinker has flexible access to a wide variety of mental operations.”
Two examples will further illustrate the facets of flexibility in thinking. First, McKim’s (1980) citation of the discovery of Penicillin by Sir Alexander Fleming can illustrate flexibility in thinking. McKim (ibid, p. 9) states:
Sir Alexander Fleming noticed, while working with some plate cultures of staphylococci, that one colony of bacteria had apparently become contaminated and died. Although most bacteriologists would have overlooked it, knowing that some bacteria can interfere with the growth of others, Fleming saw it in a way that enabled him to transform a routine laboratory accident into a profound scientific event, the discovery of penicillin. Why did Fleming discover penicillin when another scientist saw the same thing and thought it a nuisance? Because habits of seeing and thinking are intimately related. Fleming, like most creative observers, possessed a habit of mind that permitted him to see things afresh, from new angles. Also, he was not burdened by that “inveterate tradition according to which thinking takes place remote from perceptual experience.” He did not look and then sit down to think; he used his active eyes and mind together.
Take Monet’s perceptual experience as another example. Monet’s perceptual skill is described by Martini (1978) as follows:
In the natural world there is no formal pattern of colours, and shadows are infinitely various in depth. A perceptually evolving atmosphere, created by the impalpable mutations of light, envelops the things we see, the colours of which are constantly modified by the effect upon them of other colours: water, for example, assumes the blue of the sky reflected upon its surface, and in the shadow of green foliage, faces assume a greenish tinge. Monet was the first painter to represent these visual permutations with such discrimination and to record the fact that, seen from afar, the trees in the forest or the houses in a city become an almost indistinguishable mass in the vaporous atmosphere. Experience has, of course, taught us that the branches of a tree are distinct from one another --- whether close by or farther away --- and that each house may be differentiated in innumerable ways from those surrounding it, but this fact is not immediately discernible. Monet declined to paint objects as he knew them to be, preferring to depict them, as accurately as possible, as he saw them (p.2)
What is the similarity and difference between Sir Alexander Fleming and Monet’s perceptual experience? Both of them are using their skills of visual thinking although they are from different educational training backgrounds: the arts and sciences. Monet and Sir Alexander Fleming, they ‘see’, they ‘imagine’ and they ‘draw’ in their cognitive mind. The maturity of their thinking process is reflected in the way they can ‘see’ ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Monet and Fleming’s observation skills go beyond merely sensory interaction.
Referring to Monet’s case, he perceives ‘the pattern’ of ‘gradation’ of the natural world. The change was so gradual that others could hardly notice it. It is this distinctive ‘scientific observation’ skill that makes Monet’s artworks stand out from those of others. On the other hand, Fleming sees ‘the ‘pattern’ of ‘abnormality’ in the penicillin.
Monet’s observation convinced him that he needed to use ‘colours’ to ‘paint’ in a different way in order to bring out the difference and characteristic of ‘brightness’ of the natural world. Fleming’s observation fostered in him the desire to explore the reason why some bacteria are being contaminated while others can survive.
As a result, Monet humanizes the natural world in his canvas. He respects every unique moment during the day and the night and adds his personal touch to paint these transitory moments. Monet sees the ‘temperament’ and ‘character’ of nature through observing the blooming and fading, brightness and darkness of the natural world. From Monet’s observation, it’s not difficult to understand why Whistler states that “an artist is not paid for his labour but for his vision”. By comparison, when discovering the medicine, Penicillin, Fleming perceived that there are some bacteria which are stronger than others and if used it in a constructive way, the bacteria can be contaminated and die. His perception changed the medical world and millions are saved (especially war-time soldiers) because of this medicine. Although Monet and Fleming came from different branches of study, both of them use their visual thinking in ‘seeing’ the ‘arrangement’ of the depicted object.
Flexibility in thinking is frequently demonstrated in the area of the arts. Composers, artists and poets use their flexible thinking techniques to see ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Their compositions and artworks are the consequence of their creative thinking process and the product of their visual cognition. Take Debussy as an example. Debussy’s (Lockspeiser, 1980) flexibility in thinking is demonstrated in his usage of using different combinations of harmony to represent the depicted object. For instance, the imitation of the sound of buses going down the Faulourg Poissionierre is as follows:
At the piano we heard groups of consecutive fifths and octaves; sevenths which instead of being resolved in the proper way actually led to the note above or weren’t resolved at all; shameful ‘false relations’; chords of the ninth on all degrees of the scale; chords of the elevenths and thirteenth; all the notes of the diatonic scale heard at once in fantastic arrangements … And all this Claude called ‘le regal de l’ouie’ [a feast for the ear]. Delibes’s class [of which M. Emmanuel was a member] shook with amazement and fear.(p.20)
Take La Mer as another example. In La Mer, the motives overlapped with each other without further resolution of chordal dissonance and consecutive parallel movement. Regarding the device of ‘overlap’ in design, Bay and Thorn (1974, p. 44) state that “overlap means covering part of one object with another to make one seem closer.” In the other words, Debussy has unconsciously or consciously applied some visual design techniques in his music repertoire. Debussy’s usage of unresolved dissonance, parallel movement and whole tone scales overlap with each other and create vagueness auditory expeirence for his listeners. The overlapping and vagueness of lines can also be seen in Monet’s strokes in Waves breaking. Studying the arts is a journey of experience and experiment. Picasso (Walther, 1986, p.51) states: “Paintings are nothing but research and experiment. I never paint a picture as a work of art. Everything is research. I keep researching, and in this constant enquiry there is a logical development”. Experimentation in art can also be seen in Constable’s painting, Study of Clouds and Trees (one of the paintings from his series of cloud). Constable recorded the weather of that specific day as cited by Dunstan (1983) as follows:
Hampstead Sept.11, 1821. 10-11 morning under the sun. Clouds silvery gray on warm ground. Sultry. Light wind to the S.W. Fine all day --- but rain in the night following” (p.24).
Advanced perception skills are the outcome of perseverance and diligence. During the process of art making, sensory information is frequently simplified into symbolic forms. These symbols reflect the creators’ (painters and composers) sensory impressions. Their observation and thoughts are being expressed in terms of sounds, colours, shapes and lines. What we hear or see in their music or artwork are the traces of their thinking.
In this chapter, the role of cross-modal experience in the making of arts will be discussed by using the perceptual concepts of the Impressionists as models. Attention will focus on their visual thinking. The author will argue that the Impressionists’ observation and thinking is manifested in their compositional concepts, such as their aesthetic concepts. Eventually, their observation and thinking are reflected and expressed through their finished products: the musical score and the painting.
2.2. Cultivating the skills of observation: the capturing of light in the palette of the Impressionists
According to McKim (1980, p.7), “visual thinking is experienced to the fullest when seeing, imagining, and drawing merge into active interplay”. The Impressionist painters and composers have demonstrated their visual thinking through ‘portraying’ and ‘composing’ nature. According to Abbate (1966), the great discovery and contribution that the Impressionists brought to modern art history is their Plein-air painting. Abbate states (1990):
Possessed as though by fever they spent their their days and sometimes their nights in the open-air, excited by the constantly changing lights and colours in the water, in the sky, in flowers, in the human face. In their work they celebrated the brillance of these lights, their rich colours, and the magic of their luminous reflections (p.39).
What is the relationship of Impressionism to us? What is the lesson we could learn from the impressionists? How can we relate the Impressionist’s observational skills to our daily lives? What aspect of their observation technique can we apply to the current education learning and teaching module? The author would say it is their flexibility of thinking and sensitivity in ‘seeing’ object relationships.
According to McKim (1980, p.7), visual thinking can be interpreted as three kinds of visual imagery as follows:
1. The kind that we see: “People see images, not things.” 2. The kind that we imagine in our mind’s eye, as when we dream. 3. The kind that we draw, doodle, sketch, or paint.
Although visual thinking can occur primarily in the context of seeing, or only in imagination, or largely with pencil and paper, expert visual thinkers flexibly utilize all three kinds of imagery. They find that seeing, imagining, and drawing are interactive. Thinking, especially visual thinking, is an active process and requires consecutive experimental attempts and studies. Through studying the Impressionists’ observation skills and their depicted objects, their art experiences provide us with another dimension of ‘seeing’ the auditory and visual elements in the arts.
According to Roberts (1996), the impressionist movement is regarded as the greatest revolution in visual arts since the Renaissance period. Impressionism denotes the era of modern arts and re-moulds the perceptual concept of the public. Regarding the educational value of Impressionism, Impressionism is included in most of the textbooks and music or art curricula in art and music education. Impressionist painting exhibitions are held frequently around the world in national and international museums and galleries. From a commercial point of view, the products (such as postcards, posters, artbooks) of Impressionism remain among the most popular commercial items in the field of art business. Additionally, Van Gogh’s paintings have been auctioned for over 48 million US dollars.
Historically, the impressionist movement, which started in Paris among a group of impressionist painters in the last decades of the nineteenth century, marked a new aesthetic era for modern art and music (Dustan, 1976; Jarocinski, 1976; Roberts, 1996). Claude Monet’s Sole Levant in 1867 (The Rising Sun) and Debussy’s Prelude a L’Apres-midi d’un faune in 1894 probably brought an innovative concept of realism, new ideas of colour and sonorities, and also an inestimable influence on contemporary art and music. Therefore, in order to have a thorough understanding of the music and art aesthetic of the 20th century, an investigation of impressionist elements is crucial.
Pragmatically, Impressionism introduces to us a new way of ‘seeing’ things around the world. In particular, the Impressionist painters and musicians teach us how to capture ‘light’ in the natural world, a transitory moment that we may miss without careful observation and attention.
According to Grove Art Dictionary Online (2005), light bears a significant meaning in the history of western painting. First, the image of “light” is significant in Christian art and is used occasionally as a representation of the holiness of saints, God and divine revelation, which usually manifests in the form of haloes or circles of light. Examples include the Byzantine Mosaics painting Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels and Raphael’s The Canigiani Holy Family.
Second, light is also metaphorically associated with majesty and glory. Referring to Grove Art Dictionary online (2005), typical examples include the decoration of the palace of Versailles. The mirrors, waters and gold in the palace of Versailles resemble the radiant and luminous quality of light and brightness. Also, Sedlmayr (ibid) states, Louis XIV is depicted as the Sun King (a sun disc surrounded with rays as his symbol). Further, Grove Art Dictionary online (2005) also mentions that light is used as a symbolic representation of virtues of different kinds, such as wisdom, grace, faith and truth. In The Holy Bible, the book Luke, Chapter 11:34-36 (New International Version) states that:
Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness. Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you (p.576).
From an ontological point of view, brightness is a realistic and universal phenomenon that occurs in our daily lives. Our senses encounter different level of brightness in daily perceptual experiences. Take colour as another example. Munsell (1961) stated that “colour is accompanied by an excitation of the retina and brain by beams of light” (p.58). Therefore, the existence of colour is the testimony of different facets of brightness. From the epistemological perspective, ‘brightness’ is significant in our perceptual experiences, especially in visual and auditory domains. For instance, Lewkowiez and Turkewitz (1981) state that the categories, or factors, which influence visual preferences in early infancy included brightness.
From a painting perspective, instead of using light to depict supernatural events, such as the holiness of God or the glory of human virtues, the Impressionists aimed to portray the transitory moment of ‘light’ shining upon the depicted object. In other words, as Dunstan (1976) regards, Impressionism is the art of capturing ‘brightness’. Their observation skill is reflected in their sensitivity in capturing and encoding the phenomena of nature, such as the changing of seasons, the rising and setting of the sun.
The Impressionist’s thinking concept of the arts differs from their predecessors. According to Art Gallery Of New South Wales (2003), instead of depicting nature as an eternal, static and fixed entity as did traditional European paintings in the 17th century, the impressionists regarded the image of nature as transitory and ever changing. They recorded in their works the fleeting impressions of the natural world, which consist of sound, light, colour and movement. According to Duret (National Gallery of Australia, Canberra; 2001), traditional European paintings in the 17th century reveal that:
In observing nature, the European landscape-painter appeared to have forgotten the real colour of things; he scarcely saw more than light and shade, mostly shade; because of this, many painters covered open landscapes with opaque darkness and eternal shadows (p.68).
Impressionism emphasizes the perceiver’s transitory impression, especially the initial impression of the depicted object. Regarding the ‘first impression’ of the depicted object, Roberts (1996) states:
Here the ‘first impression’ is not merely what the eye first sees, but also what the heart feels. It is the coordinated response, that intake of breath (like Pelléas’s on the castle ramparts) at the point where sight, feeling, and understanding fuse. And it is soon lost. Above all, the first impression can only be personal (p.121).
In order to capture the ‘impression’ of the depicted object, only the fragment of a particular scene is selected and highlighted by the impressionists as descriptive model to describe their impression. Because of this, individual details become blurred and blended, with only the moment of light, speed, and movement of the object being sharpened and recorded. The mood with which the subject is suffused outweighs the depicted object itself.
The fragmentary design format of the Impressionists relates much to the beholder’s sensations (usually the first impression) towards a particular scene or subject. Anything that seems unimportant to the eyes of the beholder is omitted. The depicted object can be a branch of plum blossom, the waves of the sea, the starry night or even an unnoticeable corner in a café. Examples included Monet’s Water Lilies, Whistler’s Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket ,Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, and Dega’s Rehearsal, and musically, Debussy’s Footprints in the Snow and The Girl with the Flaxen Hair. Nature has been an everlasting topic for painters, musicians and poets. How can the Impressionists ‘see’ nature so differently from their predecessors? What is the element that contributed to their originality of seeing? Skilful observation is probably the answer.
Ives (1974) states that the aesthetic of the impressionist is inspired by the aesthetic concept of the Japanese Ukiyo-e paintings. Emile Zola, Buret and Duret (Ives, 1974) believed that the Ukiyo-e artists were “the first and most perfect of the impressionists” (p.17). Japanese Ukiyo-e paintings, also known as “floating pictures” (Ives, 1979), emphasize capture of the fragmentary and transitory impressions of daily life’s episodes. According to Ives (1974, p.15), “in practice, Ukiyo-e became the world of entertainment and daily pastimes: the theatre and the cafZ, picnics and boating parties, busy streets and private households --- the celebration of ordinary scenes and events.” For instance, Kawai Gyokudo’s painting, Departing Spring, depicts the concept of the transitory world.
According to Japan Foundation & Art Gallery of New South Wales, (2003, p. 21-22), in this six-fold screens, the sense of movement, the transitory beauty was illustrated in the flowers, wind and river as following (usually perceive from left to right):
The flower petals of cherry blossoms flutter down onto the river. The splendor of cherry trees in full bloom, looking like clouds, and the blossoms falling at the peak of their beauty, blown by the wind remind us of the belief that everything itransient. Furthermore, the never-ending flow of the river symbolises nature ever-changing with the passage of time. In this painting the river is a mountain stream with a rapid current. The contrast between the flower petals fluttering in the wind and the rapid current produces an effect like the sympathetic reverberation of a high-pitched and low-pitched sound.
Finally, the design of the painting: “The harmonious chord formed by such motifs as the wind, cherry blossoms, the river, and the boat, resounding through the gorge (p.22).” A further illustration about the similarity between the Impressionist painting and the Japanese Ukiyo-e painting are illustrated by the following two examples, Utamaro’s Girl dressing a companion’s hair and Degas’s A Maidservant Combing a Woman’s Hair.
Historically, according to Ives (1979), the Ukiyo-e artists, like the impressionist painters and composers, fought against their traditional academy for over two hundred years in order to develop a new democratic form of art.
So, what are the Ukiyo-e artists and the Impressionist artists fighting for? From a perception perspective, they’re fighting for their vision, (their visual thinking and visual cognition) in arranging the artistic materials. From a musical perspective, Debussy abandoned the classical system of harmonization and used new harmonization, such as the chords with added tones (seconds and sixths); chords derived from the whole tone scale and acceptance of unresolved dissonance. Similar to Sir Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin, the French Impressionist and the Japanese Ukiyo-e painters observed the ordinary things (natural scene) in an extraordinary way. The Ukiyo-e painters see the ‘transitory’ of seasons and human activities in ‘different colours’. The concept of ‘transcency’ is illustrated by Ozaki Masaaki (Japan Foundation & Art Gallery of New South Wales, 2003) as follows:
I feel that the the Japanese people see beauty and the sadness of life in the gradually changing aspects of nature. In spring, the cherry blossoms in full bloom were a symbol of the fragile nature of life as well as joy. In autumn, the leaves that paint the entire mountain were a metaphor for the brilliance of life as well as its approaching end. It is as if the Japanese people captured the short moment when life and death cross over, seen as the essence of the universe and given it a form. The same can be said of literature and performing arts. The aesthetic that ran through these creative impulses was that one may call ‘the aesthetic of transience’, which lies at the core of the Japanese sense of beauty. (p.34)
The Impressionists ‘see’ this essence of the ‘transitory world’ through the palette of the Japanese Ukiyo-e paintings. They have selected and digested the concept of ‘transiency’ and apply it to paint the ‘brightness’ of the depicted object, the other transitory element in the natural world. On the other hand, the Impressionists illustrate to us that visual thinking can be cultivated and learnt through observation. The changing brightness is illustrated by the gradation of different colours and shades on the canvas. From a physical perspective, Zwimpfer (1988) states “the light of the sun and of most other sources of light is composed of rays of differing wavelengths, whereby the amounts of energy in the varying wavelengths can be very different. Varying light rays with differing amounts of energy can be perceived by the eye as different colors” (p.73).
The Impressionists have demonstrated ‘the art of seeing’ to us. According to McKim (1980, p.73), “Seeing is encountering reality with all of your being. To encounter reality deeply, you cannot leave part of yourself behind. All of your senses, your emotions, your intellect, your language-making ability --- each contributes to seeing fully.” In other words, ‘seeing’ is also a mental activity, in which our sensations interact with cognition. The following paragraphs will illustrate how the Impressionists’ sensations interact with cognition when they ‘see’ the Ukiyo-e paintings from a historical context to personal preference.
Roberts (1996) states the blossom period of oriental art arrived when the first Japanese prints entered the studios of Paris, a prologue to the remarkable era of ‘oriental art’. Further, the birth year of Debussy, 1862, marked the opening of La Porte Clinoise (Japanese import shop, a place for japonists) and the first systematic display of Japanese art (including Japanese books and prints) in the London International Exhibition in Europe.
Like Chinese painting, landscape was one of the dominant themes in Japanese colour prints. Originally, the Japanese print was used as a medium for portraying actors and beauties, which is similar to the photographs of stars and models nowadays. According to Roberts (1996, p.50), the boom in Japanese art was illustrated in the following popular gambit of the 1862 Paris Universal Exposition: “Would you like to come up and see my Japanese prints?”
The Ukiyo-e paintings incalculably influenced artists and musicians in America and Europe, especially the French impressionist artists. Notable examples include Monet, Degas, Vincent Van Gogh, Cassatt, Gauguin and the French composers Ravel and Debussy. National Gallery of Australia. (2001) mentions Ernest Chesneau’s famous article about Japanese art in the 1878 Exposition Universelle as follows:
Tissot, Whistler, Manet, Degas, Monet --- had ‘found among the Japanese … a confirmation, rather than an inspiration of their personal ways of seeing, feeling and interpreting nature. Hence, instead of a weak-spirited submission to the Japanese art, the originality of each individual artist was strengthened (p.72).
According to Whiteley (2000, p.61), Van Gogh expressed his perception of Japanese arts as “they do a figure in a few strokes as if it were as simple as buttoning your coat.”His artistic expression, such as simplicity and rapidity lines, was his observation, his indebtedness to the Ukiyo-e paintings.
On the other hand, Debussy’s admiration of Japanese art could be seen by his use of Hokusai’s Great Wave off Kanagawa as the front cover of La Mer and his private possession, Poisson d’or, a Japanese lacquer panel. Debussy’s (Lockspeiser, 1980, p.68) praise of Japanese arts can be summarized as the following statement, “I’d very much like Pelléas to be played in Japan, for our fashionable eclectics might approve of it.”
Representative examples of Ukiyo-e paintings included South wind, clear skies, normally known as Red Fuji and Under the wave off Kanagawa. In Red Fuji or South wind, clear skies, Katsushika Hokusai simplified and captured the essence of Mount Fuji into a cone figure and eliminated the design by using just a few colours. The reddish brown contrasted with the blue and green at the bottom of the mountain. The simplified design of Red Fuji or South wind, clear skies makes the contour lines more obvious and vivid to the spectators.
The perceptual skills of the Impressionists painters and composers have been sharpened and inspired by the concept of Ukiyo-e painters, especially in the aspect of design (emphasizing the fragmentation of the depicted object). For instance, in Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s Nichiren walking through the snow at Tsukahara during his exile on Sado Island , this painting captured the ‘solitude’ of the traveller. The fragmentary design format of the Impressionist arts embodied Schopenhauer’s (1896) idea of art as he explains in The art of controversy as follows:
A picture, a poem, should be as true as nature itself; but at the same time it should stress in whatever forms the unique character of its subject by drawing out all its essential manifestations, and by rejecting everything that is unessential and accidental. The picture or the poem will thus emphasise its idea, and give us that ideal truth which is superior to nature (p.54).
Take Degas’s Woman at a Window as an example. The impression of this lady is captured by Degas by using only a monochromatic range of colour, the reddish-brown decorated with opaque, thinned white and black. In this painting, only the woman is being emphasized, the detail of the background is kept to a minimum.
2.3. (a) The brightness in Debussy’s music and Whistler’s painting – a multi- modal dimension in ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’ the arts
In this section, the cross-modal experience in the making of art will be expressed through analysing Debussy’s music repertoire (especially his Prélude series) and Whistler’s paintings (especially his Nocturne series).
McKim (1980, p.7) states, “visual thinking is experienced to the fullest when seeing, imagining, and drawing merge into active interplay”. A music score or painting is the ‘drawing product’ of the creator. Each crystallizes and epitomizes the creator’s visual thinking and visual cognition. How can the skills of appreciation be cultivated through the observation of others’ artwork and musical composition?
From a spectator’s perspective, Reid (1981, p.29) states that “when we look at this painting or listen to this music, our looking and listening are --- again, implicitly if not always explicitly --- conceptual.” In other words, during the period of looking and listening, we’re consciously or unconsciously building some concepts. These concepts are inseparable from sensations of the beholder and the materials of the artworks. Regarding sensation and feeling, Hanslick (1974) states as follows:
Sensation is the act of perceiving some sensible quality, such as a sound or a colour, whereas feeling is the consciousness of some psychical activity --- i.e., a state of satisfaction or discomfort. If I note (perceive) with my senses the odour or taste of some object, or its form, colour, or sound, I call this state of consciousness my sensation of these qualities; but if sadness, hope, cheerfulness or hatred appreciably raise me above, or depress me below the habitual level of mental activity, I am said to feel (p.19).
In the realm of appreciation, we are using our senses to communicate with the artistic materials. Reid (1981) supplements the materials in the arts as:
Art is made out of physical materials --- paint, stone, wood; sounds, rhythms, movements of the body; and the experience of any art in the traditional sense is a perceptual experience. A work of art impinges and is impressed upon the senses, and through that medium somehow its significance is conveyed (p.30).
In the realm of music analysis, auditory materials are often explained and interpreted in terms of pitch, melody, harmony, rhythm, or form, based on the historical or compositional context of the specific music repertoire. The originality of this analysis section lies in using a ‘multi-sensory perspective’ to interpret the musical materials. The relationship of ‘brightness’ and ‘loudness’, a phenomenon commonly existing in visual-auditory perceptual experience will be used to interpret the depicted object in Debussy’s Preludes series. Focus will be directed to the ‘dynamic’ and ‘performance direction’ of Debussy’s Prelude series.
Take Debussy’s Feux d’artifice (Fireworks), the last piece in Préludes Book II, as an example. Fireworks have been used for celebrations for centuries. The transitory moment of the fireworks has been a topic which has captured the attention of musicians, painters and photographers from different cultures around the world. Debussy thinks and expresses the facets of the fireworks in terms of sounds. In Fireworks, the image of the fireworks is displayed through the variation of dynamic and performance directions. In the first section of the Fireworks, Debussy uses the dynamic level pp and the expression marking, léger, égal et lointain (light, even, equal and far away from the distance) and en se rapprochant peu à peu (gradually coming closer, little by little) in bar 12 to illustrate the image and distance of the fireworks. Dynamic level can suggest the location of the object in relation to the spectators. Naturally, we relate soft sound with objects perceived from a distance and loud sounds with objects located near by.
The movement of the fireworks is illustrated by the performance direction, glissando (sliding) in bar 17. The performance indication, glissando is accompanied by the rapid descending movement of the pitch, which is similar to the falling and splashing of the fireworks from high to low. At the same time, the glissando is stressed by forte (loudness) and then suddenly piano (softness). The dynamic contrast of loudness and softness acts like a camera that zooms the fireworks from near to far.
Also, the use of marqué (accented) in bar 7 suggests the brightness of the fireworks. The word marquY implies vigorous force upon a particular music note. The sound effect resembles the sparkling, winking flashing light of the fireworks displayed in the sky. Further, the word ‘strident’ in bar 52-53 and éclatant (brilliant, dazzling, bursting out) in bar 79 suggests the different intensity of brightness of the fireworks. Finally, everything disappears in abrupt silence at the end of this piece. All this facets of the fireworks are illustrated in Figure 2.9. The thoughts of Debussy are being given substance by his treatment of dynamic and performance directions.
On the other hand, the visual thinking of Whistler, the Impressionist painter, can be traced in his fireworks painting entitled Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket (Figure 2.1). Whistler’s Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Fallen Rocket was harshly criticized by John Ruskin as ‘a pot of paint’ (Holden, 1976). According to Holden (1976), Whistler frequently uses bright colours, such as vermillion to give force, accent and dynamic to the painting. The bright colours, such as red, orange, yellow dot-like pattern highlight the sparkling moments of the fireworks. The darker colours, such as the black, dark green and blue portray the silence of the sky and the contemplative observers. The brightness of this painting owed much to Whistler’s use of contrasting brightness and darkness in colour. The three elements of visual thinking: the seeing, the imaging, and the drawing are displayed in the music score and painting in Figure 2.1and Figure 2.2
Figure 2.1 The facets of fireworks in Debussy’s Fireworks
The different aspects of the fireworks on the music score
sometimes, they appear in the format of glissando… … or appear as a temporary marked spot
also in strident and •Eventually, everything dissolves into dazzling manner •silence towards the ending
Figure 2.2 The facets of fireworks in Whistler’s Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Fallen Rocket The contours of the fireworks have been highlighted by Whistler through these contrasting colour (brightness) effects. The vermillion at the upper middle canvas is like “accents” in sounds, which resembles Debussy’s use of performance direction, like “marque” to describe the brightness of the fireworks. Besides, the title Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Fallen Rocket acts as a metaphor of the fleeting fireworks. Black and Gold depicts the contrast of the brightness of the fireworks and darkness of the sky. The fallen rocket implies the rapid movement of the depicted object.
Debussy’s and Whistler’s cross-modal perception of arts is reflected in the titles of their paintings and music repertoires. They frequently use sensory metaphors as the titles of their compositions and artworks. Whistler frequently employs musical terms such as ‘Nocturnes’, ‘Symphony’, and ‘Variations’ for his painting series. For instance, the musical term, Nocturne (Night piece) set the mood for this painting. On the other hand, Debussy’s PrZlude Books I and II, frequently use sensory metaphors as the title of the repertoires. Examples include Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir (Sounds and perfumes mingling in the Evening Air), La cathédrale engloutie (The Submerged Cathedral) and Feux d’artifice (Fireworks).
Although Debussy and Whistler use different materials (the former uses auditory materials and the later uses visual materials) to portray the fireworks, however, the brightness and movement of the fireworks are obvious in both of their representations. Debussy used “sounds”, such as the variation of loudness and softness and performance directions to ‘portray’ the mood of the depicted object. Whistler, on the other hand, used “colour”, the subdued, shading and contrast of colour to create the mood (serenity, quiet, loudness) of the artwork.
Debussy and Whistler’s fireworks demonstrate the transferability of sensory information in art experience. Further, they illustrate as McKim (1980, p.11) points out that “a drawing acts as the reflection of the visual mind. On its surface we can probe, test, and develop the workings of our peculiar vision.”
On the other hand, the other facet of cross-modal experience, ‘softness’ and ‘dimness’ is illustrated in visual-auditory materials in the following examples, Debussy’s Des pas sur la neige (Footprints in the snow) and Whistler’s painting Nocturne in Grey and Gold: Chelsea Snow.
In Des pas sur la neige (Footprints in the snow) (Figure 2.3), Debussy depicts the serenity and dimness of the snow scene by using the dynamic level p, pp and ppp. Thus, Debussy appears to confirm the cross-modal perceptual manner of dealing with loudness and brightness: the softer the sound, the dimmer, the softer the image elicited. The visual image evoked in this music is dim and static. The monotonous dynamic level, the absence of contrasting loudness and softness creates the mood of quietness, motionlessness and softness in this piece of music.
The mood of this piece is reinforced by two performance directions Triste et lent (sad and slow) and ce rythme doit avoir la valeur sonore d’un fond de paysage triste et glacé (indicates the rhythm should evoke the depths of a bleak, frozen landscape) at the beginning of the music. The bass section is covered with excessive tied notes. This creates a static, inactive, hesitant feeling in the listeners. Regarding the pitch, with the upper and lower notes just slightly touching each other, all these melodic treatments evoke a sense of remoteness. Figure 2.3 Debussy’s Footprints in the snow: Bar 1-11
Similarly, the softness in Whistler’s Nocturne in Grey and Gold: Chelsea Snow lies in the hazy-blue grey in which the contour of the figure, house, tree, and sky merge together. In this painting, the yellow lights are subdued and penetrate within the dimness and softness of the blue and grey. By using the limited colours of grey blue and yellow spots in a subdued manner, Whistler aims at blending the colour and lines in order to create a haziness effect.
The softness of Whistler’s Nocturne in Grey and Gold: Chelsea Snow lies in the use of subdued colours and the blurred contour lines. By using grey-blue haze, a colour which recedes from rather than approaches the spectators, Whistler (Holden, 1976) lets his spectators experience art by stepping inside the painting. In the above examples, the image of softness and dimness is transferred to visual and auditory sensory experiences.
According to Holden (1976), Whistler said of his making of Nocturne in Grey and Gold: Chelsea Snow as follows:
My picture of a Harmony in Grey and Gold is an illustration of my meaning --- a snow scene with a single black figure and a lighted tavern. I care nothing for the past, present, or future of the black figure, placed there because the black was wanted at that spot. All that I know is that my combination of grey and gold is the basis of my picture. Now this is precisely what my friends cannot grasp. They say, ‘Why not call it “Trotty Veck,” and sell it for a round harmony of golden guineas? (p.46).
Whistler confessed his concept of the making of art in the above quotation. He wanted to convey his impression, his ideas of ‘colours’ and ‘figure’ into his canvas. Among all the impressionist painters, Whistler is notable for his delicate yet veil-like (hazy) colour on the canvas. Whistler’s (Holden, 1976) art of hazy effects is obvious in his Nocturne series. Typical examples include Nocturne: The Solent, Nocturne in Blue and Gold: Valparaiso, Nocturne: Blue and Silver and Battersea Reach and Nocturne in Blue and Silver, Nocturne in Black and Gold: Entrance to Southampton Water, and urne: Cremorne Gardens, No.3and Nocturne in Brown and Gold: Chelsea Rags.
The originality and similarity of Debussy’s and Whistler’s observation skills lies in the pursuit of ‘hazy contour’ in their works. Similar to Debussy’s concept of haziness in timbre, Whistler’s haziness is manifested in his treatment in colours. The haziness of Debussy’s music and Whistler’s painting adds softness and vagueness to the spectators’ perceptual experience. The essence of ‘haziness’ (and brightness) in the music and painting further demonstrate the cross-modal experience in listening and seeing.
For instance, Debussy’s intention is to create a dim, veiled and sometimes inaudible tone to the listeners. He never ever perceived the piano as a percussion instrument. Regarding the sonority of Debussy’s music, his student Marguerite Long’s statement “one must forget that the piano has hammers” is probably the best description of Debussy’s desirable “sound”. This statement is further testified by Italian composer Alfred Casella, (Hinson,1986) who recalled Debussy’s live performance as follows:
No words can describe his playing of some of the Preludes. He did not have the virtuosity of the specialist, but his touch was extremely sensitive. One had the impression that he was actually playing on the strings of the instruments, without the mechanical aid of keys and hammers. He used the pedals as nobody else did. The result was pure poetry (p.2).
Hinson (1986) further states:
Everyone can play loudly, but it is much more difficult to play softly, to be able to control one’s tone to the point of bringing out in turn each single note of a chord even when using piano and pianissimo shadings (p.3).
For example, within the entire volume of Debussy’s Children Corner, the dynamic level, p-pp-ppp surrounds almost every single piece of the set. The Jimbo’s Lullaby was an excellent example in Children’s Corner to demonstrate pianissimo. Different levels of pianissimo sign appeared in the score, illustrated by adjectives such as molto, sempre, piu etc. Within the whole set of Children Corner, only Golliwog’s Cake-Walk began with the dynamic level forte. Although the forte dynamic appears episodically, however, the music is soon replaced by softer performance indications.
There are different facets of pianissimo in the music of Debussy. In Brouillards (Mists), the dynamic level, p and pp penetrate the whole piece of music, except in bar 29-30 where f is temporarily used and vanished. The touch is illustrated by the performance direction, extrêmement égal et léger (extremely even, equal light) in the opening section, which required special attention to the intensity of the touch. The evenness and lightness act like a veil (mists) covering the entire surroundings and absorbing the light.
Towards the ending in Brouillards (Mists), the image of the mists is metaphorically illustrated by the performance direction, en retenant et en s’effacant (slowing fading to nothing), assisted by the dynamic level pp and the 8a bassa in the bass part. Eventually, everything dissolves into silence. On the other hand, the image of mists is illustrated in Whistler’s painting, London Bridge. In this painting, the invisible mists, the contours, colours and light of all the depicted objects merge together. Below is the scene that Whistler captured in late 19th century Britain.
Debussy’s Brouillards (Mists) and Whistler’s London Bridge demonstrate the transferability of ‘softness’ in sensory modalities (such as in visual and auditory domains). The two examples further interpret the cross-modal facets of sensory qualities, such as softness.
Debussy and Whistler have both illustrated the essence of imagination in their music and paintings. Imagination is inseparable from sensory experience. Debussy’s piano series, Prélude I and Prélude II, illustrate his belief that ‘sound’ can suggest the features of external objects. The titles given at the end of each piece in Prélude I and Prélude II suggest (instead of describe) the ‘impression’ created by the observed object.
The interplay of imagination allows the spectators to experience sounds in their own way. This is similar to an abstract painting displayed in front of the audience, where one may not fully recognize the visual framework of the artwork. However, the creators have created a ‘space’ for the listeners and spectators to explore the symbolic meaning in the arts. Through imagination, one can experience the arts in their own individual way.
On the other hand, the ‘imagination’ in ‘seeing’ is deliberately displayed in the canvas of Whistler, especially in his Nocturnes series. Regarding Whistler’s Nocturne series, Holden (1976, p.17) states as follows:
[H]ardly more than a bluish, grayish, brownish or blackish mist. Across this mist might jut a few blurry forms, dividing the space into what might be water and sky, or near and far, but it was hard to tell. Or the darkness might congeal here and there into a form that might be a building, a bridge, a ship, or a shoreline; but there were barely any details or sharp edges to identify the subject exactly.
The essence of imagination is stated by Holden (1976) as follows:
What Whistler was really suggesting was that the audience play a more active and perceptive role in the creative process. If the painting will not reach out and collar him, then the viewer must step forward --- into the picture, if you will --- and immerse himself in its atmosphere (p.16).
Debussy’s and Whistler’s compositions have reminded us to use our senses to feel and experience the visual-auditory materials in the arts. In the realm of music and visual art, Debussy once stated (Lockspeiser, 1980), “Why could we not use the means that Claude Monet, Cezanne, Toulouse Lautrec and others had made known? Why could we not transpose these means into music?” (p.49) Debussy (Roberts, 1996) insists: “For music has this over painting, that it can bring together all manner of variations of colour and light. It is a point that is not often observed, though it is quite obvious” (p.147).
2.3. (b) The different facets of intensity in Debussy’s music: his treatment of performance directions and dynamics
The intensity in music and painting of Debussy and Whistler will be defined in this section. One of the important essences in the realm of Impressionism is to ‘paint’ light in music and the visual art. The intensity of light varies from strong to medium and weak. How can auditory elements illustrate and suggest the intensity of ‘brightness’, a visual element to its audience? Timbre is the answer.
Kennedy (1990) and Schoenberg (Boretz & Cone, 1983) refer timbre as tone-colour, which distinguishes the quality of a tone or voice. Musically, the ‘timbre’ of the tone can be metaphorically suggested by performance directions (including dynamic indication). In other words, visual aids, such as words or symbols (for example the sign < refers to accent) can suggest the quality of sound, a typical example of cross- modal experience.
Visual sensations can be suggested by sounds through the alternation of dynamic levels, such as emphasising or subduing a specific note or passage. As a result of the empirical studies of loudness and brightness, Marks (1978, 1982, 1987) reported that the louder the sound, the brighter the image perceived. Also, loudness affects our perception about the spatial distance and brightness of an object. We usually identify the remoteness of an object according to its relative loudness and brightness. The interdisciplinary and cross-modal nature of sound is manifested in Merriam’s (Radocy & Boyle, 1988, p.11) perspective that “music may function as a symbolic representation of other things, ideas, and behaviours. In serving this function, whatever music symbolizes or represents must be of a non-musical nature.” In other words, the descriptive nature of music is derived from its sound.
Hanslick (1974) states that the ‘qualifying adjectives’, such as gentle, delicate and powerful can be expressed through the changing and modification of sounds. When specific force (intensity: strong or weak) is attached upon a certain note or chord, photism (sound suggests or evokes visual image) may occur as follows:
The falling of snow, the fluttering of birds, and the rising of the sun can be painted musically only by producing auditory impressions which are dynamically related to those phenomena. In point of strength, pitch, velocity, and rhythm, sounds present to the ear a figure, bearing that degree of analogy to certain visual impressions which sensations of various kinds bear to one another (p.53).
The metaphorical nature of timbre is further stated by Gulik (1969) in which he described timbre (tone colour) has the ability to suggest, infuse mood and create the atmosphere of the depicted objects. For instance, Gulik (ibid) concludes there are 16 different facets of timbre of the Chinese Qin. They are light, loose, crisp, gliding, lofty, pure, clear, empty, profound, rare, antique, simple, balanced, harmonious, quick and slow touch. Each of these touches requires different finger technique and each of them evokes different visual sensations. Gulik (1969) states the timbre of a note changes if played by different fingers (such as thumb or forefinger of the right hand). Referring to the example of loose touch, Gulik (ibid) states:
Therefore, the wondrous music of the lute entirely depends upon touch. If the touch is rounded off, then the emotions are unified; if the loose touch is lively, then the thoughts are elated. The loose touch is lively, then the thoughts are elated. The loose touch should evoke an impression as of water rising in waves, its substance should evoke an impression as of pearls rolling in a bowl; its sound should be like the resonance of intoning a text: this is what is called the loose touch (p.109).
The pictorial qualities of the qin piece, White Snow are recorded in His K’ang Essay on the Lute (Qin), quoted by Gulik, 1969) as follows:
The tones tinkle like jade pendants or crystal beads, then they swell in volume, grand and abundant, to rise to perilous heights, finally melting together again. There are sudden accelerandos, where the tones seem to clash with each other, then they flow together harmoniously, a dazzling array (p.92).
The movement of the snowflakes, the tinkling of the snow and the colour of white (visual imagery) were transformed into auditory elements.
Hanslick’s and Gulik’s perception of sounds assures that music has the ability to depict objective phenomena (such as snowing or whispering), which is also a distinctive feature in Impressionist paintings.
In Le vent dans la plaine (The wind on the plain) and Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest (What the West Wind has seen) these two repertoires, the image of the wind, its furiousness and gentleness is displayed through the loudness and softness of the music elements.
So, how can Debussy illustrate the invisible wind in the arts? The perception, the intensity of the wind depends much on the beholder’s personal experience with the natural world. Although invisible, we can feel the wind by the intensity of its movement. The intensity ranges from breeze, storm to hurricane. The abstractness of wind is frequently suggested by portraying the movement of boats, waves, water, clouds etc in the painting.
From a musical perspective, the movement of the wind is demonstrated in Debussy’s Le vent dans la plaine (The wind on the plain). Regarding the strength of the wind, the dynamic level pp in bar 1-3 suggests its intensity. The softness and delicate sound elicits a soft breezing image to the audience. This coincides with the auditory-visual correspond between loudness and brightness: the softer the sound, the dimmer and gentler the image evoked. The gentleness of the wind is reinforced by the performance direction, aussi légèrement que possible (as lightly as possible). The touch is suggested to be as light and soft as possible.
However, the dynamic level varies from pianissimo to fortissimo in bar 27-30. The gradual crescendo and abrupt pianissimo implies the changing forces of the “wind”. The changing dynamic level creates tension and spatial distance (such as near and far) to the listeners’ perceptual experiences. Also, the forte contrary motion chord in bar 28, bar 30-34, followed by a great descending leap in right hand part, creates a rotation effect in the piece, which is similar to the rotation of the wind. By using the performance direction Un peu retenu (a little retard), piu pp (more soft), ppp and eventually the expression sign, laissez vibrer (leave to resonate), the image of the wind is gradually diminishing, vanishing and eventually dying away.
On the other hand, the strength, strident and furiousness of the wind is illustrated by the performance direction in Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest (What the West Wind has seen). Debussy shaped the intensity (the sharpness and brightness) of the wind by using the adjective ‘strident’ in bar 23-24. The word ‘strident’ is illustrated by the ff chord in both hands. The dissonance between the upper and lower clef creates the feeling of ‘strident’, a sense of roughness (auditory-tactile correspond) to the audience. Also, the adjective ‘incisif’ (incisive) is displayed by the accent on the right and left hand side. The incisiveness is sharpened by switching from consecutive legato groupings of semiquavers to accented quavers in bar 55-56 (right hand). Besides, the intensity of incisiveness is further reinforced by the sf accented descending pattern in bar 56 (right hand).
Finally, in bar 57-58, the performance direction Furieux et rapide (fast and furious) is depicted by the consecutive ascending running scalic passage. The increasing dynamic level from f to ff, the large span of the melodic pattern, the moving from bass to treble adds to the splendid movement of the passage. Regarding speed, Willmann (Merriam, 1964) assert that tempo and visual images are associated: the faster the music, the sharper, angular the visual image evoked
Further, in the opening of the first movement of La Mer, “De l’ aube à midi sur la mer” (From Dawn to Noon on the Sea), the intensity of sunlight from dawn to noon is illustrated by the performance directions varying from ppp, pp, p to f, ff or fff. By modifying the different intensity of dynamics, Debussy suggests the different shading and brightness of the sunlight. As by nature, people have a tendency to pair increasing loudness with brightness and increasing softness with dimness. The morning sunlight will definitely be softer and dimmer when compared with the sunshine at noon time.
In Voiles (Sails), Debussy uses dynamic indicators such as forte, piano extensively and in a subtle way. He frequently pairs them with words such as plus (more), peu QY peu (gradually, little by little) in order to paint the intensity of the movement. Further, in Voiles (Voils or Sails), the whole tone scale which Debussy adopted gave a sense of vagueness to the listeners. The sense of tonic key (home key) or the intensity between the whole tone and semitone has been blurred by the usage and the colour of the whole tone scale.
The mood portrayed in Voiles resembles to the mood of Monet’s painting, Regatta at Argenteuil. Debussy has used psychological adverbs and adjectives, such as gently, calm, delicate to paint the mood of the scene. These words contribute to the subtlety and calmness of a distant seascape. Other performance descriptions which appear in Voiles, such as supple, sweeping forward, freely and flexible, correspond with the mood in the painting, Regatta at Argenteuil.
Terms such as dans un rythme sans rigueur et caressant (in the rhythmic style of freely, flexible, caressing and loving), trYHYsouple (very supple, flexible), serrez (push on), emportZYasweeping forward, carried awaybYrapide (rapid, fast), comme un trYHY AZger glissando (like a very delicate glissando) and doucement en dehors (gently to the fore) are used to depict the features of the sails. Despite the difference of auditory and visual materials, the fragmentary and transitory scene of sails reappears in Voiles and in Regatta at Argenteuil.
2.4. The other facets of cultivating the skills of observation in the arts --- from a historical perspective
According to Simonson (1997, p. 84), when we talked about style, “we mean a distinctive quality or form, a manner of expression.” Also, Simonson (ibid, p.85) concludes ‘style’ is “composed of primary elements, and can be analysed in terms of them. Colour, shape, line, and pattern are key elements of a visual style. Volume, pitch, and meter are elements of auditory style.” In other words, ‘style’ is a multi- modal representation.
According to Fryklund, (Grove Dictionary of Music, 1980), the major musical trend in France after the Franco Prussian war to the First World War was Impressionism. Impressionism was a purely French inspiration, which started as a movement against Romanticism in Paris, at the end of the nineteenth century. Claude Monet’s Sole Levant (The Rising Sun) in 1867 denoted the beginning of the new era of modern visual art, when he termed this picture “Impressionism”. When applied to music, Debussy’s Prélude à L’Après-midi d’un faune in 1894, was probably the first impressionist piece in the history of music. Impressionism was a new concept of realism, in which the mood and atmosphere of the depicted object outweighs the object itself. Historically, Brody (1987) states French music is very dependent upon other arts for inspiration and design, it is closely related to other arts and does not stand alone. According to the book, Europe Since Napoleon, The Third Republic in France , Thomson (1977) states during the 19th and early 20th centuries, Paris had become the world’s leading centre for arts and musical activities. Art is the subject of so much discussion in daily life, such as in clubs and cafes, or in reviews and journals. Further, different kinds of literary and art movements developed rapidly and intensively in France than any other European countries.
Why is expression through arts of such importance to musicians and artists? According to Frylund (The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 1980), Thompson (1967) and Jarocinski (1970), the defeat and the humiliation of the Franco- Prussian war in 1870 aroused national consciousness within the French as the feeling of hatred towards the Germans extended to every aspect of life. The French composers also awakened from their previous dependence upon foreign composers, since the whole of Europe had been under the influence of Richard Wagner, a German composer. As Lockspeiser states (1980), Wagner played not only a dominant role in the music field, but also in the world of literature, art, religious and even intellectual thought. Therefore, French composers really wanted to create music which excluded the influence of German music.
Myers (1971) and Frylund (The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 1980) state the solution came under the formation of different music societies such as the Societe Nationale de Musique (organised by Saint-Saens and Romain Bussine) and the Societe Musicale Independante (founded by Ravel and Faure), aiming to serve, to propagate and to aid the production of French music. Debussy was one of the beneficiaries (others included Ravel, Saint-Saens, Chabrier and Dukas) as these societies promoted many local composers and gave them a chance to perform their compositions. Debussy is also regarded as the pioneer of French Impressionist composer.
The cross-modal compositional concept of Debussy is similar to the French impressionist painters. Debussy uses sound as a metaphor to depict fleeting impressions (such as the waves of the sea, the breezing of the wind) to the listeners. His music is the sketching of the transitory moment of the depicted object, a perceptual concept which is very similar to the French impressionist painters.
The impressionist painters, unlike the traditional painters who emphasized sharp contours and precise, small details, instead, they conveyed the impression of the scene by means of blurred outlines. Debussy (Roberts, 1996) once interpreted his sketch- like compositional style as “Does one render the mystery of the forest by recording the height of the trees? It is more a process where the limitless depths of the forest give free rein to the imagination.” (p.38) Further, Raymond Bonheur (Roberts, 1966, p.125) described the playing of Debussy in La revue musicale as follows:
It is well known what an incomparable player he was of his own works, providing not only the illusion of an orchestra, but an extraordinary impression of life and movement … But it was when he played from a still uncertain sketch, with the fever of improvisation still more or less upon him, that he was truly prodigious ---- “How I envy painters,” he used to say, “who can embody their dreams in the freshness of a sketch.” I shall always remember how dazzled I was when he showed me “L’apres-midi d’un faune” in its original state, rippling with light, aflame with all the heat of summer, giving off a blinding radiance (p.125)
Debussy’s perception about music shares similarities with Schopenhauer (1966) (also one of his favourite philosophers) who regarded music as an image of the world.
Debussy (Roberts, 1996, p.147) points out that music outweighs the ability of drawings in the sense that painting could only capture one aspect at one specific moment while music could “convey all the poetry of night and day, of earth and sky”. In brief, “visions as yet unrecorded in music and their endless using on so many imaginative and symbolical associations” (Lockspeiser, 1980, p.154) are the spirit in Debussy’s music. His sensibility in transferring these visual images into music made him the reputed founder of impressionist music. For Debussy, music is motion and movement, the echo of the sound of nature, a synthesis between the inner senses and the external world, for he (Vallas, 1967) states that:
I myself love music passionately; because I love it, I try to free it from barren traditions that stifle it. It is a free art, gushing form, an open air art, an art boundless as the elements, the wind, the sky, the sea! It must never be shut in and become an academic art. (p.10)
If “the beauty of a work of art consists in the fact that it holds up a clear mirror to certain ideas inherent in the world in general (Schopenhauer, 1896, p.51)”, then, capturing the movement of the fleeting world was the goal of the impressionist composers and painters. They depicted not only the moving imageries of the fleeting moment, but also a cross-modal synthesis of sound and colour between the beholder’s world and the outside world. The Impressionists tried to capture the fleeting moment of the changing light in the natural world.
The Impressionists’ art experience has confirmed to us the importance of ‘observation’ in the making of art. Observation is the key to understanding object relationships in a profound manner. The cultivation of acute observation is inseparable from the beholder’s direct perceptual experience. Chapter 3 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of expression in the palette of the Expressionists
3.1. The palette of inner emotion: Schoenberg’s music and Kandinsky’s painting
This chapter will focus on the dimension of expression in the making of the arts. Expression is inseparable from subjectivity. Reid (1981, p.31) stated his argument as follows: “If I cognitively grasp a truth, be it ever so objective, the cognitive grasping is something of which I alone am aware, privately or, if you like, subjectively.” Take the perception of colour as an example. Ackerman (1990) asserts that “we do not all see exactly the same colours” for “a blue ship may not look the same when viewed from opposite sides of a river, depending on the landscape, clouds, and other phenomena. The emotions and memories we associate with certain colours also stain the world we see.” (p.252) Therefore, as Kandinsky (1982) suggests bright yellow may look sour as it evokes the image of a lemon. Even though the depicted object is objectively base, Ackerman’s and Kandinsky’s examples supplement Reid’s concept about the subjectivity of cognition.
For instance, Picasso (Walther, 1986, p. 15) states “I began to paint blue, when I realized that Casagemas had died.” Walther (ibid, p.16) concludes that Picasso’s Blue Period was the consequence of his friend’s departure and “blue seemed to be particularly suitable to express his feelings of sadness and grief. He continued to use this for over four years”. A typical example in the Blue Period included the painting, The Tragedy. The dominant colour in The Tragedy is blue, of different intensities. Graves (1952) states that:
Blue and green are … spiritual, non-sensuous colors … The Faustian, monotheistic colors … those of loneliness, of care, of a present that is related to a past and a future … Blue … a perspective color … It does not press in on us, it pulls us into the remote... Blue and green are … essentially atmospheric and not substantial colors. They are cold, they disembody, and they evoke impressions of expanse and distance and boundlessness (p.85). In this painting, Picasso (Walther, 1986, p.18) depicted a “family without intimacy, people without life, frozen like statues. There is nothing in their environment that might give hope for an end of their isolation from one another.” As Langer (1967) states, each form of arts is an epitome of lived experience of certain kinds.
In this chapter, the palette of the Expressionists, including Schoenberg’s music and Kandinsky’s painting, will be discussed. The works of the expressionists reflect each creator’s subjective understanding of the world. Schoenberg (Boretz & Cone, 1968, p.27) once proclaimed that “at each renewal or increase of musical materials, it is assisted by feelings, insights, occurrences, impressions.”
The works of the Expressionists serves as a ‘reflection’ of the Impressionists which has been discussed in the previous chapter. They represent two different perceptual concepts of ‘seeing’ object relationships: the former emphasis on the sensory impression of the natural world and the later focus on ‘emotional’content of the perceived object or event in art making.
In this chapter, attention will be given to exploring the ‘intensity’ in music and visual arts. The intensity of ‘brightness’ will also be discussed, especially in the dimension of ‘colour’ and ‘timbre’. According to Marks (1978), intensity and brightness are regarded as ‘suprasensory attributes’ (sensory attributes that can be experienced in similar manners, or as parallel perceptions by most of the sensory modalities). They are the profound dimensions penetrating in visual and auditory domains, and they also make themselves visible within the attributes and elements of music and the visual arts.
The intensity of sound is illustrated in the study of Stevens’ (Coren, Ward, Enns, 2004, p. 155) by using daily auditory experiences. In this study, the intensity of the sound, ordered from low to high intensity, is as follows: the sound of rustling leaves, in a quiet room, low conversation, the sound of a public speaker, the noise of a truck, and rock music. From a physical point of view, Radocy & Boyle state (1997): “Musical sounds depend on rapid atmospheric pressure fluctuations resulting from physical vibration, usually regularly recurring or periodic” (p.105). Colour, in the same way as sound, depends much on the dimension of intensity. Regarding the intensity of colour, Zwimpfer (1988, p.5) states this “electromagnetic energy in wavelengths between 380 and 760 namometers causes light reactions on the retina of the human eye, which lead to the experience of vision in the brain” . Zwimpfer (ibid, p.119) stated that “a light or a colour is measured by measuring and expressing the intensity of each individual wavelength in order”. The “intensity” of colour wavelengths will affect our perceptual experience. Sound, depends a great deal on the dimension of intensity. According to Munsell (1961), even a child can feel the intensity of colour in the natural world as follows:
A child gathers flowers, hoards colored beads, chases butterflies and begs for the gaudiest painted toys. At first his strong colour sensations are sufficiently described by the simple term of red, yellow, green, blue, and purple. But he soon sees that some are light, while others are dark, and later comes to perceive that each hue has many grayer degrees (p.14).
However, what really counts for this chapter is: How this invisible suprasensory attribute--- intensity --- affects our experience in the arts? How can we capture this attribute and apply it in the realm of appreciation? How can we explain this sensory quality to others through music and the visual arts?
‘Intensity’ is a term usually referring to psychological and physical tension. As Marks (1978, p.71) acknowledges “sensory qualities are faithful psychological expressions of the physical stimuli” and different senses are related to certain psychophysical properties. In other words, psychological properties are closely related to physiological characteristics.
The intensity level of the stimulus will shift our perception experiences. Plato (Ackerman, 1990) stated that when we perceive large objects, they cause contraction of the eyes; but when we perceive small objects, they cause dilation of our pupils. Ackerman (ibid) found that when men looked at beautiful women’s pictures, their eyes seemed to dilate as much as 30 percent. This study illustrated that feelings (psychological implications) affect the intensity of the sensory reaction. Also, Ackerman (1990, p.248) said that light can affect “our moods, it rallies our hormones, it triggers our circadian rhythms.” For example, Ackerman (ibid, p. 249) states:
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which leaves many people feeling depleted and depressed in the winter months, can be corrected by daily doses of every bright light (twenty times brighter than average indoor lighting) for about half an hour each morning.
The intensity of the stimulus will affect and intensify our medical symptoms. Ackerman (1990) included two medical reports to support the contentions that colour can excite or calm down human’s physiological symptoms. First, she referred to a study about measuring hand-grip strength when subjects are exposed to coloured lights which was conducted at the University of Texas. The results indicated that when subjects watched red light, their strength grip increased by 13.5 % due to the excitement of the brain. Ackerman (ibid) also mentioned another study of hospital patients who suffered from tremors - when they looked at blue light, the light had a therapeutic effect which calmed their brains and decreased the intensity of the tremors.
Further, Sivian & White (Coren & Ward, 2004) state that the intensity of sounds (such as the volume) can affect a human’s physical status. For example, their study reports that when the sound pressure level exceeds 140 (dB), it will reach the threshold of pain in one’s auditory apparatus. Also, Marks (1978, p.133-134) stated that studies of cross-modality literary metaphors showed the relationship between loudness of sounds and brightness of lights as “The dawn comes up like thunder” (by Rudyard Kipling) are perceived as brighter and louder than “The quiet-coloured end of evening” (by Robert Browning). These literary metaphors demonstrate the transferability of psycho-physical experiences in perceptual behaviours.
Intensity, like brightness, can transfer among different sensory modalities. The author would argue that the intensity in Schoenberg’s music and Kandinsky’s visual art is derived from their concept of pursuing ‘inner necessity’ in the process of art making. The pursuing of inner necessity accelerates Kandinsky’s and Schoenberg’s intention to develop a new format in expressing the arts --- abstract art. What is inner necessity? What is the role of inner necessity in art experience? ‘Inner necessity’ is interpreted by Kandinsky (Hahl-Koch, 1984) as an ‘objective truth’ that exists in the inner being which demands expression. Inner necessity is inseparable from the psychological status of the creator. Kandinsky’s wife, Mme Nina Kandinsky (Kandinsky, 1982), recalled that Kandinsky was guided by an inner voice, his intuition in the making of art. On the other side, Schoenberg states in Problems in teaching art (Schoenberg, 1984) that: “I believe art is born of “I must,” not of “I can.” He confessed that: ‘I follow an inner compulsion that is stronger than education, that I obey a law which is natural to me, and therefore stronger than my artistic training” (p.146). Schoenberg (ibid) perceived that the urge of ‘inner intensity’ has given him a mission to compose. He confessed that he had a duty to develop new ideas for the sake of music and he had to express these ideas clearly and honestly.
The pursuit of inner necessity also reflects Kandinsky’s and Schoenberg’s perception of the arts, they perceive that the arts are channels for expressing one’s knowledge (including experiences, beliefs and memories) about the world. According to Copplestone & Hamlyn (1967), the world around Kandinsky and Schoenberg was full of chaos, for they witnessed the anxieties, insecurities, and tragedies of the pre-World War I and the post-war period. These incidents definitely shaped their aesthetic concept towards arts and even humanity
Because of this, Kandinsky and Schoenberg perceive the necessity to develop new artistic vocabularies to express their inner emotional status. They couldn’t use the traditional artistic vocabulary (such as sounds and colours) to fully interpret the ‘intensity’ of feelings such as extreme insecurity, depression, loneliness, remoteness, suspicion and unconsciousness. The limitations of traditional vocabulary in expressing the intensity of sombre and maniac human feelings are reflected in Schoenberg’s (Boehmer, 1997) perception of the diminished seventh chord.
Wherever one wanted to express pain, excitement, anger, or some other stronger feeling --- there we find, almost exclusively, the diminished seventh chord. So it is in the music of Bach, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Weber, etc. Even in Wagner’s early works it plays the same role. But soon the role was played out. This uncommon, restless, undependable guest, here today, gone tomorrow, settled down, became a citizen, a retired philistine. The chord had lost the appeal of novelty, hence, it had lost its sharpness, but also its luster. It had nothing to say to a new era (14).
Schoenberg’s and Kandinsky’s pursuit of inner necessity remoulded their concept of ‘dissonance’ in the arts. They viewed dissonance as a tool to imply inner truth, especially the tension of human emotions, such as anxiety, mania and despair. The emancipation of dissonances (both sounds and colours) and form enabled Schoenberg and Kandinsky to express abstract emotions and feelings more vividly. They believed that truth (things and events) manifests itself in dissonances and consonances and at the same time also occurs in symmetry and non-symmetry, and abstract form.
So, what is the definition of dissonance and how does it affect the spectators’ art experience? From a musical perspective, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (Kennedy, 1980, p.181) states that dissonance in music refers to “a chord which is restless, jarring to the ear, requiring to be resolved in a particular way if its presence is to be justified by the ear (or the note or interval responsible for producing this effect).
From a musical perspective, dissonance is where a note which is foreign to the chord sounds with it. Therefore, it needs to be resolved into a consonance. Regarding the musical concords and discords, Radocy and Boyle (1997) stated as follows:
Musicians usually consider consonance or dissonance as another label for various intervals, while non-musicans evaluate intervals in accordance with the phenomenon. Consonance and dissonance judgements depend heavily on training and experience (p.105).
From the colour perspective, Murray (1952) states that some colour combinations are harmonious and some are regarded as discordant. Colour harmony depends a great deal on the inter-relationship and proportion of colours. Also, Ackerman (1990) mentions:
Our eyes do not just measure wavelengths of light. We are not really cameras. As Edwin Land, inventor of Polaroid Land Camera and instant photography, deduced, we judge colours by the company they keep. We compare them to one another, and revise according to the time of day, light source, memory (p.252).
Graves (1952) asserted that: “one colour dominant, or largest in an area, makes colour combination more unified” (p.169). This is similar to the concept of key in music. Take Klimt’s masterpiece, The Kiss as an example.
In this painting, different facets (strong, weak, bright and dull) of yellow are used to bring contrast to the couples’ gowns. Regarding the principle of colour unity, if one colour dominates a picture, it will create a balanced perceptual effect with other colours. In other words, The Kiss suits this principle of colour unity for golden yellow is a predominant colour which covers most of the canvas in contrast with the darker background.
Schoenberg’s and Kandinsky’s (Hahl-Koch, 1984) ‘concept of dissonance’ is manifested by their ‘exaggerated’ usage of visual and auditory materials. The ‘intensity’ of the artistic materials not only affects the perceptual experience of the beholders but also their psychological feelings of the depicted objects.
The emancipation of dissonance distorts the formal contour of a piece of music or a piece of painting and accelerates the development of abstract art. As the traditional design format such as rounding-out, symmetry and harmony are insufficient for Schoenberg and Kandinsky to express their inner truth. The abstractness in Kandinsky and Schoenberg’s art will be demonstrated in Kandinsky’s painting, With Three Riders and Schoenberg’s painting, Vision.
These two paintings reflect Kandinsky’s and Schoenberg’s inner self and their psychological status. The abstract contour and colour made the figures difficult to recognize. In With Three Riders, Kandinsky drew three riders in abstract form. ‘Rider’ bears a very special meaning to Kandinsky, for he symbolizes the image of the rider as a messenger who announces a new era and generation. According to Copplestone (1967), Kandinsky once shared the origin of the name ‘Blue Rider’as follows: “We both loved blue; Marc loved horses, and I riders; and thus the name aroses by itself” (p.24). On the other hand, Schoenberg (Hahl-Koch, 1984) interprets his painting Vision as follows:
I never saw faces but, because I looked into people’s eyes, only their gazes. This is the reason why I can imitate the gaze of a person. A painter, however, grasps with one look the whole person --- I, only his soul (p.167).
According to Hahl-Koch (1984), Kandinsky once named this painting ‘Visions’ while Schoenberg called it “Gazes”. Later, Schoenberg (ibid, 1984) confessed that the painting was his perceptual experiences of people’s gazes.
Further, in 1910, Kandinsky painted his first work entirely detached from the object. Composition IV, which was painted in 1911, is a typical example. Dabrowski (1995) says Kandinsky’s Composition IV is a picture about the chaos of a war.
The tension in Kandinsky’s Composition IV manifests itself in its arrangement of lines and colours. Kandinsky divided the canvas into two parts. The arrangement in the left part is more intense and complex than the right part. For instance, Dabrowski (1995) states two lovers recline in the lower right hand part, two figures stand on the hillside in the upper right hand part, three figures stand in front of a blue mountain in the middle of the canvas.
Moving to the left side of the painting, two boats are depicted in the lower left with two figures above them, wiggling violet sabres. All these visual materials create dynamics and tension in the canvas. What Kandinsky displayed in Composition IV was his subjective experience of a chaotic world, full of contrast, dissonance and movement.
Through emancipating form and dissonances (both sounds and colours) in the making of art, Kandinsky and Schoenberg are enabled to express abstract emotions and feelings more vividly. 3.2. The colours in music and painting: the colour concept of Schoenberg and Kandinsky
Locke (Yolton,1970) concluded “we can never say our ideas are conformable to the real essence of an object, but every actual sense perception gives us reason for saying the sensory ideas confirm to some real existence”(p.107). Kandinsky’s and Schoenberg’s idea of pursuing inner necessity is manifested in their music and painting materials. In this section, Schoenberg’s Five Orchestral piece Op.16 No.3 (Faben) and Kandinsky’s Impression III (Concert) illustrate the duality and intensity of brightness in music and painting.
The impressionist era not only influenced the musical development of Debussy, but also inspired the artistic development of Kandinsky. Kandinsky recalled that when he saw Monet’s Haystack, he re-experienced the power of colour (indicated by different shadings and layers of brightness). Kandinsky (1982, p.618) identified the brightness of music and painting as follows: “It may be suggested that in music, line offers the greatest store of expressive resources. Here, line operates in exactly the same temporal and spatial ways as is to be seen in paintings.” Further, Kandinsky (ibid) states:
The scale of values from pianissimo to fortissimo can be expressed by increasing or decreasing intensity of line, or by its degree of lightness. The pressure of the hand upon the bow corresponds perfectly to the pressure of the hand upon the pencil (p.618).
Both Kandinsky and Schoenberg acknowledge the visual attributes in music. Kandinsky (1982) insists each dot and line in painting has its own individual sound. Whenever the dots and lines change, the sound (colour) varies. The visual attribute in music is described by Schoenberg (Boretz and Cone, 1968) in Harmonielehre as follows:
I cannot unreservedly agree with the distinction between colour and pitch. I find that a note is perceived by its colour, one of whose dimension is pitch. Colour, then, is the great realm, pitch one of its provinces … If the ear could discriminate between differences of colour, it might be feasible to invent melodies that are built of colours (klangfarben melodien). But who dares to develop such theories (p.15- 16). Regarding the relationship between colour and sound, Marks (1975) explains this scientifically as follows:
The associations between colour and sound are often regular, systematic, and consistent from one person to another. Rather than displaying merely some odd, fortuitous associations, these universal synesthetic experiences reflect important cognitive properties that in several respects are common to normal people as well as to synesthetes (p.303).
Regarding the facets of colour, the intensity of brightness is influenced by the physical characteristic of the colour, such as its wavelengths. Regarding the definition of colour, Zwimpfer (1988) explains it as follows:
The light of the sun and of most other sources of light is composed of rays of differing wavelengths, whereby the amounts of energy in the varying wavelengths can be very different. Varying light rays with differing amounts of energy can be perceived by the eye as different colours. (p.73)
Schoenberg’s (1984) Five Orchestral Pieces Op.16. No.3 (Faben) is the manifestation of his ‘visual’ music and he displayed the visual attributes of ‘timbre’ in this composition. The Five Orchestral Pieces Op.16. No.3 (Faben) is also translated as colour music, changing chords, colours, Morning on the Traunsee and Summer morning at a Lake by authors, such as Boretz and Cone (1968).
This music is Schoenberg’s impressions of the Traunsee at dawn. The musical progressions move in a slow and constant manner within the whole piece of music, which is similar to the ‘quivering reflection of the sun on a sheet of water’ (Dahlhaus, 1988). Schoenberg projects the changing light on the waves by the changing timbre of instruments. In order words, the colours of the changing brightness lie in the differing timbres of the instrument. The author would argue that the intensity in Schoenberg’s Five Orchestral Op.16 No.3 lies in the rapid changing of timbre. In Faben, Schoenberg (1984, 1950) pays special attention to the timbre of each individual instrument. He tried to explore the sound of individual instruments by arranging (usually) each instrument to play half the note and then replacing it on the second half of the note by another instrument. The fifteen instruments in Faben portray the scene of dawn and the waters of Traunsee.
The instruments are as follows: (1) Woodwind instrument: flute, oboe, English Horn, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, contrabassoon, (2) Brass instrument: horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, (3) String instrument: violin, viola, violin cello and double bass. The brasses and strings are muted occasionally. Also, Schoenberg adopted special effects for the string section, such as pizzicato and harmonics (muted and unmated).
Regarding the cross-modal experience of brightness and tones, bright sounds (timbre) are occasionally linked with bright colours and soft tones are usually matched with dim colours. The timbre of the fifteen instruments project different shades of brightness and dimness to the listeners. The movement and variety of tone colours in Faben resembles the ripple of waves.
The concept of using timbre to replace the traditional role of melody is the other facet of Schoenberg’s abstraction in arts. According to Burkhart (1974), the changing of instruments in Faben outweighs the changing of pitch. The pitch of this piece is composed mainly from a five-note chord, C, G#, B, E and A, without any melodic theme. The piece of music is a prolongation of chordal progressions.
Besides, the dynamic level of every instrument is carefully measured and designed. Schoenberg even demanded that the conductor should not emphasise any note but rather to be loyal to the score. In the other words, he didn’t want the dynamics to affect the changing of timbre (tone-colour), for the tone colour remains the focus of the whole piece. The static and motionless nature of the melody and dynamic is subordinated to the rapid alternation of the instruments, which exists in every bar. Therefore, it is the timbre that really leads the movement of the music. Debussy and Schoenberg have used musical entities to paint the brightness of music: the former uses properties such as dynamics and performance direction in his Prelude series and the latter concentrates on the changing of timbre, particularly in the Five Orchestral Op.16 No.3. Their compositional concepts further testify the ‘intensity’ of brightness in art experience.
Brightness is regarded as a suprasensory attributes in human perceptual experience, especially obvious in the dimension of visual and auditory domain. Even visually impaired or blind subject groups, they can still feel the intensity of brightness or darkness in their sensory experiences.
The intensity of brightness is displayed by Kandinsky through his usage of colours. Kandinsky demonstrates that each colour has its own tension. As when different colours are put on the canvas, as with the different pitches located on the stave, the intensity of advancing and retreating become obvious to the spectators.
Take Kandinsky’s Impression III as an example. Kropfinger (Boehmer, 1997) states after watching Schoenberg’s concert in 1911, Kandinsky completed Impression III as a reminiscence of the concert. This painting also marked his mutual correspondence with Schoenberg. During the concert, Kandinsky encountered Schoenberg’s music, the atonality of music. Kropfinger (ibid) states that Kandinsky heard the performance of Schoenberg’s String Quartets in D (op.7) and String Quartets in F-sharp (op.10), the Piano Pieces op.11 and five songs from op. 2 and op.6 in this concert. Schoenberg’s atonal compositions had given Kandinsky a profound experience of his artistic development --- the path towards abstraction.
Kandinsky’s Impression III (concert) is mainly composed by two major colours: black and yellow. The black in the upper right section represents the grand piano in Schoenberg’s concert. According to Becks-Malorny (1994), Kandinsky insists black is a silent colour, the most toneless colour against all other colours. Yellow is described by Kandinsky (ibid, 1994) as ‘bright tones’, like the sound of the trumpet playing loudly and like a high-pitched fanfare. Regarding timbre and colour, Kandinsky (1977) states as follows: A cold, light red contains a very distinct bodily or material element, but it is always pure, like the fresh beauty of the face of a young girl. The singing notes of a violin express this exactly in music.
Warm red, intensified by a suitable yellow, is orange. This blend brings red almost to the point of spreading out towards the spectator. But the element of red is always sufficiently strong to keep the colour from flippancy. Orange is like a man, convinced of his own powers. Its note is that of the angelus, or of an old violin (40-41).
Kandinsky’s cross-modal experience of visual-auditory entities confirms to us another dimension of perceptual experience: photism (sound evokes visual images). For instance, bright sounds usually evoke bright images and vice versa. Also, it is a human tendency to pair bright, loud sounds with bright images and dim sounds, soft sound with dimmer, softer images.
In the case of Kandinsky’s perception, the ‘timbre’ of the instrument modifies the intensity of brightness of the image being elicited. Usually, loud, thick and bright timbres (such as trumpet) evoke the images of bright colours and delicate, thin sounds (for example, the flute) usually elicit dimmer colours and images. Kandinsky’s perceptual experience illustrates the idea that bright colours are usually associated with bright sounds.
3.3. The intensity in music and painting: Schoenberg’s Der kranke Mond and Munch’s painting
In this section, Schoenberg’s Der kranke Mond (The sick moon) and Munch’s paintings will be analysed. Attention will focus on how the intensity of ‘sounds’ and ‘lines’ transfer ‘emotional intensity’ to the spectator.
Traditionally, the moon is a symbol of serenity, femininity and pureness. The moon has been commonly used as an expressive model in music and the visual arts. For instance, Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, Debussy’s Claire de lune, Sailor Moon’s Moonlight Princess (Japanese animation’s ending theme) and Evangelion’s Fly me to the moon (Japanese animation’s ending theme and Virgin Airline advertising song). On the other hand, Whistler (Holden, 1976) intended to name his quiescent ‘night pieces’ Moonlights. However, he later entitled this series Nocturnes. All the above examples suggest the image of the moon, which is frequently related with qualities such as gentleness, quietness and perhaps melancholy.
Ironically, Schoenberg uses the moon as a reflection of desperation and anxiety in Der kranke Mond (The Sick Moon). Der kranke Mond is the seventh piece in Pierrot Lunaire Op.21 (Pierrot in the Moonlight Op.21), which is based on the poem written by Albert Giraud (originally in French but later translated into German). According to Pierrot Lunaire Op.21 is a crystalisation of two modern compositional techniques: atonality in music composition and the usage of Sprechstimme. The poem is depicted from a narrative point of view.
The intensity of Der kranke Mond (The Sick Moon) is manifested in Schoenberg’s treatment of sound, which is reflected in his usage of (1) Sprechstimme and (2) exaggeration of music materials, such as leaps, dynamic levels and range of the instruments. In Pierrot Lunaire, Schoenberg uses the above musical strategies to transfer the feeling of ‘mania’ to the listeners.
The psychological status of the character is reflected in the ‘Sprechstimme’. According to Kostka (1984), ‘Sprechstimme’ is the best-known vocal technique which originated in the 20th century. Sprechstimme is half way between singing and speech, which brought the human voice into another realm of performance practice.
Figure 3.1 Der kranke Mond: the cross (x) indicates ‘Sprechstimme’ Schoenberg used ‘Sprechstimme’ in a unique way as he demanded the piece to be performed in strict rhythm. Instead of holding the pitch, it was left immediately, either by falling or rising. The sound effect is not like normal singing or normal speech, which corresponds with the psychological emotion of the character. The range of the voice in this case, extends from E (below middle C) to D (octave above middle C). This is not within the common register of the soprano (normally from middle C to two octaves higher).
The adoption of Sprechstimme and the atonality of the music intensify the dramatic content of the composition. Below is Albertine Zehme’s (Simms, 2000) experience as the performer of Pierrot Lunaire Op.21, she expressed the using of Sprechstimme assisted the illustration of utmost, abstract aspects of human nature as follows:
Life cannot be exhausted by the beautiful sound alone. The deepest final happiness, the deepest final sorrow dies away unheard, as a silent scream within our breast, which threatens to fly apart or to erupt like a stream of molten lava from our lips. For the expression of these final things it seems to me almost cruel to expect the singing voice to do such a labor, from which it must go forth frayed, splintered, and tattered. (p.121)
The irritated emotion in Der kranke Mond (The Sick Moon) is emphasised by consecutively big and small leaps in the atonal flute section. The atonal sound creates the image of aimlessness and ambiguousness of the lover. Regarding atonality in Schoenberg’s music, Ernst Krenek (Simms, 2000) states:
Atonality has always aimed straight at the substance, the gist, of musical expression, eliminating all intervening associations, all nonessential elements, and all the ornaments of handcraft … Atonality has given speech to the individual, liberating him from delusive chains and seductive illusions. By intensifying the expression of personal emotion to the utmost, it has demonstrated the loneliness and alienation of humanity as clearly as possible. (p.4) Leaps consisting of 7ths, or above, occur 13 times within 26 bars. Great leaps of 6ths or above also exist 15 times in the flute session. Besides, leaps within the interval of thirds and fifths frequently occur in this piece. These sudden big and small leaps of the musical line highlight the fluctuations of the music.
Further, the high pitches are commonly accompanied by forte, which added the sharpness and dynamic of the piece. Schoenberg didn’t explore the full range of the flute (usually three octaves from middle C) in this piece. The range of the flute extends from middle C to E# (octave higher than middle C). Most of the time, he used the bottom and the middle range. Traditionally, the bottom and middle register of the flute usually portray a sense of warm, rich and agile sound. However, Schoenberg used the flute to create an irregular and dissonant tone which paired with the distorted psychological status of the character.
Furthermore, the exaggerated dynamic level, such as from f to pppp in bar 14 to bar 15 (flute section), shaped the fluctuation mood of the piece. The big contrast within one bar has increased the dramatic content of the piece. Schoenberg used the moon as a metaphor and the mood of the piece was full of dissonance and interruptions, unlike its usual tranquillity and calmness. All these atonal treatments of musical material increase the intensity and abstractness of the piece. Schoenberg uses all these unusual ‘sound’ effect to portray the anxiety of the lover.
The lyrics in Der kranke Mond also create intensity to the music. For instance, Du nUchtig todeskranker Mond (O sombre deathly-stricken moon) repeats three times. Through repetition, the intensity of the sickness of the moon is being reinforced and strengthened. The first time, the musical notes are presented in a descending manner. The second time, the notes are accompanied by minims with various leaps. Finally, the motive itself is decorated by staccato and upper mordents with various leaps. The big leaps increase the instability of the image of the moon. Also, ‘stirbst du’ (you die) is accompanied by a big descending leap (from G# to A natural) which added the intensity of the death. The distorted, dissonant musical line in Der krante Mond resembles to the visual lines of Edvard Munch’s painting Scream. In this painting, Munch used two specific types of lines, the straight lines and the wavy lines. The straight lines intersect the painting into different proportions. The wavy lines which appear in the background and foreground of the human figure create the feeling of fluctuation to the spectator. The contrast of straight and wavy lines also adds the dynamic into the paintings.
The face of the figure (foreground) and the objects at the back (background) are being distorted. The frightened, fragile facial expression indicates that the depicted person was under extreme anxiety and pressure. Also, the red-orange (warm colour) and blue-purple (cold colour) that are located on the top of the canvas create tension, dissonance and contrast to the picture.
Regarding the making of Scream, Munch (Torjusen, 1986) himself, he states:
I walked along the road with two friends --- and the sun went down The sky suddenly became blood --- and I felt as if a breath of sadness I stopped --- leaned against the railing tired to death. Over the blue-black fjord and city lay clouds of dripping steaming blood My friends walked on and I was left in fear with an open wound in my breast. a great scream went through nature (p.136).
The intensity in Scream resembles the dissonant mood in Der kranke Mond (The Sick Moon). Further, Munch’s another painting, The Dead mother and Child, also correspond with the feeling of desperation in Der kranke Mond. In the painting, The Dead mother and Child, Munch transfers the intensity of sadness and desperation (reaching the limit of mania) to the spectator. From the intense facial expression of the little girl, it indicates that she is under extreme tension and anxiety. The intensity of this painting is manifested in Munch’s lines and the dissonance of colours. Apart from the little girl and the dead mother, the facial features of other figures are simplified into rough contours. The pale and motionless facial expression of the dead mother creates a contrasting effect to the image of the little girl. The main colour of this painting is restrained to the shade of green and orange-brown. Munch uses orange, a bright colour to highlight the tension and the desperation of the little girl.
From the perspective of expression, what did Schoenberg and Munch display to us in their music and painting? What is the implication behind the intensity of their visual and auditory materials? How can their aesthetic perception enrich our understanding in the arts?
Schoenberg’s music and Munch’s painting reflect Reid’s (1981) idea that cognition is a private and subjective experience. The arts provide a channel for expressing abstract and personal experience through the using of different artistic materials. If Impressionism aims at depicting the ‘transitory sensory experiences’ of the beholder, then the essence of Expressionism lies in depicting the ‘fleeting emotional status’ of the beholder. For example, the essence and spirit of Munch’s painting and Schoenberg’s music is to depict the different facets of human emotions.
What makes Munch immortal in the history of modern art is his talent of portraying abstract ‘somber human emotions’, such as fear, loneliness, uncertainties, anxiety and desperation. Munch (Copplestone, 1967) truly portrays every aspect of human emotion in his artworks, even the haunted and the unfortunate ones, such as ‘death’, ‘sickness’ and ‘misery’. His accuracy in depicting the ‘intensity’ of emotional content (similar to the accuracy of Impressionists capturing brightness) made him as one of the most influential painters in art history.
Munch, like Schoenberg and Kandinsky, put his ‘individuality’ and ‘experience’ into his palette. For Munch’s artistic development is closely related to his psychological states in various stages of his life. Sickness and death always surrounded and took away his precious ones in his childhood and adulthood. Munch (Torjusen, 1986) states,:
These basically sick years have on the other hand been decisive for my entire life and my outlook on life --- I therefore do not mean that my art is sick as ... many people believe. These are people who do not know the essence of art nor do they know the history of art When I paint illness and vice it is on the contrary a healthy release It is a healthy reaction from which one can learn and live --- (p.52)
Munch’s paintings, especially his topics related to “misery” and “death” put him into crisis as people banned them from exhibitions. The public commented that they were disgusting and dreadful. They were horrified by the realistic nature of the paintings. On the other hand, Ringer (1990) states that Schoenberg often angers his listeners by his extreme contrast in the treatment of rhythm, melody, texture, and harmony.
From Munch’s painting, Schoenberg’s compositions and from the public’s response to them, we can see that the intense facets of emotion can transfer through visual and auditory materials to the spectators and listeners. Munch, Kandinsky and Schoenberg have made an important contribution in the making of art in art history as they emphasises the ‘pursuit of inner necessity’. They reveal the ‘reality’ instead of ‘beautify’ the human nature. Munch (Ulrich Bischoff, 2000, p.18) once criticized the contemporary scene: “What ruins modern art is the vast markets, and the demand that pictures look good on the wall … they are not painted for their own sake … not with any intention to tell a story.”
4. The intensity in the palette of the Impressionists and the Expressionists: a comparison of their portrait of the moon
In this section, the intensity in music and the visual arts will be explored through comparing the music and painting of the Impressionists and the Expressisonists. Special attention will be given to the treatment of the ‘intensity of the line’ between the Impressionists and the Expressionists in their music and paintings. The music and painting examples in this analysis section shares a common theme: the moon, from the perspective of Debussy, Schoenberg, Whistler and Munch. Kandinsky (1982) regards lines as the common elements in music and painting as follows:
In music, line offers the greatest source of expressive resources. Here, line operates in exactly the same temporal and spatial ways as is to be seen in paintings. The scale of values from pianissimo to fortissimo can be expressed by increasing or decreasing intensity of line, or by degree of lightness. The pressure of the hand upon the bow corresponds perfectly to the pressure of the hand upon the pencil. Their significance should not be overlooked (p.572)
In his Point and Line to Plane, Kandinsky (1979) asserts that point and line are the two common attributes in music and the visual arts. For the definition of point, Kandinsky (1982, p. 556) asserts that “points can be found in all the arts, and their inner force will certainly impinge more and more upon the consciousness of artists.” As for lines, Kandinsky (ibid, 572) proclaimed that “the forces that operate from outside to transform the point into line can be very different in character. Variations in line depend upon the number of these forces and their combination.”
Take “Arabesque” as an example. According to Kennedy (1980, p.23), Arabesque refers to “a florid element in Arabian architecture, or a florid melodic section.” Hanslick (1974) metaphorically uses this art form to illustrate the invisible moving line in music as follows:
We see a plexus of flourishes, now blending into graceful curves, now rising in bold sweeps; moving now towards, and now away from each other; correspondingly matched in small and large arcs; apparently incommensurable, yet duly proportioned throughout; with a duplicate or counterpart to every segment; in fine, a compound of oddments, and yet a perfect whole. (p.67)
Lines possess physical and psychological properties. From a physical dimension, Okada (2003, p.76) explains that: “the succession of points forms a line that has a variety of shapes. ‘Straight’ and ‘curve’ are part of the central vocabulary that can be observed in both music and painting.” Straight line, curved line, sharply angled line, flat line, gentle curving line and other combination of lines, they all exist in music and the visual arts.
From a psychological dimension, every line has its own characteristic and identity. Zelanski & Fisher (1991) states:
Line may express emotional qualities. Sharply angled line may suggest excitement, anger, danger, or chaos; a relatively flat line suggests calmness; a wide, fast line suggests bold strength, directness; a gently curving line may suggest unhurried pleasure. Such expressive qualities may set the tone for works of art. (p.78)
For instance, in Alberto Giacometti’s sculpture, the three-dimensional human figures are expressed and reduced in terms of thin, skeleton lines. According to Zelanski & Fisher (1991, p.70), “this reduction of a human to something less than a skeleton can be seen as a statement about the isolation and loneliness of the individual in modern civilisation.”
From the above quotations, Kandinsky reveals to us that the ‘intensity’ of the line is based on the ‘force’ and ‘intention’ of the creator. In other words, the intensity of the line is manifested in the treatment of ‘force’ in music and the visual arts. Kandinsky identifies and relates the ‘intensity’ of line with loudness and softness (auditory element) and brightness and dimness (visual element).
Further, Kandinsky (1982) metaphorically states that the intensity of the perceived line is also affected by the quality of the sound, the timbre in which he concludes as follows:
The pitch of the different instruments corresponds to the breath of a line: violin, flute, and piccolo produce a very thin line, viola and clarinet a somewhat thicker one; and by way of the lower instruments, one arrives at broader and broader lines, right down to the lowest notes of double bass or tuba (618). From a musical perspective, the Expressionists perceives ‘dynamic’ as a means of intensify the emotional content of the composition. For the Impressionists, they perceive it as a means to highlight the ‘mood’ of the depicted object. In this section, Schoenberg’s Der kranke Mond (The sick moon), Debussy’s Clair de lune (Moonlight), Whistler’s Nocturne: Blue and Gold --- Southampton Water and Munch’s Moonlight, these four examples will be used to illustrate the cross-modal perception of ‘mood’ and ‘line’ in auditory and visual materials. The facets of the line, such as its dynamic, brightness and contour, will be displayed by using these two different genres of music and art movement.
Musically, in Der kranke Mond and Clair de lune, Schoenberg and Debussy use the ‘moon’ as the depicted model. However, the mood portrayed in these two pieces of music differs from one another. The desperate mood of Der kranke Mond is highlighted by the usage of lyrics. According to Dunsby (1992, p.44-45), the translation of Der kranke Mond is as follows:
O sombre deathly-stricken moon lying on heaven’s dusky pillow Your stare, so wide-eyed, feverish, charms me, like far-off melody. Of unappeasable pain of love You die, of yearning, choked to death. O sombre deathly-stricken moon lying on heaven’s dusky pillow. The lover, with his heart aflame, Who heedless goes to meet his love, rejoices in your play of light, your pallid, pain-begotten blood, O sombre deathly-stricken moon!
From a musical perspective, the atmosphere of desperation is being intensified by the ‘instable’ musical lines, which are composed by large leaps, atonal pitches and sung by singer using the vocal technique of ‘Sprechstimme’. Albertine Zehme (Simms, 2000, p.121), the performer of Pierrot Lunaire, expressed how the technique of Sprechstimme highlighted the intensity of emotional context of the composition as follows:
The singing voice, that supernatural, chastely controlled instrument, ideally beautiful precisely in its ascetic lack of freedom, is not suited to strong eruptions of feeling --- since even one strong breath of air can spoil its incomparable beauty.
Also, the dynamic level frequently occurs in an abrupt and exaggerated manner. All these devices illustrate the complicacy, anxiety and mania status of the character. The mood portrayed in Der kranke Mond differs from that in Clair de lune. Der kranke Mond uses the moon as a projection of a chaotic psychological status.
On the contrary, Clair de lune is a serenade which depicts the serenity and the floating transitory image of the moon. The accompaniment in Clair de lune is largely based on arpeggios of quavers which create movement and a flowing atmosphere for the piece. Debussy uses precise performance directions to suggest the facets and the temperament of the moonlight. For instance, rubato is used to depict the transfiguration of the moonlight. The dynamic level is carefully marked and designed so as to match the gentleness and flexible temperament of the moon. The alternating crescendo and decrescendo (in a gradual manner) portrays the distance of the moon as sometimes near and sometimes far. The softness of the dynamic level elicits the image of softness and quietness in one’s auditory experience. Other performance directions in the music score are illustrated in Figure 3.2 in the following page.
In Schoenberg’s case, his moon is not just a sensory impression about the external world, but a reflection of the character’s emotional world. The intensity in Schoenberg’s (the exaggerated dynamic level in both the Sprechstimme and the instrumental sections) Der kranke mond is derived from his belief that the inner core (truthfulness) of an object outweighs its outer appearance. Music and painting are no longer a representation of outward beauty, the ‘content’ is more important than form. Figure 3.2 The performance directions of Debussy’s Clair de line
The performance direction of Debussy’s Clair de lune 1. con sordina (with mute) 2. andante trYs expressif (very flowing with expression) 3. tempo rubato (flexible tempo) 4. peu Q peu cresc. et animZYa
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The mood in Debussy’s Clair de lune resembles Whistler’s Nocturne: Blue and Gold --- Southampton Water in which the contour of the auditory materials is blurred and blended with each other. From a musical point of view, the flowing, soft and blur fragmental musical line in Clair de lune corresponds with the blended and blurred colours and lines in Nocturne: Blue and Gold --- Southampton Water. The contours in Nocturne: Blue and Gold --- Southampton Water are blurred. The colours are blended together in the canvas and the source of light is dispersed in various degree and intensity. The serenity of Whistler’s moonlight is similar to the serenity of Clair de lune. In this painting, Whistler uses different facets of brightness and darkness to illustrate the reflection of light.
The intensity of the line is also manifest in the treatment of colours or tone colours in music and the visual arts. When comparing the work of the Impressionist and Expressionist artist, it’s not difficult to find that the ‘contour’ of the Impressionist painting usually uses lighter shades and sheer colours to bring out the changing brightness of the natural world.
In order to paint the transparent effect of light, black is usually avoided or subdued in the palette of the Impressionist as black will darken the mood of the painting. On the other hand, the Expressionist prefers using black and brown to deepen the intensity and contour of the picture. They tend to use a stronger linear effect and darker colours in their paintings. Whistler’s Nocturne: Blue and Gold --- Southampton Water and Munch’s Moonlight will serve as examples to illustrate the ‘contour’ of the Impressionist and Expressionist.
According to Copplestone (1967), although some Expressionist painters use nature as the depicted object, they emphasis the emotional content of the depicted object. Zelanski & Fisher (1991) states that the Expressionists portray the anxiety, anguish and hopeless situations of human nature rather than the sweetness, brightness, and materialistic nature that the Impressionists reflect.
The mood in Nocturne: Blue and Gold—Southampton Water differs from Moonlight. Regarding the style of Whistler, Holden states (1976):
The dying light subdued or eliminated all distracting detail that might interfere with his bold design of large, flat shapes. “As the light fades and the shadows deepen all petty and exacting details vanish, everything trivial disappears, and I see things as they are in great strong masses: the buttons are lost, but the sitter remains; the garment is lost, but the sitter remains; the sitter is lost, but the shadow remains; the shadow is lost, but the picture remains. And that, night cannot efface from the painter’s imagination” (p.16).
In Munch’s Moonlight, he symbolizes his “moonlight” into the format of a column. Munch’s Moonlight is a psychological sketch of the beholder’s perception, a vision derived from cognitive appraisal rather from sensory observations. Like Whistler, Munch used limited colours in this painting. However, he displayed the colours precisely and clearly instead of hazily distributing them on the canvas. Munch’s bold and linear effect of lines and his highly individual abstract form of images, differ from the soft, blended materials of Whistler.
From the palette of Schoenberg, Munch, Debussy and Whistler, they further illustrate Kandinsky’s statement concerning the transferability of line in music and the visual arts. The ‘intensity’ of the line is influenced by the ‘force’ and ‘intention’ of the creator. The intensity in music and the visual arts are suggested and expressed through the arrangement of lines. Different aesthetic concepts will create different varieties and combination of lines, visually or audibly. For instance, the line (contour) of the Impressionist (music and painting) is commonly ‘blurred’, ‘soft’ and ‘blended’ with one another and the line (contour) of the Expressionist (music and painting) is ‘darker’ and ‘linear’ than the Impressionists.
The ‘intensity’ of the Impressionist and Expressionist is reflected in their treatment and expression of ‘emotion’ in the arts. In other words, the force and intention (emotion and feeling) they inserted into the composition, which is reflected in the treatment of melodic line and texture of the orchestration.
Regarding the melodic line, Brody (1987) asserts that French music is not vocally based like Italian melody (the basis for German melody). Also, French music is associated with thoughts and ideas instead of based on beautiful and lyrical melodies, like those of German and Italian music. For instance, the melodic contour of Debussy is like fragment of thoughts, appeared in a fragmentary manner. On the other hand, German music focus more on the development of the melody, so that the essence of the whole piece could develop and form together.
Musically, the texture of orchestration is metaphorically described as thick, thin, light, rough and smooth etc. The number and timbre of the instruments and voices will influence the texture of the music perception. Regarding the texture of the orchestration, Debussy (Vallas, 1967) tried to avoid excessive repetition of sounds, and he (Lockspeiser, 1980) announced that, “I should like to keep the melodic line lyrical,” he explains, “and not allow the orchestra to predominate” (p.29). According to Jarocinski (1970), doubling of different instruments in orchestration is usually avoided in Debussy’s music. Debussy’s string section is usually divided in order to avoid choral effects. Examples can be found in his La Mer and Pelleas et Melisande in which the strings are divided in different parts. Also, his brass instruments are employed in a reserved manner because of their thick and dense sound. For their preference of instruments, Debussy and Ravel were fond of using woodwind instruments (Ravel, especially liked the flute) in order to create a thin, transparent texture and atmosphere. It’s not difficult to ‘hear’ that the texture of Wagner’s orchestral music is thicker than Debussy’s.
On the contrary, the treatment of orchestration in German music is concluded by Lippman (1999) as follows:
The orchestra further strengthened the emotions of the action by renouncing a musically autonomous structure and reducing its contribution largely to individualized expressive phrases, endlessly juxtaposed and repeated, especially in sequence, so as to increase their impact by element devices of rhetoric (p.181).
In German music, Lippman (1999, p.181) states: “in every way, the Wagnerian artwork was calculated to intensify feeling; its monumental emotionalism was the result of the implicit that, in the realm of feelings, quantity was quality.” The essence of ‘quantity was quality’ is reflected in the ‘texture’ of orchestration.
Regarding music expression, the aesthetic concept of Debussy and French music is to imply and create the mood instead of ‘emotion’. Debussy (Vallas, 1967) states “I should like to insist on the use of this term Impressions, which I value because it enables me to shield my emotion from any parasitic aesthetics.” (p.2) On the other hand, Ravel’s aesthetic concept in music is stated by Orenstein (1991, p.129) as “Ravel’s art strove neither for passion nor for truth, but rather for the “contemplation of the Beautiful,” through the satisfaction of the mind by means of the ear’s pleasure.
The Impressionist’s and Expressionist’s diversity of aesthetic perception of ‘emotion’ in the arts implies another dimension of art experience to us, as Kaplan (Radocy & Boyle, 1997, p.14) asserts --- the arts are a manifestation of personal experience. The treatment of lines in the expressionists’ music and painting reveal their pursuit of ‘inner necessity’ in the making of the arts.
The pursuit of inner necessity motivates the expressionists to express feeling in a more intense dimension. Kandinsky and Schoenberg have revealed another dimension of art making to us --- the emergence of originality through the pursuit of ‘inner necessity’. According to Christensen (1995, p.34), ‘originality must be distinguished from imitations’ and ‘anything original possesses a kind of value that is impossible to achieve by imitation” (ibid, p.35).
Why is ‘originality’ impossible to imitate? Sulzer (1995) suggested that it is the distinctive individuality in the artwork or in music. This kind of individuality is achieved through an irresistible inner drive and determination to overcome all difficulties in order to pursue the desired format of art representation. The essence of originality can be deduced from Radocy & Boyle’s (1988) interpretation of Kaplan’s function of the arts as follows:
Art as a form of knowledge is an aesthetic knowledge based on the “essence of originality in putting together things, objects, ideals, sounds, forms, and space and time relationships in ways that have not been done before, but on the principle of beauty”. Such knowledge also involves subjectivity, the essence of which is undefinable. This subjectivity, Kaplan maintains, gives art its strength and reason for being (p.14).
In other words, ‘originality’ in the arts is a product of humanize activity. We are seeing a ‘person’ instead of viewing the materials in the canvas or in the repertoire. Sircello (Walter, 1976, p.118) interpreted the humanized behaviour in the arts as follows:
Love of “nature” in a painting, “imagination” in a novel, are examples of attributions which one’s feels must be seen as manifestations of “person” in art beyond the mere presence of a quality in the work itself. He insists that it is not necessary to treat such attributions as applying either to the artist or to the work. He sees them as applying simultaneously to both (p.118). Personal experience is inseparable with one’s cognitive and sensory experiences. The artistic journeys of Schoenberg, Kandinsky and Munch have testified the necessity of subjectivity in evaluating object relationship in art making. The cornerstone of Schoenberg’s and Kandinsky’s compositional concept is the pursuit of inner necessity through the arts. The arts function as an expression of inner emotional content. The making of the arts is inseparable with psychological activities such as emotion and feeling. If the impressionists’ perceptual concept emphasis is on “I see”, then the perceptual concept of the expressionists will be “I feel”. Chapter 4 The role of cross-modal experience in art making: the facets of imagination and metaphor in the Japanese animation
4.1. The role of imagination and metaphor in art experience
This chapter will discuss the role of imagination in art experience. Also, the element which is associated with imagination --- metaphor, will also be studied. Attention will be given to the role of ‘metaphor’ as a means of constructing meaning in the arts and in art experience. In chapters 2 and 3, attention was focused on the role of observation and expression in art experience. This chapter will interpret how imagination enriches the observation and expression of the arts. Further, media art, particularly animation, will be used as a medium to investigate the synchronization of sound and image.
Referring to Merriam-Webster’s online Dictionary (2007), imagination refers to “the act or power of forming a mental image of something not present to the senses or never before wholly perceived in reality.” For instance, Cooper (1992, p.214) states:
When, however, I summon the image of a horse in the absence of a real horse, or invent the description of a battle which I have heard about from no other source, my image and my thought go beyond what is given to me, and lie within the province of my will. Such inventive acts are paradigm cases of imagination. And, in so far as they involve thoughts, these thoughts are of a distinctive kind --- they are not beliefs about the actual world, but suppositions about an imagery world.
Regarding the role of imagination in art experience, Hanslick (1974) comments that imagination establishes relationship between our sentiments and the perceived objects. Imagination requires active thinking and skills of organization. Take the making of the comics and animation, Garfield as an example.
Garfield, has been regarded by the Guinness World Records as the most widely syndicated comic strip in the world, with approximately 263,000,000 readers of Garfield each day. According to Garfield.com (2007), the inspiration of Garfield is derived from Jim Davies’s (Garfield’s author) 25 childhood farm cats and the image of his grandfather, James ‘Garfield’ Davies. Jim Davies used his imagination to ‘mix and match’ these images together and create Garfield.
Imagination is inseparable from the cooperation of different senses. It is the product of thinking and expression on a subjective basis. From a musical perspective, Hanslick (1974) regards composing is the creative imagination of the grouping and moulding of musical elements by the composer.
Erickson (1979) states “the artist must imagine an order before and while he gives it aesthetic form. A perceiver of an art object must recreate, with the aid for his own imaginative skills, an order manifested by the form of that object (p.86).” The creation of Garfield has shown that imagination is the combination of sensory experiences and cognitive appraisal. Imagination links different ideas together and adds new meanings to the original depicted object. As Jim Davies states in Garfield.com (2007):
When I write for Garfield, I see him in my mind’s eye. I put Garfield in a certain situation and just follow him until something funny happens. Then I back up three frames and try to record what has happened in the comic strip. Garfield’s such a strong personality --- he really writes his own materials these days!
Jim Davies’s experiences can be divided into four stages. It (1) starts from observation, from the creator’s (Jim Davies’s) ‘mind eye’, then (2) searching the essence of the depicted object, (3) discovers the characteristics of the depicted object and finally (4) the representation of the depicted object.
Jim Davies’s observation and imagination modified the image of Garfield as an ‘antihero’, which he regards as a major contribution to the success of Garfield (ibid, 2007) as follows:
I think Garfield takes our guilt away for being essentially, lazy slobs. We’re constantly hearing “Exercise: Reduce cholesterol. Lower your fat intake.” Garfield’s out there saying. “Go ahead. Have that donut!” He’s an antihero. Erickson (1979) states that the artist uses his imaginative skills to re-create the perceived object and embodies his ideas into a specific art form. In other words, the artist’s attention focus is actively engaged in the art making. Another typical manifestation of imagination is the invention of Mickey Mouse. How can a common mouse become a superstar? The answer is Walt Disney’s imagination. Imagination is inseparable in the making of arts. Imagination ‘metaphorically’ transfers image into new meanings and ideas.
Regarding metaphor, metaphor is originally derived from the Greek word ‘metapherein’, meaning ‘to transfer’. Metaphor bears the characteristic of “simile” and “symbolism”, which are extensively adopted by artists, musicians and poets to transfer their ideas to their audience. In The Concise Oxford English Dictionary in English Dictionaries & Thesauruses, metaphor is interpreted as:
The most important and widespread of speech, in which one thing, idea, or action is referred by a word or expression normally denoting another thing, idea, or action, so as to suggest some common quality shared by two.
Historically, Cooper (1992, p.285) states the essence of metaphor as follows:
Ever since Aristotle’s Poetics, there has been widespread agreement on the important role played by metaphor in literature, especially poetry. Metaphor has been seen --- by, among others, Shelley, Valéry and I.A. Richards --- as a main source of both the pleasure and the interest to be gained from poems.
The nature of metaphor reflects the creator’s observation, sentiment and cognitive style of thinking towards a specific object or event. Take Oscar Wilde’s (1994, p.872- 873) poem Symphony in Yellow as an example. Within the poem, metaphor (from a sensory perspective, such as visual, auditory, kinetic, tactile) is used to interpret the facets of yellow as follows:
Symphony in Yellow An omnibus across the bridge Crawls like a yellow butterfly, And, here and there, a passer-by Shows like a little restless midge.
Big barges full of yellow hay Are moored against the shadowy wharf, And, like a yellow silken scarf, The thick fog hangs along the quay.
The yellow leaves begin to fade And flutter from the Temple elms, And at my feet the pale green Thames Lies like a rod of rippled jade.
The facets of yellow are painted by Oscar Wilde as he symbolizes yellow with a butterfly, hay, silken scarf and leaves. The words “crawls”, “restless”, “moored”, “flutter” (kinetic) depict the movement of the text. Eventually, colour, sound and the transitory movement unite with its auditory title: Symphony in Yellow. The poem is a symbolic representation of yellow according to the poet’s image of yellow. By contrast, Van Gogh (Graves, 1952) uses ‘yellow’ as a metaphor to illustrate the darkness of human nature and the ruinous effect of the café as follows:
In my picture of the ‘Night Café’, I have tried to express the idea that the café is a place where one can ruin one’s self, run mad, or commit a crime. So I have tried to express as it were the powers of darkness in a low drink shop, by soft Louis XV green and malachite, contrasting with yellow green and hard blue greens, and all this in an atmosphere like a devils’s furnace, of pale sulphur. (p.78)
Metaphor is inseparable from the interactions of different sensory modalities. According to Cameron (2003, p.28), “language offers the possibility of symbolic representation and manipulation of ideas, and of shared interactions about ideas.” In The Bible, Matthew chapter 5, verses 13-16, Jesus Christ uses ‘salt’ (visual/taste) and ‘light’ (visual) as a parable to illustrate the qualities of ‘virtue’ as follows: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it made salty again? “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven (p. 535).
Further, the ending song of the Japanese animation, Evangelion (Columbia Record Company, 1994) uses the universe as a metaphor to illustrate affection and part of the lyrics are as follows: Let me see what spring is like on Jupiter and Mars. In other words, hold my hand!
Metaphor compares one thing with another very differently. A metaphor is a comparison that does not use like or as.” Usually we use the words like or as to make a comparison; this produces a simile. Metaphor introduces to us new way of seeing and illuminating new meanings in the perceived objects or events. According to Cooper (1986, p.19), metaphor implies “a tendency to perceive a world or complete system of relations [in which] familiar objects and beings ... associate with one another quite differently than in ordinary conditions.”
Further, Zbikowski (1998) regards metaphor as an essential structure of human thought. Lakoff & Johnson (ibid, 1998) argue that metaphor occurs in everyday routine. For instance, people translate meanings of words metaphorically from one modality to another. Examples (illustrated by inverted commas) are quoted by Zbikowki (1998, p.2-3) as follows:
A. Examples of illustrations of emotions I’m feeling ‘up’. My spirits ‘rose’. I’m feeling ‘down’. I fell ‘into’ a depression. My spirits ‘sank’.
B. Consciousness and habit Get ‘up’. I’m ‘up’ already. He ‘rises’ early in the morning. He ‘fell’ asleep.
C. Health condition He’s at the ‘peak’ of health. Lazarus ‘rose’ from the dead.(one of Jesus’ miracles in the New Testament) She’s in ‘top’ shape. He came ‘down’ with the flu.
Metaphor is a common device in the making of arts and serves as a format of symbolic representation in an artwork. Take the perception of musical pitch as an example. Zbikowski (1998) states that apart from describing musical pitch as “high” and “low” from a Western music perspective, Greek music theorists perceived pitch as having its own “sharpness” and “heaviness”. As for Bali and Java, pitch is seen as “small” and “large”. Further, as for Suy’a of the Amazon basin, pitch can be distinguished as “young” and “old”.
Music is metaphorically used in animation to create mood and climax for the plot. The role of music in the animation (particularly in Japanese animation) functions similar to music in film or opera, where music is used as a vehicle to highlight certain contextual relationships.
4.2. The synchronization of sound and colour: the facets of metaphor in Japanese TV animation opening and ending songs
Watching animation is a cross-modal experience of the synthesis of sound, colour and dialogue. In this section, the ‘visual metaphor’ in the Japanese TV animation opening and ending theme songs will be discussed. As Kinsella (1997) mentioned, Japanese and Asian imagery have a significant influence in the American and European youth culture. Examining Japanese animation reveals to us another dimension for understanding the aesthetic perception of the younger generation. Examples of Japanese animation music will be used to illustrate how ‘sound’ (auditory) and ‘colour’ (visual) metaphorically assist each other to construct meanings. Aristotle (Arnheim, 1969) states without a presentation, intellectual activity is impossible to exist. The arrangement of sound, image and lyrics of the opening and ending of Japanese TV animations reflects selective and cautious handling of visual and auditory formats of representations. One of the characteristics of Japanese TV animation is each animation having a unique opening and ending theme. Within these 60-90 seconds, the moving images are linked with the music elements and lyrics.
Functionally, the opening theme serves as an introduction and functions like the prelude in classical music. As Kennedy (1980, p.504) refers prelude as, “a piece of music which precedes something else, e.g. preceding a fugue; forming first movement of a suite; orchestral introduction to opera”. The visual design of the opening song (abbreviated form: OP) acts as a metaphor to illustrate the main theme of the animation. The visual and auditory elements of the opening theme song (music, visual arts and lyrics) suggest the mood of the animation and the temperament of the main character (as shown by his/her appearance).
Usually, a successful opening song will create a strong ‘impression’ on the audience. Also, the tempo of the opening song is usually faster and livelier than the ending song. The ending is usually quiet and gentle in nature. According to Chu (2001), this trend is especially prominent in Japanese animation songs from the sixties to the early nineties.
4.3. Analysis of the Japanese animation opening and ending theme songs
In this analysis section, the selection of the examples is based on their historical and metaphorical significance.
4.3.1 (A) The historical significance of The Rose of Versailles
According to Ikeda (1994), The Rose of Versailles, written by Riyoko Ikeda (comic writer, vocalist) in 1972, is the first girls’ comic that sold more than 12,000,000 copies in Japan (apart from the selling rate in other European and Asian countries, such as France, Italy, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan). According to Ikeda (ibid), due to its popularity, The Rose of Versailles was regarded as a ‘social phenomenon’ and was transformed into animation in 1979. Tokyo Movie Super Data File (1999) states that The Rose of Versailles is regarded as a classic in the history of Japanese comics and animation.
However, one of the most important milestones that The Rose of Versailles (Ikeda, 1994) brought to her community was her transformation into a French musical by Takarazuka Revue in mid seventies. The musical of The Rose of Versailles has shown for more than 1000 performances (similar to Cats and Phantom of the Opera in Western culture) since the mid-seventies and has attracted millions national and overseas audiences, among them being the Prince of Japan.
4.3.1(B). The metaphorical significance of the opening and ending songs of The Rose of Versailles
The title and lyrics of The Rose of Versailles’s opening theme song, entitled The rose beautifully scattered metaphorically describes the heroine, Oscar’s brilliant and transient life. The rose is a metaphor to illustrate the beautiful, elegant and strong minded Oscar. The heroine adopted a male name and grew up to be a Royal army officer and fight gloriously for her family and country. Eventually, she sacrificed herself and died with dignity in the French Revolution.
Within the first 90 seconds, the gentle female voice metaphorically narrated the destiny of Oscar through the lyrics of the TV opening song (English and Japanese lyrics) are as follows:
A flower is blossoming with its name unknown. If it just faces and rustles in the wind, that’s good but I was suppose to lead a splendid and passionate life. The rose, the rose, blooms dignifiedly. The rose, the rose, falls beautifully. In the opening song, The rose beautifully scattered, the colours ‘green’ and ‘red’ and the lyrics have metaphorically described the destiny of Oscar. Within the entire 90 seconds, music, visual arts and words narrate the character of Oscar. In the opening 10 seconds, Oscar is depicted nude in red and surrounded by green thorns. The thorns resemble the adversity of her destiny. Figure 4.1 The Rose of Versailles
According to Wills (1992), red is “very powerful energizer and stimulant” and is related to masculine energy (p.76). From a therapeutic and psychological point of view, red is a symbolic colour of passion, irritation and life. Within the next 30 seconds, the whole scene is covered with different intensity and layers of green. When the vocal starts to sing the lyrics “Within the grass, a flower is blooming with its name unknown”, the scene shifts to a forest, then approaches green pastures. Then, Oscar, is filmed from a distance, kneeling and playing with the scattering petals on the grassland. The image suits well with the lyric “If it just faces and rustles in the wind, that’s good but I was born with the destiny of rose”. Then, the lyric, “I’m supposed to lead a splendid and passionate life” is illustrated by a close-up of Oscar. Her facial expression is determined and firmed.
In the middle section of the opening song, the lyric, “The rose, the rose, blooms dignifiedly” appears. It is followed by the image of a rose, changed from white into a deep red colour. Finally, the words, “The rose, the rose, falls beautifully” is metaphorically illustrated by Oscar, surrounded by green thorns and holding a sword in her hands, which indicates that she will fight for her destiny and end her life in the French revolution, like the title of the song, The rose beautifully scattered. The tempo of The rose beautifully scattered is moderately allegretto and the dynamic level remains the same within the entire song. The relationship between music and colour is further illustrated by Cutietta & Haggerty’s study (1987) as subjects frequently rate lively, energetic music with bright colours (red, orange, yellow) and pair dimmer colours (green, blue) with slower movements. As for colour and sound, Kandinsky (1982) regards colour as the most musical element in a picture. Y
Further, the ending of The Rose of Versailles, entitled The Light and Shadow of Love, is another example demonstrating the ‘metaphor’ in Japanese TV animation song. The title of the song, The Light and Shadow of Love, is a metaphor to illustrate ‘everlasting’ love, similar to the inseparable combination of ‘light’ and ‘shadow’. The lyrics of the song The Light and Shadow of Love are as follows:
You are the light. I am the shadow. The close bond between us is inseparable. The deeper the pain, the deeper the love. While the heart is hurting. the love becomes deeper.
The visual design of the entire ending theme is illustrated by one painting. The painting pictures Oscar’s life from adolescence to adulthood. All the important couples in the animation exist in the picture: Oscar and Andre, Marie Antoniette and Fersen, Rosaline and Berand.
The painting, the music and the lyrics metaphorically describe the different affections of the characters, such as the beauty of friendship and the bittersweet of love. For instance, the lyric “You’re the light. I’m the shadow” is accompanied by the image of Oscar and Andre, located in the lower left hand corner. Their love and their loyalty to one another is further illustrated by the lyric “The close bond between us is inseparable.” The intonation of this phrase has been emphasized, especially when approaching the word, “inseparable”.
From a visual perspective, yellow and blue are used to illustrate the love between Oscar and Andre, the brightness and darkness, which resembles the qualities of light and shadow. Further, the lyrics “If love is suffering, let’s suffer however much it takes. Until it reaches your heart someday” are pictured with Marie Antoniette and Fersen (lower right hand corner). The lyrics illustrate the painfulness of their forbidden love. The mood of the final song, The Light and Shadow of Love is gentle and lyrical. The dynamic level is soft and flowing. The female voice whispers the tenderness and melancholy of love. The gentleness of the female voice corresponds with the pastel colours of the painting, which is much softer when compared with the opening song, The rose beautifully scattered.
4.3.2. (A) The historical significance of Galaxy Express 999
Galaxy Express 999 was converted into animation from a boy’s comic, written by Leiji Matsumato, called Galaxy Express 999 (Figure 4.2). According to Chu (2001), this comic had sold more than 17,000,000 copies in Japan and won the Nippon Manga Writer Association’s special prize in 1978. According to the Animage, (1979) Galaxy Express 999 has been regarded as one of the most important animations in the history of Japan. Galaxy Express 999 is about a boy called Tetsuro and his adventures in space. Tetsuro, travelled with Mytel, a beautiful lady who offered him a free ticket to ride the Galaxy Express 999. To Leiji Matsumato, Galaxy Express 999 was a symbol of ‘life’s journey’. The stations between different planets are the intersections and the episodes of our lives. The Galaxy Express 999 is also a symbolic representation of ‘dream”.
4.3.2 (B) The metaphorical significance of the opening theme of Galaxy Express 999
The opening song of Galaxy Express 999 is called Galaxy Express 999. The song is sung by Sasaki Isao, with the accompaniment of a children’s choir. The lyrics of the opening song, Galaxy Express 999 are about life and youthful dreams. The words suit the music well. The pictorial qualities of the opening theme song, also entitled as Galaxy Express 999, are revealed in the following aspects. First, in the opening first 2 bars, the sudden fortissimo and the long diminished chord imply the whistle of a train. The consecutive semiquavers in the introduction section and the gradual crescendo dynamic level portray a picture of a running express, approaching from a distance. The musical effect of the bass pattern is like the crashing sound of the Express against the railway tracks.
The song is sung by a male singer called Sasaki Isao, with the accompaniment of a children’s choir. Sasaki is an important male animation singer of the 70’s. The song is in binary form. The two sections are in A minor and Dm-G-C-F-B chords are used (the subdominant side of different keys) for harmony. According to Chu (2001), these kinds of form (binary) and harmony treatment (modulate to dominate and subdominate key) are common in the 70’s animation songs. Sasaki sang the pitch with a firm and sentimental intonation in the opening section, using the following lyrics:
The train goes through the darkness.Towards the sea of light.
An endless universe where dreams lie scattered.
Let us cross the bridge of stars.
All people are searching for happiness, all are like travellers.
Their journey will probably continue until they encounter their star of hope.
Someday you too will surely meet
the little blue bird.
The scene pictures an express train travelling in the unlimited universe. The express passes through many unknown stars and planets. The joining of the children’s choir in the middle section of the song highlights and reinforces the meaning of the lyrics “All people are searching for happiness. Like travellers, until they encounter the star of hope”. Musically, the children’s choir, used as background accompaniment, enriches the male voice with increasing dynamic level. Visually, the scene shifts from one express to several trains intersecting with one another, heading to different destinations.
Figure 4.2 Galaxy Express 999: A photograph from Japanese Anime Exhibition: the moving pictures of our generation
Towards the end of the song, the words ‘blue bird’ (a symbol of happiness) are given a much longer duration to stress their importance. Also, the tempo of the music is slows down when reach the lyrics: “Someday you too will surely meet, A blue little bird”. The express train thus enters the unseen universe, or in other words, the unseen future. The song finally returns back to its home key (A minor).
4.3.3. (A) The historical significance of Saint Seiya
The animation Saint Seiya, debuted in 1986 (see figure 4.3), is derived from the comics Saint Seiya. Saint Seiya is especially notable for its commercial by-product (the toy figure models of the main characters). According to The Hades: Chapter- Inferno (Avex Mode, 2006), the number of toy models sold, which were issued by toy company Bandai, exceeded one billion items in the early 90’s (still increasing at the moment, as new models have continued to be issued over the past twenty years).
According to Animage (87), although this is regarded as a boys’ comic, it’s also very popular among the female fans. The plot setting is based on Japan and Greece. The content of the story is about recruiting intelligent young people from different parts of the world as soldiers to protect the twentieth century re-born Greek Goddess. Saint Seiya is popular in many Asian countries, such as in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Indonesia and Philippines. Besides Asian countries, Saint Seiya is also popular in Brazil and France.
4.3.3. (B) The metaphorical significance of the ending theme of Saint Seiya
The main colour for the ending theme, Forever Blue is blue. Different intensities of blue are used in this final song. The ending metaphorically describes the five character’s feelings (such as solitude, remoteness, serenity) as soldiers selected by fate (or by the Goddess Athena).
Historical, Gravies (1952) states that blue is a symbolic colour related to holiness, for it is the colour of Jehovan and the Virgin Mary (Royal Blue). Also, blue is frequently associated with remoteness, melancholy and serenity. Further, Blueblood is a symbolic term to illustrate a prestigious heritage. Different shades of blue are depicted in this ending. The mood of the music is moderate in tempo and soft rock in style and sung by male pop bands. These musical qualities, with the accompaniment of the lyrics, reinforce the nobility and masculine side of the character.
Figure 4.3 Saint Seiya
The lyrics “The shining constellations are calling you” are picturesquely illustrated by the shining constellations of the five main characters (Pegasus Seiya, Andromeda Shun, Cygnus Hyoga, Phoenix Ikki and Dragon Shiryu) in the dark blue sky. “Constellation” usually refers to the specific pattern of a group of stars.
The lyrics, “That’s the proof you’re a chosen soldier” are followed by the close up of the main character, Seiya. Then, “Wearing radiant Cloth for the legends of Greece” is accompanied by the main characters wearing armour, seen from the temple and column of Greece. And then “Oh, tomorrow’s sky is blue. If I believe in my dreams, they come true” is accompanied by Athena, standing near the temple in the bright blue sky. “Oh, piercing my heart is blue. The eternal radiance” is illustrated by Seiya, standing alone and thinking deeply.
The title Forever Blue implies the meaning of ‘blue blood’, a metaphor of ‘noble birth’. However, this identification with nobility refers not only as Athena’s (the goddess) chosen warriors by fate but also to the integrity and loyalty of one’s character. 4.3.4. (A) The historical significance of Space Cruiser Yamato
According to the Encyclopaedia of our youth, Acardia (1982), the Space Cruiser Yamato’s series, including all its singles and albums have sold more than 2,800,000 copies in Japan. Space Cruiser Yamato’s music series is recorded as one of the best sellers in the seventies. Also, Yamato’s ‘symphonic poem’ is regarded as the pioneer in the history of Japanese animation music. The TV Space Cruiser Yamato, which broadcast in 1977, remains a classic Japanese animation till the present day. Also, Anime Great Catalogue-Movie Version (2000) states that Space Cruiser Yamato’s movie, entitled “Goodbye Space Cruiser Yamato --- the patriotic soldiers” is rated as the No.6 most profitable anime movie in the history of Japanese animation. The story content of Yamato is about space adventure and brotherhood.
4.3.4. (B) The metaphorical significance of Space Cruiser Yamato
The mood of the opening song of Space Cruiser Yamato, entitled Space Cruiser Yamato, is similar to a war song. The prologue section (before the voice enters) lasts for about 17 seconds and the title Space Cruiser Yamato, in thick bold letters, appears on the screen. ‘Yamato’ is the name of a space battleship and it carries thousands of warriors to the battlefields. The existence of this ship is an indication of victory and survival of the soldiers in the war. Therefore the word, ‘Yamato’ is frequently stressed in the song, highlighting the spirit of the music.
Basically the design of the opening theme is all about Space Cruiser Yamato. The lyrics begin with “Goodbye, Earth.” The scene is illustrated by the close up of Space Cruiser Yamato which leaves the earth and enters the limitless galaxy. The lyrics are all about war.
The style of the opening song, Space Cruiser Yamato is like a march, full of strength and energy. The opening song is sung by Sasaki Isao. His voice is grand and majestic. According to The T.V. Animation Encyclopaedia ----Part 2, Sasaki Isao is regarded as one of the most important animation song singers of the 70’s. In this song, Space Cruiser Yamato, his voice is supported by women’s voice. In the music of Space Cruiser Yamato’s series, the female voice is frequently used as a symbol to illustrate the vastness of the universe and the prayers for peace.
4.3.5. (A) The historical significance of Candy Candy
Accoridng to the Encyclopaedia of Candy Candy (1981), the comic Candy Candy won the “Kodansha Manga Award for girls’ comic in 1977” and was previously transformed into animation by Toei animation in 1976. Further, according to Animage (1985), Candy Candy’s recording was the first animation series to sell more than one million copies. Candy Candy’s opening song, Candy Candy, is popular and widely known to the present day. The song is sung by Horie Mitsuko. According to Animage (ibid), Horie Mitsuko is regarded as one of the most representative female singers of Japanese anime songs, her career path spans from late 60’s to the present.
Candy Candy has been internationally broadcast and received acclaim in Europe, United States and in Asian countries, such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea. Candy Candy is regarded as one of the evergreen anime and a comic classic in the history of Japanese animation and comics. The story content of Candy Candy is about a poor orphan girl, named Candy, growing up.
4.3.5. (B) The metaphorical significance of Candy Candy
The opening song of TV animation Candy Candy, entitled Candy Candy is a visual- auditory portrait of Candy Candy. The song is set in G major, with moderately allegro as tempo and accompanied by lively Ostinato dotted bass rhythm. All these musical arrangements match well with the bright and lively image of Candy. The lyrics “I don’t mind the freckles (on my face) and I like my flat nose” are visually illustrated by the close up of Candy, who surely has lots of freckles on her face.
Besides, “I love being tomboyish and playing practical jokes, I love racing and skipping” are illustrated by Candy Candy playing different kinds of outdoor games such as running and climbing trees. The name of the character is included in the lyrics, “I am, I am, I am Candy”. The insert of the ornament, the upper mordent in the opening and trill towards the end of the piece add elegance to the piece, as Candy is adopted by a wealthy family and trained to be a lady.
Modulation does occur in the middle section (From G major to E minor). The mood of the music changes from happy to sad. In the last section of the song, the key modulates back from E major to G major. The lyrics also match with the changing mood as follows: “Being alone, I feel a bit lonely. During such times, I stare at the mirror.”
Visually, the scene portrays Candy being alone in the small swan-shaped boat, looking at the ripples of the water as if a mirror. Word painting (by using three accents, three different dynamic levels: from mp to mf) is used to highlight the Japanese word ‘Warate’, which means keep smiling. The lyrics “Smile, smile, smile Candy. Say goodbye to your crying face, isn’t that right” are accompanied by a crying Candy captured from various angles.
4.3.6. (A) The historical significance of Astro Boy
Astro Boy is derived from Osamu Tezuka’s comic, Astro Boy, and remains one of the most well known Japanese Animations. According to T.V. Animation Encyclopaedia - ---Part 2 (1981), the first Japanese animation album record (LP) was Astro Boy. Astro Boy (ibid, 1981), which broadcast on 1st of January in 1963, marked the significant debut of the first colour TV Japanese Animation. Apart from being broadcast in Japan, Astro Boy also achieved great success in Asia-Pacific countries (such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea and Australia etc).
4.3.6. (B) The metaphorical significance of Astro Boy
How can a robot, made of atoms and which can fly, be described? The opening theme song, Astro Boy, is sung by Uitakada Boys’ Choir. The boys’ choir sing in unison to resemble the character, Astro Boy. The voice of the choir adds power and liveliness to the music. It suits well with the sunny character of Astro Boy. The opening scalic passage, which is set in the rubato tempo, metaphorically describes the flying motion of Astro Boy. The song is like a march, set in 2/4 time with lyrics all about Astro Boy. Astro Boy remains one of the most popular Japanese animations to the present day.
The opening scene is of a view of the galaxy, permeated with hundreds of stars. Then, Astro Boy is flying from the galaxy to the earth. Within the entire opening, Astro Boy is doing different kinds of rescues. For instance, he dives under the sea to save people, he fights against UFO (unidentified flying object) attackers, he holds tonnes of heavy objects. In the other words, as the lyrics suggest, “this mighty robot will pass the test”, “he is brave and gentle and wise”, for he is the “amazing Astro boy”.
The above animation examples demonstrate that the metaphorical nature of Japanese TV animation is deeply related with another form of visual representation: Japanese comics. By nature, comics are the imaginative images of something else. This is similar to the art making of Raphael (Arnheim, 1969), who uses images of different beautiful women to paint his ‘ideal’ woman. Instead of being based on real perceptual experiences, Japanese animation is the synthesis of someone else’s imagined perceptual experiences.
According to Tokyo Movie Anime Super Data file (1999), states that most of the animations produced by the Tokyo Movie Studio from past few decades (1964-1999) are derived from Japanese comics. Also, most of the cover page characters of Animage, dated from 1978 (July) to 2003 (August) are derived from original comics. Animage is the first magazine dedicated to Japanese animation. It debuted in July 1978 and has remained as one of the most authoritative magazines for the past several decades. Usually, only popular animation appears on the front page. The connection between Japanese comics and animation is inseparable in many aspects, no matter from a historical or a commercial point of view.
Further, most of the best-seller animation songs are derived from comics. Chu (2001) summarized some of the best-seller animation series (from 70-s to 90’s) as follows: examples include animation Candy Candy, the first animation series which sold over 1,000,000 copies, Space Cruiser Yamato series (1978-79) which sold more than 2,800,000 copies and Galaxy Express 999 series (1978-81), which sold more than 2,500,000 copies. Even the top singers in Japan can hardly reach that amount of this selling rate. And the opening theme song of Cat’s Eye (derived from the comic, “Cat’s Eye”) became the first Japanese animation song that reached Japanese Oricon hit chart number one in 1983. Afterwards, animation series, which are also derived from comics, such as Detective Conan, Slum Dunk, also reached number one in the Japanese Oricon chart and became million sellers in the decades of 90’s.
On the other hand, Japanese animation and its music also found unlimited inspiration in the children classics and novels. Nippon Animation is the animation company which transformed many children’s classics into animation. The broadcast times of these series are usually in the evening so that the whole family can watch the programme together. During the period from 1975 to 1994, twenty children’s classics from all around the world were selected and produced as TV animation by the Nippon Animation Company. Examples include Anne of Green Gables (1979), Little Women (1987), Peter Pan (1989), Daddy Long Legs (1990), Sound of Music (1991) and Jo’s Boy from ‘Little Women’s’ fourth series (1993).
From a musical perspective, the Japanese TV animation opening and ending songs reveal the ‘impression’ of that particular animation. Music is used to create the atmosphere of the animation and used as a metaphor to suggest the feelings and emotions of the character.
The metaphor of the Japanese animation opening and ending theme is manifested in its music, visual images and lyrics. Idea and plot are expressed through the combination of images and sounds (including words). The auditory and visual materials correspond with each other and embody the spirit of that particular animation to its viewers.
In brief, the author would summarize the characteristics of the metaphors in animation, (in particularly, all the above chosen Japanese animation examples) by using Thomas’s (2002) interpretation of imagination as follows: Imagination is what makes our sensory experience meaning, enabling us to interpret and make sense of it, whether from a conventional perspective or from a fresh, original, individual one. It is what makes perception more than the mere physical stimulation of sense organs. It also produces mental imagery, visual and otherwise, which is what makes it possible for us to think outside the confines of our present perceptual reality, to consider memories of the past and possibilities for the future, and to weigh alternatives against one another. Thus, imagination makes possible all our thinking about what is, what has been, and perhaps most important, what might be (p.1).
4.4. The educational implications of media: the synchronization of music, visual images and words
Why media? Why TV animation? Educationally, Russell-Bowie (2006) states that media shapes children’s perception concepts and knowledge about the world. The role of media is gaining importance in the educational system nowadays. According to Buckingham (2003, p.3), media refers:
The term ‘media’ includes the whole range of modern communications media: television, the cinema, video, radio, photography, advertising, newspapers and magazines, recorded music, computer games and the internet. Media texts are the programmes, films, images, websites (and so on) that are carried by these different forms of communication. Many of these are often called ‘mass’ media, which implies that they reach large audiences; although of course some media are intended to reach only quite small or specialized audiences.
Referring to Larsen (1980), E. H of Gombrich of Cornell University stated as follows: “We are entering a historical epoch in which the image will take over from the written word. Ours is a visual age. TV is (the) new window on the world.” (p.32) Buckingham (2003) concludes Livingstone & Bovill’s (2001) and Rideout et al.’s (1999) studies that, in reality, in most industrialized countries, the time children spend in watching television outweighs other activities (even school), except sleeping, in their lives. Apart from watching television, the time they devote to watching films, magazines, playing computer games and listening to popular music form the major leisure activities in their childhood. In other words, Buckingham concludes that the media is replacing the traditional role of family, church or school and is becoming the dominant socializing influence in adolescents’ lives.
In the realm of animation, different forms of image (both concrete and abstract) are being metaphorically interpreted by sound and pictures. Animation is a media which is integrated with audio-visual images. Animation is moving images, a form of media which synchronizes visual-auditory modalities. In other words, animation synthesizes the elements of art, music, cinematography and prose.
From a perception perspective, Lipscomb and Kendall’s (1995) experimental studies revealed that when music is added to visual materials, it reinforces the dramatic effect (especially the emotional side) of the pictures. This principle concurs with Merriam’s (1964) belief that music provides a channel for emotional expression and serves as a symbolic representation. Also, according to Yeats (1967):
When sound, and colour, and form are in a musical relation, a beautiful relation to one another, they become as it were one sound, one colour, one form, and evoke an emotion that is made out of their distinct evocations and yet is one emotion (p.243).
This quotation further illustrates the cross-modal nature of animation. Regarding the cross-modal essence of language or words, Locke (Yolton, 1970, p. 204) mentions: “words as articulate sounds were by nature well adapted to stand as signs of ideas, mainly because there is a great variety of sounds which men can make and with ease.” Also, Locke (Yolton, 1970, p. 205) considered “sound (audio) and idea can be easily associated”.
For example, there are many Japanese animation lyrics emphasize on personal growth and friendship. Personal growth is often regarded as a spiritual journey, a process of self-actualization in the world of Japanese animation. There are many Japanese animation songs and background music which mention dreams and goals. According to Chu (2001), this kind of life value is a characteristic of Japanese animations, especially in the late 70’s to early 80’s. Since obstacles are unavoidable on the road to maturity. Life attitudes such as ‘Never give up!’, ‘Be strong and have courage’ and ‘Trust oneself’, commonly occur in Japanese animation.
Also, another common theme in Japanese animation’s story content is friendship. In the world of Japanese animation, friendship is often represented by companions united by love and a common goal. Because of this, responsibilities towards others and the virtue of self-sacrifice are usually emphasized. There are many animation songs about friendship. The song, Winners (the opening theme song of New Century GPX Cyber Formula), expresses the sentiment that true friends can help one another to survive in hard times. Some of the lyrics are as follows:
Believe each other Your smile becomes the support of my heart. We’re Winners Run with the wind, We’re Winners.
The song, Our Seasons (one of the songs in the animation, Yu.Yu.Hakusho), says that friendship can heal our sorrow and give us strength. And true friends are like treasure, which lasts forever. Nothing can break the promise of true friends, no matter what kind of obstacles. Our Seasons is sung by the four main characters in Yu.Yu.Hakusho. This animation was very popular in the early 1990’s. Some of the lyrics of the song are as follows: “The everlasting love can heal the wounds and stops all fear. I’ll never forget the seasons which we’re together.KY&
The facets of friendship are manifested in the lyrics of the song, “The Way of Being You” as follows:
Don’t give up your dreams, don’t turn away your eyes. Even our love is overcasted. Though I embraced your depression-inclined shoulders tightly, Solitude piled up in your heart. Dreams should be your weapon! So fight your way. Even though your pain …
* So never cry, I always keep my eyes on you. I love you, the one who leads a fair life. So never cry, I’m always by your side. So go for tomorrow again.
The shape of your heart is like, You fell in love not because you wanna fill up your emptiness. Biting your lip and holding your knees. Tonight it’s a different you. Don’t turn into a sorrowful adult.
The one who give up is not you. So never cry, I always believe you. Be the single-minded you, just as you are. So never cry, I always watch over you. Yeah, right now, have your courage in your hands. Friendship is not limited to those of the same race, but also with aliens, sometimes animals, or even UFO foreigners in animation. Japanese animation also offers moral teachings (such as the treasure of one’s life, goals and friendship) to our present and next generation.
From the invention of a toylike kaleidoscope and through the development of photography, motion pictures and animations; the pursuing of moving images has, for centuries, captured the attention and favour of adults and children alike. The development of animation not only marks the advance of modern technology, but also unfolds a new perspective in sensory experience. Hanslick (1974: 1891, p.73) states that: “the object of every art is to clothe in some material form an idea which has originated in the artist’s imagination.” In animation, ‘idea’ is reflected in the synchronization of sound, image and words.
The world of animation further demonstrates the essence of media. Buckingham (2003, p.3) states:
The media do not offer a transparent window of the world. They provide channels through which representations and images of the world can be communicated indirectly. The media intervene: they provide us with selective versions of the world, rather than direct access to it.
Apart from this, the making of animation manifests the other facet of human perception behaviour --- imagination. Chapter 5 The cross-modal experience in music and painting An empirical test: perception of ‘Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting’
5. 1. The purpose of the test
The design of the test is to address one research question: Do people make correspondences between music and painting by using the work of painters and musicians? Since a great deal of research has already been done matching non- contextual sounds and visual shapes, this study focuses on exploring the cross-modal relationship between actual paintings and musical compositions. There are very few empirical studies of this type in cross-modal research which uses established works in the musical repertoire and in existing paintings.
The purpose of the test serves to examine the role of images in making connections between music and painting and their educational implications for art experience. Merriam (1964) reports a study by Cowles (1935) in which he asked Princeton undergraduates to match eight pieces of Western art music with eight Western paintings of mountain scenes, and concluded as follows:
Pictures with represented content capable of motor activity were nearly always selected with the musical sections of prominent dynamic changes; and likewise, pictures of slight content were nearly always selected with music of relatively weak dynamic qualities … Formal elements of the pictures, however, were but rarely noted. Rhythm, tempo, and changes in loudness were most frequently noted in music (p.90).
It is clear from Cowles’s study that there was evidence of subjects matching formal elements of music with those of the paintings. One of the aims of the study reported in this thesis is to elicit responses which match specific formal elements in music and paintings. However, because actual paintings and musical works are very complex, it is necessary to provide a perceptual focus through which formal elements in each art form can be matched. Therefore, the sensory qualities of brightness and darkness discussed in earlier chapters, will serve as the perceptual focus and subjects will be asked to identify similarities in these qualities which to them appear to be present in both musical sound and paintings.
5.2. The procedure and design of the test
The duration of the entire test lasts for about 60 minutes. Subjects are asked to explore the common elements in music and paintings through cross-modal (such as photism where sounds evoke images) observation.
Two tests (one for adults and one for children) were prepared: An adult version and a child version. The design of the tests is to investigate the perceptual experience of the participants.
Brightness and Darkness in music and painting: Adult version
The test consists of three sections. In the first part, the subjects are asked to fill in a questionnaire using a semantic differential range of verbal designations about the word, ‘brightness’. As Wittgenstein (1969) states, “the use of the word in practice is its meaning.” Commercially, the semantic differential (Osgood, et al, 1957) has been used by marketers as a means of testing peoples’ image of their products. The design of the questionnaire serves to explore the ‘connotative’ dimension of brightness in the thinking of the subject.
5.2.1. Part 1 of the test: Semantic Differential Questionnaire
It is a purely verbal test which explores perceptions of verbal qualities of brightness, with the connotation that if brightness is not identified, the subject will perceive the word as less bright. Thirty adjectives (15 polar opposites, such as soft and loud) were presented as either end of a seven-point scale. These thirty selected adjectives implied a multi-sensory perspective of the word ‘brightness’. In this way, the cross-modal selections of the participants will be captured (see Table 5.1). Table 5.1 A semantic differential profile of the word brightness Y YYY YYY YYY YY Y YY Y YY Y YY Y Y
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Y YYYYYYYY G69J6AYYYYYYYY7GJEIY Y YYYYYYYY !><=IYYYYYYYY :6KNY
Y YYYYYYYY C Y YYYYYYYY ,:6@YYYYYYYY(IGDC Y YYYYYYYY !>C:YYYYYYYY%D>CIY Y YYYYYYYY DA9YYYYYYYYY,6GBY Y YYYYYYYY ':A6M:9YYYYYYYY):CH:Y Y YYYYYYYY AJCIYYYYYYYY(=6GEY Y YYYYYYYY ADJ9NY YYYYYYY(JCCNY Y YYYYYYYY AJ:YYYYYYYY':9Y Y YYYYYYYY >G8JA6GYYYYYYYY)G>6C All subjects are then asked to rate the brightness and darkness of 17 painting and 15 pieces of music using an 11 point scale, 1-11 from darkness to brightness respectively. They are requested to rate according to their impression of the intensity of brightness in the music and the paintings. The adoption of a numeric scale is for statistical analysis. The higher the number indicates the brighter is the perception of the music excerpt or painting. The duration of each music example will be approximately 50-60seconds. There will be a 10 second break between each music example. Then, the subjects will be asked to rank the brightness of 17 paintings using the same scale. Each painting will be exposed to the subject for 20 seconds. 5.2.3. Part 3 of the test: Matching music excerpts with painting examples Subjects are then asked to pair a musical example with a painting. The factors contributing to these pairings will be perceived correspondences between music and paintings. Examples which reflect significant pairing preferences will be analysed in detail. The 15 music excerpts are as follows: 1. Flowing water (Chinese ancient qin music) 2. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Mozart) 3. Footprint in the snow (Debussy) 4. Hi-Ha (Turkish music) 5. Fireworks (Debussy) 6. Salute D’Amour (Elgar) 7. Symphony No.5 (Beethoven) 8. Hungarian Dance (Brahms) 9. Toccata from Organ Symphony No.5 (Charles-Marie Widor) 10. Radetsky March (Strauss) 11. Final Victory (music with sea breeze sound) 12. Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) (Japanese animation music) 13. River of No return (Ken Darby & Lionel Newman) 14. Concerto in A minor (Vivaldi) 15. Waltz Ballerina and the Moor (Stranvinsky) The 17 paintings are as follows: 1. Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 4. Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 8. Girl before a mirror (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 12. Dance (Matisse) 13. Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) These examples of music and painting are chosen for their historical and aesthetic significance and specifically because they contain a variety of ‘symbolism’ in both sound and vision. Brightness and Darkness of Music and Painting (Child Version) The test consists of only one section --- the matching of music excerpts and paintings. The duration will be limited to 15-20 minutes as the original test (which lasts for 50- 60 minutes) would be too long for children. The subject is requested to match a painting which he/she thinks suits the mood of the music. Each music example will be followed by a 10 second break. The children are asked to write their comments and reasons for matching the music to the painting. However, this is optional since the limitations of their vocabulary may weaken the children’s ability to express their feelings. Also, the children are encouraged to draw symbols as explanations for their matching preferences. 5.3. The background of the subjects A total of 145 subjects participated in this test (73 adults and 72 children). All the participants attended the test on a voluntary basis. Their willingness to be involved in this test arose from one common aim: they wanted to know the answer to the question - What are the common elements in music and painting? The adults came from different occupational fields, such as education, clergy, engineering, business, arts, etc. The subjects were selected from an Anglican church, a seniors’ centre in Sydney, Australia and primary students in Hong Kong who had learnt drawing for more than one year. The subjects were divided into three categories according to their age group: children’s group (under 12 years old), younger adult group (18-35 years old) and seniors group (60 to 90 above). A. Subjects in the Anglican Church The Anglican church is located in the Sutherland Shire (southern and suburban part) of Sydney. The Sutherland Shire is a region which has the highest percentage of residents claiming Australian ancestry (80%) in Sydney. Two age groups of people attended the test in the church: they are a younger aged group (18-35) and a senior aged group (60 to 90 and above). Most of them are not professional artists or musicians but all have experience in singing hymns/Christian songs in Sunday services. Apart from three Asian participants, all of them were Westerners. B. Subjects in the seniors’ centre The Seniors’ Centre is located in the eastern part of Sydney. The participants were members of the seniors’ centre from different recreational groups, such as painting, dancing, sports and technology studies. None of them have any professional training in music and painting but most of them are amateur lovers of the arts. All of them are westerners. C. Primary students who have learnt painting for at least one year The author conducted the test in Hong Kong. The data are taken from a community art school, which has provided drawing classes for the public (including art classes in local public and private schools). All these children are Asian students who have learnt drawing and painting for at least one year. The data obtained from the children’s responses serves as a comparison with the adult data to determine whether there is any similarity in experiencing arts despite the age and cultural differences. 5.4. Results 5.4.1. The results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire Because of the essentially qualitative nature of the judgements, subjects are asked to make statistical treatment of data. Data is only done to indicate overall trends. For example, Osgood’s (1957) device, known as the “semantic differential”, is used to measure the extent to which the subjects place varying connotations on the word “brightness”. Similarities were observed between the judgements of different subject groups, and this was reflected in non-significant statistical comparisons, and the real interest lies in the detail discussion of subject choices. The purpose of the Semantic Differential questionnaire is to get an idea of which adjectives will elicit the image of brightness or darkness in the subjects. Since the aim of this research is to find correspondences between music and painting, all the adjectives can be experienced through either the visual or auditory domains. These adjectives can be used to describe visual characteristics in painting or auditory characteristics in music. For example, adjectives such as ‘soft’, ‘loud’, ‘weak’, or ‘strong’ usually refer to the intensity of dynamics in music. Adjectives such as ‘low’, ‘high’, ‘downwards’, and ‘upwards’ usually refer to the characteristic of pitch. Further, ‘thin’ and ‘thick’ can be used to describe the texture of the music. As for the adjectives, ‘gradual’ and ‘abrupt’, they can refer to variation of tempo. The words ‘relaxed’ and ‘tense’ imply the essence of consonant and dissonance respectively in music. The adjectives, ‘small’ and ‘big’ can be used to describe the size of the musical interval (such as 2nd, 3rd, 8th) and musical leaps (i.e. big or small leap). From a visual perspective, adjectives such as ‘line’, ‘point’, ‘blunt’, ‘sharp’, ‘small’, ‘big’, ‘circular’ and triangle’ are characteristic of lines in painting. Also, adjectives such as ‘cold’ and ‘warm’, ‘blue’ and ‘red’ respectively are commonly used to describe colours in painting. Further, the words, ‘sunny’ and ‘cloudy’ can be used to describe the mood of the painting. The adjectives are presented at both ends of a seven-point scale. For example, soft to loud is indicated by rating the intensity level on a scale from 1 to 7 respectively . The results of the questionnaire indicated that preferences are particularly obvious for some adjectives. For instance, 49 subjects rated the adjective ‘Sunny’ as ‘7’, the highest score in the rating scale. The following table (5.2.a., 5.2.b, 5.2.c) provides the subjects’ scores for rating the adjectives relating to the word brightness. The adjectives which show matching preference with brightness are highlighted in ‘red’ and for adjectives uncommonly associated with brightness are highlighted in ‘blue’ as follows: The results demonstrated that the characteristics of brightness and darkness were clearly demonstrated in the choice of adjectives in the test. Brightness is linked with the following adjectives: loud, high, upwards, abrupt, strong, warm, sunny, sharp, sunny and red. Darkness is frequently paired with the following adjectives: soft, low, downwards, gradual, weak, cold, blunt, cloudy, blue and small. Table 5.2 (A) Results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire (78 participants) Brightness 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brightness Total no Rating Scale Rating of subject (1-7) Scale(1-7) 1.Soft 2 3 4 9 27 24 10 Loud 78 2.Low 2 6 8 6 12 28 16 High 78 3.Downwards 1 1 3 8 14 31 20 Upwards 78 4.Thin 7 11 6 29 15 6 4 Thick 78 5.Gradual 3 5 6 13 17 18 16 Abrupt 78 6.Light 14 21 7 17 6 6 7 Heavy 78 7.Weak 4 5 0 7 14 25 23 Strong 78 8.Line 7 7 2 26 13 11 12 Point 78 9.Cold 2 4 3 10 11 23 25 Warm 78 10.Relaxed 7 8 11 19 17 10 6 Tense 78 11.Blunt 0 4 4 13 16 25 16 Sharp 78 12.Cloudy 0 2 5 2 4 16 49 Sunny 78 13.Blue 1 6 4 19 13 15 20 Red 78 14.Small 3 4 5 23 15 15 13 Big 78 15.Circular 14 10 4 23 8 14 5 Triangle 78 Table 5.2 (B) Results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire (senior participants) Brightness Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brightness Total no of Scale Rating subject (1-7) Scale(1-7) 1.Soft 2 1 4 6 22 15 8 Loud 58 2.Low 2 6 5 6 10 18 11 High 58 3.Downwards 1 1 3 6 11 23 13 Upwards 58 4.Thin 4 7 5 22 14 2 4 Thick 58 5.Gradual 3 3 6 10 12 14 10 Abrupt 58 6.Light 8 15 7 12 4 5 7 Heavy 58 7.Weak 3 5 0 5 11 16 18 Strong 58 8.Line 5 5 1 22 9 7 9 Point 58 9.Cold 2 2 2 8 10 15 19 Warm 58 10.Relaxed 5 6 7 15 15 6 4 Tense 58 11.Blunt 0 4 2 10 11 19 12 Sharp 58 12.Cloudy 0 2 4 2 3 12 35 Sunny 58 13.Blue 0 4 2 15 10 12 15 Red 58 14.Small 1 4 5 19 8 11 10 Big 58 15.Circular 11 7 4 18 6 9 3 Triangle 58 Table 5.2 (C) Results of the Semantic Differential questionnaire (young participants) Brightness Rating 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brightness Total no of Scale Rating subject (1-7) Scale(1-7) 1.Soft 0 2 0 2 5 9 2 Loud 20 2.Low 0 0 3 0 2 10 5 High 20 3.Downwards 0 0 0 2 3 8 7 Upwards 20 4.Thin 3 4 1 7 1 4 0 Thick 20 5.Gradual 0 2 0 3 5 4 6 Abrupt 20 6.Light 6 6 0 5 2 1 0 Heavy 20 7.Weak 1 0 0 2 3 9 5 Strong 20 8.Line 2 2 1 4 4 4 3 Point 20 9.Cold 0 2 1 2 1 8 6 Warm 20 10.Relaxed 2 2 4 4 2 4 2 Tense 20 11.Blunt 0 0 2 3 5 6 4 Sharp 20 12.Cloudy 0 0 1 0 1 4 14 Sunny 20 13.Blue 0 2 2 4 3 3 6 Red 20 14.Small 2 0 0 4 7 4 3 Big 20 15.Circular 3 3 0 5 2 5 2 Triangle 20 Statistically, Analysis of Variance of the semantic differential data may not work because of the large difference in the numbers of the two groups (58 and 20). Anova was carried out and non-significant F ratios were recorded. This indicates there is a high level of agreement between the two groups. Regarding the relationship between loudness and brightness, previous chapters have argued that the human has a tendency to match loudness with brightness: subjects reported that the louder the sound, the brighter the image evoked and vice versa. These perceptual phenomena explain why adjectives such as ‘loud’ or ‘strong’ are associated with brightness, whereas adjectives such as ‘soft’ and ‘weak’ are linked with darkness. Regarding the relationship between pitch, brightness and loudness, research discussed in chapter 2 reveals that a high pitch elicits bright imagery and a low pitch evokes dim and soft imagery. These perceptual phenomena also explain why adjectives such as ‘high’ and ‘upwards’ are associated with brightness, and adjectives such as ‘low’ and ‘downwards’ are related with darkness. Also, the alternation of dynamics (whether it occurs in an abrupt or gradual manner) will influence the sense of intensity of brightness in the music. For instance, the brightness of a tone is more obviously perceived if pianissimo is immediately followed by fortissimo, especially when compared with pianissimo followed by crescendo. From a visual perspective, brightness is associated with ‘light’ and ‘sunny’. Referring to d’Herbois (2005), the characteristic of light is described as follows: light is perceived and becomes visible when it reaches a certain height above the surface of the earth. Therefore, upwards is associated with brightness when compared with downwards. Also, the sun radiates its warmth and light to the earth. At midday, the sun shines more strongly than in the early morning. From the facets of the sunlight, it is not difficult to explain why adjectives such as ‘upwards’, ‘high’, ‘strong’, ‘warm’, ‘light’, ‘red’ (regarded as warm colour) are related and associated with brightness. However, ‘brightness’ is not easily associated with adjectives such as ‘weak’, ‘low’, ‘downwards’, ‘heavy’, ‘cold’, ‘blunt’, ‘cloudy’ and ‘blue’. According to Broudy (1988), the expressive properties in the arts are generally the most difficult elements to define because of their abstract nature. However, language can be used to suggest aesthetic elements in the arts. For instance, language can metaphorically describe the mood (happy, sad), dynamic status (strong, weak, high , low) or abstract humane qualities (courage, majesty, freedom). The results of the above questionnaire demonstrated clearly the existence of cross- modal experience, as reflected in the subjects’ matching of adjectives with the word, ‘brightness’. Aristotle’s argument that the human perceptual system tends to group and link common elements together, regardless of visual, auditory, tactile or taste experiences is also indicated in these results. Aristotle adopted the term, common sensibles, to refer to certain attributes of objects or events that are compulsory to the experience of most, if not all of the senses, in the process of matching perceptual experience across different modalities. 5. 4.2 Brightness and darkness in music excerpts Subjects were asked to rate 15 musical excerpts on an 11 point scale of brightness to darkness. The 15 musical excerpts are as follows: 1. Footprint in the snow (Debussy) (Prelude Book 1, no.6) 2. Hi-Ha (Turkish music) 3. Flowing water (Chinese ancient qin music) 4. River of No Return (Ken Darby & Lionel Newman) 5. Waltz Ballerina and the Moor (Stranvinsky) 6. Fireworks (Debussy) (Prelude Book 2, no.24) 7. Symphony No.5. First movement (Beethoven) 8. Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) (Japanese animation music) 9. Salute D’Amour (Elgar) 10. Final Victory (music with sea breeze sound) 11.Concerto in A minor (Vivaldi) 12.Toccata from Organ Symphony No.5 (Charles-Marie Widor) 13.Hungarian Dance (Brahms) 14.Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Mozart) 15.Radetsky March (Strauss) The following table 5.3 (A) and table 5.3 (B) show the mean of the young people and seniors in rating the brightness of the music excerpts. Table 5.3 (A) The mean of the subjects (The brightness of the music) Music excerpt Young people Senior people The mean of 77 (The mean of 20 (The mean of 57 subjects) subjects subjects) 1.Flowing water 5.4 4.9 4.9 2. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik 9.2 10.1 9.8 3. Footprints on the snow 4.1 3.6 3.8 4. Hi-Ha 3.6 4.9 4.6 5. Salut d’amour 6.1 7.2 6.9 6. Fireworks 5 6.9 6.4 7.Symphony No.5 5.3 6.4 6.1 8.Hungarian Dance 8.1 8.8 8.6 9.Toccata (Charles-Marie 8 8.2 8.1 Widow) 10.Final Victory 7.9 7.5 7.6 11.March (Strauss) 9.1 10.3 9.9 12.Overture-Departure 6.3 6.4 6.4 (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) 13.River of no return 5.2 5.3 5.3 14.Concerto in A minor 7.8 7.8 7.8 Op.3 no.8 15.Ballerina and the Moor 5.3 5.3 5.3 Table 5.3 (B) Comparison between the rank order of brightness of music between senior and young people (in rank order from brightness to darkness) Music excerpts Mean score of senior Music excerpts The number of people (57) young people (20) Radetsky March 10.3 Eine Kleine 9.2 Nachtmusik Eine Kleine 10.1 Radetsky March 9.1 Nachtmusik Hungarian Dance 8.8 Hungarian Dance 8.1 Toccata 8.2 Toccata 8 Concerto in A minor 7.8 Final Victory 7.9 Final Victory 7.5 Concerto in A minor 7.8 Salute D’Amour 7.2 Overture-Departure 6.3 (Glittering Galaxy- Bond for Andromeda) Fireworks 6.9 Salut d’amour 6.1 Symphony No.5 6.4 Flowing water 5.4 Overture-Departure 6.4 Symphony No.5 5.3 (Glittering Galaxy- Bond for Andromeda) Waltz Ballerina and 5.3 Waltz Ballerina and 5.3 the Moor the Moor River of No return 5.3 River of No return 5.2 Flowing water 4.9 Fireworks 5 Hi-Ha 4.9 Hi-Ha 4.1 Footprint in the snow 3.6 Footprint in the snow 3.6 Analysis of Variance produced no significant F values when comparing ratings by the seniors and young participants for all pieces of music except Fireworks by Debussy. In this case, the seniors rated the piece more bright than the young people (M = 6.4 and 5.3; F = 7.9; p = 0.0065). There is a great deal of similarity in the rating of the senior and young people as shown in the above table. Both the senior and the young people groups rated Radetsky March, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Hungarian Dance and Toccata, as the brightest when compared with other examples. On the other hand, both senior and young people groups rated Footprints in the snow, River of No Return, Waltz Ballerina and the Moor and Flowing Water as dimmer musical examples when compared with other musical excerpts. What does their matching preference reveal to us? Loudness and timbre are two of the crucial factors contributing to the association of brightness in one’s perceptual experience. The relationship of brightness and loudness, brightness and timbre and their influence in one’s perceptual experience have already been discussed in chapters 2 and 3, the chapters concerning the art making of various composers and artists. Subjects tend to associate fast, loud and strong rhythmic piece with brightness. Also, subjects tend to associate tone colours which bears qualities such as ‘clear’, ‘sharp’, ‘warm’, ‘rich’, ‘high’ register, ‘firm’, ‘agile’, ‘power’, ‘sonorous’, and ‘strong’ with brightness. All these dynamic and timbre qualities that are associated with brightness obviously occur in the musical repertoire of Radetsky March, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Hungarian Dance and Toccata. All these four musical repertoires are full of power and dynamic contrast (consisting of abrupt alternation of loudness and softness). Performance direction such as allegro, forte, ff, sf ,vivace, and marcato exist in the music. All these verbal instructions increase the force and vigour of the music. Also, the changing of tempo, especially when occurring in an abrupt manner, enriches the intensity and dramatic content of the music. Regarding the timbre, Radetsky March is performed by a solo instrument, the piano accordion. Invented and modifying during the mid 18th century by Damian of Vienna (Kennedy1980), the sound of the accordion is bright, clear and rich. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is performed by the strings, in which the violins play the melody section mostly. The tone colour of the violin is full of infinite shade and variety, expressive and bright, which enriches the lively and energetic character of the piece. In Hungarian dance, the big leap in the bass section and the sudden ritardando and accelerando of the strings, and the accentuation of certain notes, all these devices intensify the mood of the piece. These effects are especially obvious when the strings play in tutti with force. In Charles-Marie Widor’s popular Organ Symphony No.5, Toccata, Widor has transformed all the power of the organ and the complicated organ technique into this piece, including rapid repeated notes on the keyboard and the melody played by the pedals. Therefore, this rapid finger work, with lots of tone colours and varieties of loudness and softness, creates brightness to the perceptual experience of the subjects. On the other hand, subjects tend to associate dimness with a slow and loose tempo, softness of dynamics and vague rhythm. These perceptual phenomena have been discussed and demonstrated with the accompaniment of painting examples in chapters 2 and 3. Subjects tend to associate tone colours such as ‘soft’, ‘light’, ‘vague/blur/blunt’ with dimness. Footprints in the snow, River of No Return, Waltz Ballerina and the Moor and Flowing Water, which are rated by the subjects as less bright musical excerpts consist of the above tempo, dynamic and rhythmic characteristics. Footprints in the snow is rated as the dimmest musical excerpt by both senior and young people group. The contributing factor for its dimness owes much to the softness of dynamic and the timbre of the piano. The whole piece of the music is penetrated by the dynamic level p, pp, and ppp. The sound of the piano is modified and subdued according to the performance direction such as Triste et lent (sad and slow) and ce rythme doit avoir la valeur sonore d’un fond de paysage triste et glacé (indicates the rhythm should evoke the depths of a bleak, frozen landscape). For further reference, please refer to chapter 2. The subjects’ rating results further demonstrate the influential role of loudness and timbre that occur in one’s perceptual experience. Regarding the timbre in Flowing water, this music excerpt demonstrates the “quiet”, “soft” or even “soundless” tone colour of the Chinese qin. The ‘harmonics’ of the qin are like the echo of the distant bell, soft and delicate. This reinforces the softness and quietness of the mood in the piece. Further, within the entire song of the River of no return, the female voice is accompanied by the guitar. The combination of the female voice and the guitar create a lyrical, soft and tender mood to the music. Therefore, subjects rate this musical excerpts as less bright when compared with other pieces. Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is rated as one of the brightest musical excerpts. What are the reasons contributing to its brightness? Loudness and timbre appear to be the main musical elements promoting this assessment. In Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the dynamic level shifts from loud to soft alternatively, creating a dramatic effect for the listener. The structure of the dynamic levels from bar 1-55 is displayed in the following table: Table 5.4 The Dynamic structure of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Bar 1-55) Bar Number Dynamic Level Bar 1-10 forte Bar 11-17 piano Bar 18 sf –p Bar 19 sf-p Bar 20-21 crescendo Bar 22-27 forte Bar 28-39 first beat piano Bar39 third beat – Bar 43 first beat forte Bar 43 second half beat – Bar 47 first beat piano Bar 47 third beat -53 forte Bar 54-55 piano By nature, humans have a tendency to pair loudness with brightness. Marks (1975), based on the results of his empirical studies of visual-auditory perception, states that “when people are asked to match brightness of lights to loudness of sounds, they align increasing luminous with increasing sound pressures in a systematic manner that is similar from person to person (p. 304)”. The alternation of loudness and softness, especially in an abrupt manner, adds to the tension and dramatic content of the music. The dynamics in this piece occur in a “strong”, “sharp” and abrupt manner. These are the adjectives associated by the subjects with ‘brightness’ in the questionnaire Figure 5.1 The score of the opening section of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik In Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the melody is written mostly in the upper range of the violin. When compared with the viola, cello and double bass, the tone colour of the violin is much brighter and sharper. The relationship between brightness and pitch is elaborated by Marks’s statement (1975) that high pitch is often described by subjects as “brighter” when compared with low pitch. Marks’s (1985, 1987) experiments in pitch and lightness/ brightness concluded that bright sounds produce a bright photism in subjects’ perceptual experiences. These results revealed that subjects match dim light with dark colours and low pitches, and bright light with light colours and high pitches. In addition, De Mendoza (1980, p.140) claimed that images “appear darker when they are struck on lower notes; but so much more clear and brilliant when they are formed of higher notes.” In the orchestration of Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, string instruments are employed. Starting in Bar 5, the violins (the highest register in the string family) play the melody. String instruments generally frequently stand out in the orchestra because of their brilliant, rich tone colours and wide ranging register. The forte tutti (violin, viola, cello and double bass) opening section creates a powerful and energetic impression on the listeners. Therefore, adjectives such as ‘upwards’, ‘high’, ‘strong’, ‘loud’, ‘sharp’ and ‘abrupt’ are prominent in the treatment of dynamics in Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. The tone colour of the violin bears the characteristic of the adjectives which were rated by the subjects as ‘bright’, such as ‘strong’, ‘high’, ‘loud’ and ‘sharp’ in this piece of music. On the other hand, Johann Strauss I’s Radetsky March is rated as one of the brightest musical excerpts. The music genre March itself usually refers to music which has a strong and stable percussive beat and pattern (Grove Dictionary online 2007). According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (Kennedy, 1980), a March is interpreted as a “form of music to accompany the orderly progress of large group of people, especially soldiers; one of the earliest known music forms” (p.398). Although there are exceptional cases, like the lyrical Chopin’s Funeral March, nevertheless, March music usually gives people an impression of force and energy due to its strong rhythm. The mood of the Radetsky March projects sensory qualities such as ‘sunny’, ‘loud’, strong’, ‘warm’ and sharp’ to the listeners. The Radetsky March evokes the image of brightness and joyfulness in the listeners. During the listening process, there were a number of participants occasionally moved their bodies and their scope of movement are much bigger when compared with the other pieces. Some of them even imagined that they were riders on horses. The alternation of loudness and softness is obvious in this piece. In the opening section (bar 1-4), the dynamic level, fff , gives a sharp and bright impression to the listeners. Afterwards, the performance direction, piano exists and immediately follows by mf, and then mp. The repetition of the melodic and dynamic materials in the music reinforces the vigorous image of the piece. Kandinsky (1982) asserts that “repetition is a powerful means of intensifying inner emotion and at the same time creating a primitive rhythm, which is in turn a means of attaining a primitive harmony in every form of art”. 5.4.3 Brightness and darkness in the paintings Brightness and Darkness of the paintings were rated by the 78 subjects using the same 11 point scales as in Part 2 of the test: Brightness and darkness in music. The paintings are as follows: 1. Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 2. Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet) 3. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating in the deep forest 4. Dance (Matisse) 5. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 7. Girl at front mirror (Picasso) 8. Night Windows (Hopper) 9. Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso) 10. Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 11. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 12. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 13. I and the Village (Chagall) 14. Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) 15. Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 16. The Kiss (Klimt) 17. Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) The mean of the brightness of the 17 paintings rated by the 78 subjects are as follows: Table 5.5 (A): The mean of the subjects (The brightness of the painting) Painting example Young people Senior people The mean of 78 subjects (The mean of 20 subjects) (The mean of 58 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 5.4 5.6 5.6 d’Avignon 2.Watercolour (No.13) 7.3 6.6 6.8 Related to Composition VII 3. Starry Night 3.9 4.6 4.4 4.Composition with Red, 6.4 4.3 4.8 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray 5.Nocturne in Blue and 4.4 4.1 4.2 Silver:Battersea Reach 6. Red Studio 3.7 6.2 5.6 7. I and the Village 5.9 6.8 6.6 8. Girl at front mirror 5.9 5 5.2 9.Reflections of Clouds on 4.4 3.8 3.9 the Water-lily pond 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 6.2 6.7 6.6 11.Cat and Bird 5.2 6.5 6.2 12. Dance 3.8 4.5 4.3 13.Rose of Versailles 7.7 7.9 7.9 14.The Kiss 7.2 7.4 7.3 15.Contemplating in the deep 3.4 4.6 4.3 forest 16. Night Windows 6.5 5.2 5.5 17. An Orchid 6 5.7 5.8 Table 5.5 (B) The mean of the brightness of the painting (in rank order from brightness to darkness rated by the subjects) Those highlighted in pink indicates common choices between the groups. Title of the painting Mean Title of the Mean score Title of the painting Mean score score of the painting of the of the total young age Senior age 78 subjects group (20) group (58) Rose of Versailles 7.7 Rose of Versailles 7.9 Rose of Versailles 7.9 Watercolor(No.13)Related 7.3 The Kiss 7.4 The Kiss 7.3 to Composition VII The Kiss 7.2 I and the Village 6.8 Watercolor(No.13)Related 6.8 to Composition VII Night Windows 6.5 Gold Marilyn 6.7 Gold Marilyn Monroe 6.6 Monroe Composition with Red, 6.4 Watercolor 6.6 I and the Village 6.6 Blue, Black, Yellow and (No.13) Related to Gray Composition VII Gold Marilyn Monroe 6.2 Cat and Bird 6.5 Cat and Bird 6.2 An Orchid 6 The Red Studio 6.2 An Orchid 5.8 I and the Village 5.9 An Orchid 5.7 The Red Studio 5.6 Girl at front mirror 5.9 Les Demoiselles 5.6 Les Demoiselles 5.6 d’Avignon d’Avignon Les Demoiselles 5.4 Night Windows 5.2 Night Windows 5.5 d’Avignon Cat and Bird 5.2 Girl at front 5 Girl atfront mirror 5.2 mirror Reflections of Clouds on 4.4 Starry Night 4.6 Starry Night 4.9 the Water-lily pond Nocturne in Blue and 4.4 Contemplating in 4.6 Composition with Red, 4.8 Silver: Battersea Reach the Blue, Black, Yellow and deep forest Gray Starry Night 3.9 Dance 4.5 Dance 4.3 Dance 3.8 Composition with 4.4 Contemplating in the 4.3 Red, Blue, Black, deep forest Yellow and Gray The Red Studio 3.7 Nocturne in Blue 4.1 Nocturne in Blue and 4.2 and Silver: Silver: Battersea Reach Battersea Reach Contemplating in the 3.4 Reflections of 3.8 Reflections of Clouds on 3.9 deep forest Clouds on the the Water-lily pond Water-lily pond Anova was used in comparing the scores for brightness between the young with the senior people. The 17 paintings are as follows: 1. Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso) – n.s. 2. Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) – n.s. 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) – n.s. 4. Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) – F = 10.08 (1 and 76 df) ; p = 0.0022 5. Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) – n.s. 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) – F = 49.32 (1 and 76bdf) ; p < 0.0001 7. I and the Village (Chagall) – F = 3.82 ; p = 0.054 8. Girl before a mirror (Picasso) – n.s. 9. Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet) – n.s. 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) – n.s. 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee – F = 9.91 (1 and 76 df) p = 0.0023 12. Dance (Matisse) – n.s. 13. Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) – n.s. 14. The Kiss (Klimt) – n.s. 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating in the deep forest – F = 5.49 (1 and 76 df ) p = 0.022 16. Night Windows (Hopper) – F = 6.34 (1 and 76 df) p = 0.014 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) – n.s. Five out of the 17 comparisons show statistically significant F ratios, with only the painting, I and the Village (Chagall) below the significance level of 0.05. These results show that there was significant agreement over the rating of the painting’s brightness levels. Those which showed difference due to age are discussed below in terms of the visual content of the paintings. Both the senior and young people group have rated Himeno Michi’s The Rose of Versailles, Klimt’s The Kiss and Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII as the three of the brightest paintings. On the contrary, paintings such as Whistler’s Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach, Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond are rated by both the groups as less bright paintings. These matching preferences have demonstrated that the colours and lines in the canvas will affect the perceptual experience of the subjects. As in the following example, the intensity of the line, such as its thinness and thickness, its colour, its direction, its brightness and darkness, will affect our perceptual experiences. Figure 5.2 The different qualities of lines The colours and lines of these three paintings are brighter when compared with Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond and Whistler’s Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach. Take Himeno Michi’s The Rose of Versailles as an example. The clear contour lines and the bold character in the illustration create a sunny atmosphere to its viewer. Further, the author has summarized some primary students’ impressions of this painting as follows: 1. This picture reminds me about the bright side of human nature, such as brave and courage and dignity. 2. The lady is very brave and smart. 3. It seems that a war is coming … 4. The character’s face is full of serenity and she gave me an impression of like the ray of sunshine. 5. A brave woman standing at the high mountain. 6. The character is like a brave warrior. 7. The final victory after the war. 8. The soldier is trying the best to protect the country. 9. The character is so smart and awesome. 10. I can feel the strong intensity in this picture. From the participants’ feedback, the brightness of The Rose of Versailles not only exists on a physiological level but also touches the subjects psychologically and emotionally. In the other words, brightness can be seen by the eyes and can be felt by the heart. Apart from The Rose of Versailles, Klimt’s The Kiss is another example rated by the participants as a ‘bright’ picture. Influenced by the Byzantine mosaics, ‘golden colour’ and colourful decorated patterns frequently dominated Klimt’s paintings. The distinctive brightness of gold in Klimt’s paintings owed much to his personal experience and knowledge about gold since his father was a goldsmith. The Kiss denoted one of the most successful and critical period in Klimt’s artistic career --- Golden Phase. In The Kiss, Klimt had tactfully used golden yellow in the arrangement of the painting. The predominant gold and the embracing of the couple create a warm, passionate and intimate background for the painting. Kandinsky (Boehmer, 1997) believed in the psychic effects and the symbolic meaning of colours. According to Kandinsky himself (1912), the most musical element in a picture is colour. Referring to Ya’acov Y.Leshem, Kandinsky viewed yellow as ‘warm’, ‘powerful’, ‘radiant’ and ‘eccentric’. Yellow, red, and orange are usually regarded as ‘warm’ colours for they generate the sense of brightness and they approach the viewers. On the other hand, blue, green and purple are regarded as cool colours and they often create a sense of remoteness and coolness. Below are impressions of The Kiss expressed by some primary students: 1. The painting gives me an image of happiness. 2. It’s romantic. 3. Very colourful, like a palette full of different colours. 4. Beautiful. 5. Like a garden full of flowers. 6. Like a dance. 7. Joy. 8. Noisy. 9. Fast. 10. Light. Noisy, fast and light are adjectives rated by the majority of the participants as bright attributes in the Semantic differential questionnaire of the word brightness. Besides, psychological expressions such as ‘happiness’, ‘romantic’, ‘beautiful’ and ‘joy’ are frequently paired with bright and positive feelings instead of negative, dark attributes. Further, Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII is rated by the subjects as one of the brightest paintings. Of this work, the author would argue that the brightness of the painting owes much to the dynamic, flamboyant arrangement of lines and colours. Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII demonstrates ‘strong’, ‘sharp’, yet sometimes ‘abrupt’ and patchy boundaries. The vivid use and daubs of colours, especially the strong contrast among individual colours, and the use of black lines and shades increase the intensity and dynamic of the painting. Further, the brightness of this painting owes much to its chaos, tense and busy brush strokes on the canvas. When compare Contemplating in the deep forest with Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII, the effect of brightness upon the spectators’ perceptual experiences are more clearly seen. Contemplating in the deep forest is rated by the subjects as one of the dimmest and darkest paintings compared to the other paintings. Zwimpfer’s example will provide an explanation for this perceptual experience. Take a look at the following two colour squares. Which one seems brighter? Figure 5.3 Colour square 1 Colour square 2 Zwimpfer (1988) stated: “The colours in the left picture can be described as loud, noisy, shrill; while those at right, in contrast, have a still, quiet effect” (p.427). Naturally, bright colours (such as red and yellow) are perceived as louder than less bright colours (such as black and brown). Further, personal experience (such as memories) is another factor which should be taken into consideration. One of the subjects mentioned that she rated Klimt’s The Kiss as the brightest because she had seen the real painting in Vienna and it immediately stunned her. The memory of the golden yellow remained with her forever after her first encounter with the painting. This corresponds with Ackerman’s (1990) perception that: Our eyes do not just measure wavelengths at light. We are not really cameras. As Edwin Land, inventor of the Polaroid Land Camera and instant photography, deduced, we judge colours by the company they keep. We compare them to one another, and revise according to the time of day, light source, memory (p.252). Another subject rated Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon the brightest was due to his childhood memory. He’d never seen a distorted nude human figure before and this ‘shock’, ‘sharpened’ and ‘brightened’ his vision. To him, the brightness of an object is related to the intensity it aroused in one’s sensations. In Himeno Michi’s The Rose of Versailles, Klimt’s The Kiss and Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII, qualities such as “sunny”, “warm” and “strong” (clear contours and bright colours) are obviously appear in the canvas. These qualities are rated by the subjects in the Semantic Differential questionnaire as high intensity in terms of brightness (see Table 5.6). Table 5.6 Adjective Preferences of the word brightness Adjective related with Number Adjective related with Number Brightness Brightness Sunny 49 Blunt 0 Warm 25 Cloudy 0 Strong 23 Blue 1 Upwards 20 Low 1 Red 20 Downwards 1 High 16 Soft 2 Abrupt 16 Cold 2 Sharp 16 Gradual 3 Loud 16 Small 3 Abrupt 16 Weak 4 5.4.4. The correspondence in the matching of music and paintings This section will define the subjects’ cross-modal experiences in matching music excerpts with paintings during the test “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting”. The focus will be on the research question of the test: Do people make correspondences between music and visual arts by using the work of painters and musicians? Regarding the relationship between sound and visual image (photism), Marks (1978) states loudness, pitch and brightness are related to each other. Loud sounds frequently create bright images and soft sound usually evokes dimmer images. Also, pitch affects the perception of photism. Marks states that high pitch elicits a bright image and low pitch creates a dimmer image, and vice versa. These cross-modal experiences have been confirmed by Marks’ (78, 82, 90) empirical studies over the last few decades. Regarding the relationship between visual shapes and auditory configurations, Walker (1987) concluded that the changing of amplitude often matched with the size of the visual metaphor. Also, the acoustic duration matched the horizontal length of the visual metaphor (visual length). Walker (1978) states that the volume of the sound, such as its loudness and softness affects the intensity of the musical ‘arc’ in listening experience. The relationship between sound and the lines/pattern is further stated in Willmann’s research. In Willmann’s (Merriam, 1964, p.87) study, four visual figures were given to composers in the United States and they were asked to compose themes for the music according to the shape of the figures as follows (See Figure 5.4): Figure 5.4 The four figures The other details are stated by Willmann (Merriam, 1964) as follows: Design A: Generally duple and regular in rhythm pattern, moderate or slow in tempo, medium or loud in dynamics, even in melodic pattern, and decisive in character. Design B: Generally triple and regular in rhythmic pattern, moderate in tempo, soft or medium in dynamics, even and flowing in melodic pattern, and quiet in mood or character. Design C: Generally duple and syncopated in rhythmic pattern, moderate or fast in tempo, loud and accented in dynamics, jagged in melodic pattern, and agitated and quite frequently decisive in mood or character. Design D: Generally duple and syncopated but also quiet frequently triple in rhythmic pattern, fast in tempo, loud and climactic in dynamics, rising and /or falling in melodic pattern, and impetuous or decisive and restless in mood or character (p.87). The cross-modal experience between sound and shape is further illustrated by Kandinsky’s concept concerning ‘line’, the common element in music and painting. Kandinsky (1982) proclaimed that point and line are the two attributes commonly shared in the entities of art and music. Also, he stated that, intensity does occur within different categories of lines, which depends much on the consciousness of the artists. As Kandinsky (1982, p.572) said, the “variations in line depend upon the number of these forces and their combination”. For instance, Masashi (1995) interprets the visual and auditory qualities of line as follows: When we see several dots close to each other, we distinguish a line. And when we hear someone knocking on the door at short interval, we receive sounds as a set. In both cases, it is almost impossible to perceive each individual dot or sound (p.75). According to Walker (1987), he has raised several questions regarding sounds evoke images as follows: How does the internal image relate to the external object; to what extent is the one isomorphic to the other; is the image pictorial or descriptive? Bugelski (1982) regards imagery as a function of learning: “Before one can remember he must learn” (p.230-231). Visual-auditory perceptual experiences (such as the relationship between brightness, dynamic, timbre and line) were investigated in the matching of music and paintings. There were 5 senior subjects who couldn’t attend this section, therefore, the senior group number changed from 58 to 53. Table 5.7 shows the matching preference of music and painting for three groups: seniors, young people and children. Those highlighted in pink and green indicate common choices across the three groups. 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Table 5.7 (1) Flowing water (Music) and its painting matching preference Flowing Water Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 3 1 1 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 3 0 1 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 3 2 2 4. Composition with Red, 1 0 0 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 2 0 3 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 0 0 0 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 3 0 1 8. Girl before a mirror 1 1 3 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 5 0 1 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 2 0 0 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 2 0 2 12. Dance (Matisse) 5 1 0 13. Rose of Versailles 2 1 2 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 0 0 0 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 17 13 49 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 1 0 2 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 1 1 3 No comment 2 0 2 Total number 53 20 72 Figure 5.5 Contemplating in the deep forest (Hsu Wei), the painting which show matching preference with Flowing Water among most subjects Table 5.7 (2) Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Music) and its painting matching preference Eine Kleine Senior people Young people Children Nachtmusik (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 0 0 1 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 10 3 7 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 9 2 1 4. Composition with Red, 1 2 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 1 0 0 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 3 0 5 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 0 0 9 8. Girl before a 4 1 2 mirror(Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 2 1 2 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10, Gold Marilyn Monroe 0 0 1 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 1 0 0 12. Dance (Matisse) 14 6 23 13. Rose of Versailles 2 0 6 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 1 1 6 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 1 0 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 1 1 1 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 3 3 2 No comment 1 0 3 Total number 53 20 72 Dance (Matisse) and Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) are the painting which show matching preference with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik among most subjects. Table 5.7 (3) Footprints on the snow (Music) and its painting matching preference Footprints on the snow Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 2 0 4 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 2 1 2 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 5 1 17 4. Composition with Red, 3 1 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 10 3 8 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 0 0 0 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 1 0 0 8. Girl before a mirror 0 3 2 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 15 5 11 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 0 1 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 2 2 0 12. Dance (Matisse) 0 0 3 13. Rose of Versailles 1 0 3 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 0 0 2 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 3 2 7 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 1 0 9 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 6 1 2 No comment 1 1 0 Total number 53 20 72 Reflections of the Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet) is the painting which show matching preference with Footprints on the snow (Music) among most subjects Table 5.7 (4) Hi-Ha (Music) and its painting matching preference Hi-Ha Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 0 0 4 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 6 0 8 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 7 3 0 4. Composition with Red, 4 4 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 1 1 1 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 4 0 4 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 3 1 4 8. Girl before a mirror 6 1 2 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 3 0 10 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 0 0 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 0 1 5 12. Dance (Matisse) 9 8 17 13. Rose of Versailles 0 0 9 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 3 0 0 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 0 0 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 3 0 2 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 1 0 2 No comment 2 1 3 Total number 53 20 72 Dance (Matisse) is the painting which show matching preference with Hi-Ha. Table 5.7 (5) Salut d’amour (Music) and its painting matching preference Salute d’amour Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 10 8 2 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 1 1 3 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 0 0 9 4. Composition with Red, 1 0 0 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 2 0 3 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 3 1 2 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 3 1 2 8. Girl before a mirror 1 0 3 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 9 3 3 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 0 2 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 0 0 3 12. Dance (Matisse) 2 0 10 13. Rose of Versailles 1 0 8 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 0 1 8 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 4 0 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 2 1 7 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 13 4 7 No comment 0 0 0 Total number 53 20 72 O’ Keeffe’s The Orchid and Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso) are the painting which show matching preference with Salute d’amour (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (6) Fireworks (Music) and its painting matching preference Fireworks Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 2 0 1 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 5 7 12 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 7 3 11 4. Composition with Red, 1 0 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 1 12 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 0 2 4 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 9 1 3 8. Girl before a mirror 2 3 5 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 5 0 9 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 0 0 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 8 1 4 12. Dance (Matisse) 7 1 0 13. Rose of Versailles 1 0 2 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 2 1 3 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 1 0 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 2 0 3 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 0 0 2 No comment 0 0 3 Total number 53 20 72 Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) and Starry Night (Van Gogh) are the painting which show matching preference with Fireworks (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (7) Symphony No.5 (Music) and its painting matching preference Symphony No.5 Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 1 1 1 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 0 1 12 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 14 5 3 4. Composition with Red, 1 1 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 0 4 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 1 1 2 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 7 1 8 8. Girl before a mirror 2 1 9 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 4 0 3 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 0 0 3 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 5 3 3 12. Dance (Matisse) 6 1 6 13. Rose of Versailles 2 0 5 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 2 2 4 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 4 0 1 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 4 2 1 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 0 0 1 No comment 0 1 5 Total number 53 20 72 Starry Night (Van Gogh) and Dance (Matisse) are the painting which show matching preference with Symphony No.5 (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (8) Hungarian Dance No.5 (Music) and its painting matching preference Hungarian Dance Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 1 1 5 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 6 3 6 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 2 1 3 4. Composition with Red, 1 1 5 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 1 2 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 0 1 4 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 4 2 5 8. Girl before a mirror 1 1 10 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 1 1 2 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 0 0 4 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 2 1 3 12. Dance (Matisse) 30 4 2 13. Rose of Versailles 2 1 8 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 2 2 4 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 0 0 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 1 1 5 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 0 0 4 No comment 0 0 0 Total number 53 20 72 Dance (Matisse) is the painting which show matching preference Hungarian Dance No.5 (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (9) Toccato (Music) and its painting matching preference Toccata Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 2 1 3 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 4 4 3 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 7 1 3 4. Composition with Red, 4 1 5 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 1 0 2 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 2 1 6 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 2 3 9 8. Girl before a mirror 8 2 3 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 0 0 2 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 0 0 2 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 3 1 5 12. Dance (Matisse) 4 1 1 13. Rose of Versailles 4 3 4 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 6 1 7 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 0 0 3 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 4 0 5 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 1 0 3 No comment 1 1 6 Total number 53 20 72 The Kiss is the painting which show matching preference with Toccata (Charles- Marie Widor) (Music) among the subjects. However, Contemplating in the deep forest is the painting which shows the least matching preference with Toccata (Charles-Marie Widor) (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (10) Final Victory (Music) and its painting matching preference (women) Final Victory Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 0 0 10 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 4 0 1 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 4 0 1 4. Composition with Red, 4 0 4 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 3 0 5 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 3 0 9 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 5 0 6 8. Girl before a mirror 2 0 0 (Picasso 9. Reflections of Clouds on 3 0 5 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 5 2 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 4 1 8 12. Dance (Matisse) 5 0 0 13. Rose of Versailles 6 9 7 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 3 1 6 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 1 0 1 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 2 2 1 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 1 1 5 No comment 2 0 1 Total number 53 20 72 Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) is the painting which show matching preference with Final Victory (Music) among the subjects. However, Contemplating in the deep forest is the painting which also show matching preference with Final Victory (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (11) March (Music) and its painting matching preference March Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 3 0 6 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 6 3 1 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 0 0 1 4. Composition with Red, 3 1 6 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 0 1 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 2 7 8 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 5 0 10 8. Girl before a mirror 1 1 9 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 0 0 0 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 0 0 6 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 1 1 4 12. Dance (Matisse) 12 2 4 13. Rose of Versailles 10 1 0 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 6 3 4 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 0 0 1 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 4 1 3 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 0 0 1 No comment 0 0 7 Total number 53 20 72 Red Studio (Matisse) is the the painting which show matching preference with Final Victory (Music) among the subjects. On the other hand, O’ Keeffe’s The Orchid and Contemplating in the deep forest are the paintings which also show the least matching preference with Final Victory (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (12) Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) (Music) and its painting matching preference Galaxy Express 999 Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 6 1 2 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 1 1 1 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 5 1 9 4. Composition with Red, 0 1 7 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 3 1 4 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 1 0 2 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 0 0 2 8. Girl before a mirror 2 2 1 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 4 5 7 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 2 0 3 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 2 0 5 12. Dance (Matisse) 0 1 0 13. Rose of Versailles 3 0 6 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 1 1 3 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 9 2 3 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 2 1 4 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 11 3 8 No comment 1 0 5 Total number 53 20 72 O’ Keeffe’s The Orchid and Reflections of the Clouds on the Water-lily pond are the paintings that also show matching preference with Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (13) River Of No Return (Music) and its painting matching preference River of No Return Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 4 1 7 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 1 0 0 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 0 0 1 4. Composition with Red, 2 0 1 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 1 2 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 3 0 3 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 2 0 1 8. Girl before a mirror 0 0 2 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 4 0 1 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 23 18 19 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 0 0 1 12. Dance (Matisse) 1 0 1 13. Rose of Versailles 1 0 4 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 3 0 10 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 3 0 1 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 2 0 6 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 3 0 5 No comment 1 0 7 Total number 53 20 72 Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) is the painting which show matching preference with Return of No Return (Music) among the subjects. Table 5.7 (14) Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8 (Music) and its painting matching preference Concerto in A minor Op.3. Senior people Young people Children No.8 (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 3 4 4 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 2 1 6 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 1 1 3 4. Composition with Red, 0 0 11 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 0 0 1 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 2 1 7 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 2 0 3 8. Girl before a mirror 5 2 4 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 5 3 4 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 1 0 4 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 3 0 5 12. Dance (Matisse) 8 2 1 13. Rose of Versailles 5 0 1 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 3 1 1 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 1 1 0 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 3 1 2 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 6 2 3 No comment 3 1 12 Total number 53 20 72 Reflections of the Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet) and Contemplating in the deep forest (Hsu Wei) are the painting which show matching preference with Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8 among the subjects. Table 5.7 (15) Waltz Ballerina and the Moor (Music) and its painting matching preference Waltz Ballerina and the Moor Senior people Young people Children (53 subjects) (20 subjects) (72 subjects) 1. Les Demoiselles 3 1 2 d’Avignon (Picasso) 2. Watercolor (No.13) 1 0 1 Related to Composition VII (Kandinsky) 3. Starry Night (Van Gogh) 2 1 1 4. Composition with Red, 2 2 4 Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian) 5. Nocturne in Blue and 2 0 7 Silver: Battersea Reach (Whistler) 6. The Red Studio (Matisse) 2 2 3 7. I and the Village (Chagall) 5 2 0 8. Girl before a mirror 6 1 8 (Picasso) 9. Reflections of Clouds on 2 0 5 the Water-lily pond (Monet) 10. Gold Marilyn Monroe 3 0 5 (Warhol) 11. Cat and Bird: Paul Klee 4 3 8 12. Dance (Matisse) 3 1 1 13. Rose of Versailles 1 1 1 (Himeno Michi) 14. The Kiss (Klimt) 5 1 4 15. Hsu Wei’s Contemplating 2 0 1 in the deep forest 16. Night Windows (Hopper) 5 4 7 17. An Orchid (O’Keeffe) 2 0 3 No comment 3 1 11 Total number 53 20 72 Cat and Bird (Klee) and Picasso’s painting are the paintings which show matching preference with Waltz Ballerina and the Moor (Music) among the subjects. The results of the data in Table 5.7 suggested that matching preferences exist among several music excerpts and paintings. Several music excerpts and paintings have been chosen for further illustration. The matching references in music and painting demonstrate that: ‘timbre’ and ‘dynamic’ suggests the ‘contour’ and the ‘brightness’ of the depicted object of the painting. Music and painting examples will be used to demonstrate the above perceptual characteristics. 5.4.6 Music and painting analysis Anova was applied to show music matching with paintings between the seniors and young people. The results are as follows: 1. Flowing water (Chinese ancient qin music): n.s. 2. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Mozart): n.s. 3. Footprint in the snow (Debussy): n.s. 4. Hi-Ha (Yarkin/skin: Turkish music): n.s. 5. Salute D’Amour (Elgar): n.s. 6. Fireworks (Debussy): F= 6.3 (1 and 71 df), p = 0.014 7. Symphony No.5 (Beethoven): n.s. 8. Hungarian Dance (Brahms): n.s. 9. Toccata from Organ Symphony No.5 (Charles-Marie Widor): n.s. 10. Final Victory (music with sea breeze sound): F= 14.4 (1 and 71 df), p = 0.0003 11. Radetsky March (Strauss): n.s. 12. Galaxy Express 999 (Japanese animation music): n.s. 13. River of No return (Ken Darby & Lionel Newman): n.s. 14. Concerto in A minor (Vivaldi): n.s. 15. Waltz Ballerina and the Moor (Stranvinsky): n.s. Only 3 matchings above showed statistically significant differences between the two groups, with Final Victory (music excerpt No.10) showing the largest difference. This indicates a very high degree of agreement between the two groups, thus supporting the thesis which argues for a natural matching between music and paintings. 5.4.6(A). The Chinese qin music, Flowing water and Hsu Wei’s Contemplating in the deep forest What are the factors that cause people to pair and relate these works together? The author would argue it is the image of serenity, delicacy and antiquity. Table 5.7 (1) demonstrates the matching preference of the subjects. Flowing water is rated as one of the dimmest music excerpts. The dimness and softness of the piece owes much to the timbre of the Chinese Qin. The music excerpts demonstrate the “quiet”, “soft” and “soundless” tone colour of the instrument. His K’ang’( Gulik, 1969) states that the timbre of qin is “variegated and colourful like chequered feathers, they are like the echo left by a gentle breeze lightly blowing”. The ‘harmonics’ of the qin are like the echo of a distant bell, soft and delicate. This reinforces the softness and quietness of the mood in the piece. Unlike other Asian or Western instruments, the Chinese Qin has never developed to become a performing instrument (until the last 30 years) due to its softness in nature, for the string is made of silk and easily broken by extensive force. The sound of the qin is dimmer compared to other Chinese instruments, such as Chin and Pipa or other western instruments, such as the flute, violin and trumpet. Some subjects commented the timbre of the instrument sounded ‘antique’, not modern; therefore, they rated it as darker due to its antiquity. As for the dynamic, the majority of the two sections are soft, as the title suggests: ‘a qin resounds by the hidden mountain stream’. Regarding the pitch, the opening passage starts in the lower register (Bass C) and slowly moves towards the middle register. Most of the pitch in the piece is located in the lower and middle register of the stave. Pitch affects the perception of photism (sounds evoke visual images). The low pitch creates a dimmer image compared to high pitch and vice versa. The low pitch, soft dynamic level and the lyrical title project a serene image to the listeners. Figure 5.5 Contemplating in the deep forest (Hsu Wei) On the other side, the dimness in Contemplating in the deep forest (Hsu Wei) relates much to the colour of the painting, which is basically composed by the use of Chinese ink (different intensity of black and gray). According to Graves (1952), black refers to “subdued, depressing, solemn, and profound” (p.86). Graves (ibid, p.86) states that gray refers to “sedate and sober old age, with its passive resignation and humility”. The shading of grey and black creates serenity and harmony in the picture. The absence of bright colours, such as yellow and red add quietness to the picture. The subject matter of the painting --- a man contemplating in the nature, contributes to the vastness and serenity of the painting. The colour and brush are arranged in harmony. Parrinder (1977) states the praise of nature, which is a Taoist teaching, has been an everlasting theme in the Chinese arts. For instance, “water”, “mountains”, “fisherman” and “woodcutter” are Taoist writers’ descriptive models. They remain the dominant themes in Chinese landscape and in qin repertoire. Taoism, which stressed the concept of “void”, “quietness” and “inactivity”, shapes the aesthetic of Chinese arts and qin music. Apart from the intensity of brightness and the quality of the timbre, cognitive appraisal also plays a role in this matching preference. The author noticed that when the Chinese Qin music Flowing Water is being played, as soon as the subjects recognized that it sounds like Asian music, they pair the music excerpts with the Chinese landscape painting. Some subjects related the softness of the piece with the monotonous ink in the Chinese landscape painting. The comments of the children of Flowing water are summarized as follows: 1. Very sad. 2. Very old. 3. Nature. 4. It is an ancient song. 5. The music creates a dark image to me. 6. The music is not bright. 7. The music reminds me a man holding an instrument in his hands. 8. A circle. 9. The music reminds me Chinese painting and Chinese instrument. 10. Indifference and detachment. 11. Gentle. 12. Quiet. 13. The sound is like Chinese music. 14. Like Chinese folk song. On the other hand, no subject has paired Flowing water with Matisse’s Red Studio and Klimt’s The Kiss. The further demonstrate that subjects have a tendency to pair bright timbre with bright colours and vice versa. Klimt’s The Kiss is rated by the subjects as one of the brightest paintings among all the painting examples. The golden yellow in the painting evokes an image of brightness to the subjects’ perceptual experiences. On the other hand, the dominant colour of Matisse’s Red Studio is red, which is rated by the subjects in the Semantic Differential questionnaire as a quality related with brightness. Although Matisse’s Red Studio is also rated by the subjects as one of the darkest painting example, however, it is not a natural tendency for subjects to relate ‘strong’ colour and ‘lines’ with quiet and delicate tone colour, like Chinese qin. 5.4.6 (B) Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music), Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and Matisse’s Dance Subjects tended to pair Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music) and Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik with Matisse’s Dance. If ‘brightness’ serves as a clue for matching in music and visual arts, then, the above two examples may provide a contradiction. For Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music) is rated as one of the dimmest music excerpts and Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is rated as one of the brightest. Therefore, what are the factors that cause people to pair and relate them together? First, the reasons subjects say they pair Matisse’s Dance with Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music) are as follows: 1. The music and the painting remind me an ancient time, the primitive era in human history. 2. The sounds of the piece are similar to a lot of heavy objects (or people) falling down and collapsing. 3. The music and the painting are dark. 4. The music and the painting give me an impression of chaos. 5. Many people are fighting with each other. 6. I felt the music and the picture shaking. 7. There are many people in the music. 8. Many people are playing and fighting. 9. The sound of the music suits the mood of the painting. 10. Lots of people are fighting with each other. Also, the colour of their skin is dark. From the impressions of the subjects, Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music) has created a ‘strong’, ‘heavy’ ‘point’ and ‘thick’ image to them. All these qualities are found in the attributes of lines and points, which Kandinsky regarded as the common element in all arts. The timbre of the percussion instrument in Hi-Ha creates a ‘pointillist’ effect to the piece. According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (Kennedy, 1980, p.499), pointillist refers to: A term used in painting (meaning the use, by Seurat and other Post- Impressionists, of separate dots of pure colour instead of mixed pigments) and borrowed by writers on music to describe passages where the notes seem to be in ‘dots’ rather than in melodic phrases”. The consecutive dot-like pattern and timbre of the percussion instrument in Hi-Ha create dynamic and power in the music which coincides with the primitive mood portrayed in Matisse’s Dance. As Kandinsky (1982) states: If this point has a companion upon the surface, the result will automatically be still more complex. Repetition is a powerful means of intensifying inner emotion and at the same time creating a primitive rhythm, which is in turn a means of attaining a primitive harmony in every form of art” (p.553). According to The Museum of Modern Art (2004, p.65), “Dance, Matisse once said, meant ‘life and rhythm. The pictorial characteristics of the Dance are full of excitement, tension, movement and exaggerated use of colours. The intensity in Matisse’s Dance comes from the following visual qualities: red, bold, dynamic and vigorous lines. The author would argue that one of the facets of intensity is related to the treatment of colour. Matisse’s Dance is simplified merely into few colours: Red, Green and Blue. For instance, Matisse used ‘red’, ‘vermillion’ to portray the figures of the human beings. Red is used to symbolize life. Further, blue is used to symbolize the sky and green as a symbol of the earth. Regarding red, D’Herbois (2005) said: Vermilion is the most substantial, the most heavy of all the colours. It has a love and a desire for substance and it has the possibility of digesting, of transforming, of bringing substance from the ponderable state into the imponderable. And that is its greatest quality. Its movement is quick, it is one of the most quickly moving of all colours. It continually refreshes itself, as it were continually comes into being. Of all the colours it makes the quickest transitions between one sphere and another, between one colour and another, for instance from orange to violet. The making of transitions is one of its functions, it is a carrier. Transition is always accompanied by warmth, be it physical warmth or soul-warmth. There is no transition from one sphere to the other, from one colour to the other, from soul to spirit, without warmth accompanying it. The metamorphoses really take place against a background of warmth. And the two greatest metamorphoses in creation are the Earth and the human being (p.103). Regarding the meaning of colour, Matisse’s perspectives are as follows: I used colour as a means of expressing my emotion and not as a transcription of nature. I use the simplest colour. I don’t transform them myself, it is the relationships which take charge of them. It is a matter of enhancing the differences or revealing them. Nothing prevents composition with a few colours, like music which is built on only seven notes. Matisse was notable in his way of using raw colours directly from the tube without further mixing with other colours. This makes the colour looks much thicker and primitive in nature. When compared with the Impressionist paintings, the texture of Matisse’s (or the style of Fauvism) paintings are thicker, denser and more vigorous. From a visual perspective, dynamic is obvious in Matisse’s Dance. Referring to the results of the ‘Semantic differential questionnaire on the word brightness in Table 5.1, Matisse’s Dance possesses the qualities of ‘red’, ‘strong’, ‘sharp’, ‘thick’, ‘heavy’ and ‘line’. The intensity of the visual materials in Dance motivates the subjects to pair it with music which consists of the above descriptive qualities. The dynamic and movement of the painting correspond with the musical qualities in Hi-Ha. Hi-Ha (Yarkin/Skin: Turkish music) and Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik gave the listeners an image of force and movement which coincides with the mood in Matisse’s Dance. The reasons why the subjects paired Matisse’s Dance with Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik are summarized as follows: 1. The music is like dancing. 2. I can feel the movement of the music. It is very fast. 3. Dark. Like a triangle, not smooth. 4. The rhythm is fast. 5. Background is bright. 6. Angels are singing in heaven. Joyful. 7. Bright. 8. Fast. 9. Medium bright. 10.People are dancing and gathering. The author would argue that ‘intensity’ is a factor that contributes to the correspondence between music and painting. Also, the vigorous nature of Matisse’s dance also resembles to the mood of Brahms’s Hungarian Dance and J. Strauss I’s Radetsky March (piano accordion version). These two music pieces are allegro in tempo, bright, energetic and warm in nature. Their dynamic varies from softness to loudness, occasionally occurring in an abrupt and accelerated manner. Therefore, matching preferences also indicated that the subjects tended to pair the above three music repertoires with Matisse’s Dance. On the other hand, Johann Strauss I’s Radetsky March (Accordion version) is rated as one of the brightest music excerpts. The music genre March itself usually refers to music which has strong and stable percussive beat and pattern (Grove Dictionary online 2007). According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music (Kennedy, 1980), March is interpreted as a “form of music to accompany the orderly progress of large group of people, especially soldiers; one of the earliest known music forms” (p.398). Although there are exceptional cases, like the lyrical Chopin’s Funeral March, however, March music usually gives people an impression of force and energy due to its historical nature and functions. The mood of the Radetsky March projects sensory qualities such as ‘sunny’, ‘loud’, strong’, ‘warm’ and sharp’ to the listeners. The piano accordion version of Radetsky March evokes the image of brightness and joyfulness in the listeners. During the listening process, there are a number of participants occasionally move their bodies and their scope of movement are much bigger when compared with the rest of the other pieces. Some of them even imagine that they were riders, riders the horses. The alternation of loudness and softness is obvious in this piece. In the opening section, in bar 1-4, the dynamic level, fff, gives a sharp and bright impression to the listeners. Afterwards, the performance direction, piano exists and immediately follows by mf, and then mp. The repetition of the melodic and dynamic materials in the music reinforces the vigorous image of the piece. Kandinsky (1982) asserts that “repetition is a powerful means of intensifying inner emotion and at the same time creating a primitive rhythm, which is in turn a means of attaining a primitive harmony in every form of art”. In the case of Brahms’s Hungarian Dance, qualities such as ‘strong’ and ‘abrupt’ commonly occur in its music attributes. The energetic dance rhythm, the vigorous dynamic level (suddenly loud and soft) and consecutive big leaps in the bass part section add the dramatic content and force into the music. On the other hand, subjects show lack of tendency to match Contemplating in the deep forest (Hsu Wei) and Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. These examples further demonstrate the cross-modal experience in seeing and listening. One of the subjects comments that Contemplating in the deep forest evokes an image of someone singing in the high mountain. The content of the painting, contemplating in the deep forest elicits an image of quietness and solitude to the spectators, therefore, it is not a tendency for the subjects to relate this painting with fast tempo music, like Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. As for Gold Marilyn Monroe, the comments of the subjects are as follows: 1. The lady’s smile is beautiful. 2. Her voice may be beautiful and gentle. 3. She is singing a song. 4. The picture reminds me a song, which is sung by my mother’s generation. 5. Romantic. 6. Warm. 7. Like a female ghost. 8. Elegant. 9. It seems to me that the lady is singing and she is happy. 10. Old-fashioned photograph. From the above comments, Gold Marilyn Monroe has created a feminine image to the subjects. The femininity of Gold Marilyn Monroe suggests the subjects to match this painting with a song, or more lyrical, soft music. 5.4.6 (C) Debussy’s Footprint in the snow and Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond The participants tended to categorize ambiguous soft colour with ambiguous tone. In the case of Debussy’s Footprints in the snow and Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond (Monet), the music and visual materials are conveyed by means of blurred outlines instead of sharp contours. In Des pas sur la neige (Footprints in the snow), Debussy depicts the serenity, dimness and softness of the snow scene. The whole piece of music is penetrated by the dynamic level p, pp and ppp. Regarding the cross-modal relation of loudness and brightness: soft sound often elicits dim and soft images. The visual image evoked in this music is dim and static. Regarding the pitch, the thinness of the musical line, the fragmentary motive, the motionless tie-notes, all these melodic treatments give a sense of remoteness and loneliness to the piece of music. Also, the ostinato dotted rhythm, with excessive tie- notes, creates a rather static and inactive scene to the listener, a feeling full of hesitation, lack of energy. Besides, the monotonous dynamic level, the absence of alternation between loudness and softness creates the atmosphere of quietness and softness in this piece of music. The comments of Des pas sur la neige (Footprints in the snow) of the subjects are summarized as follows: 1. Not happy. 2. The pitches are not consistence. 3. It is like a triangle. 4. It is like a square. 5. Like spending the night time in the Forest 6. Very light. 7. Very quiet. 8. Dark. 9. Very romantic. 10. Very sad. 11. Very dark and complicated. 12. Very slow. 13. Like a silent night. Debussy’s Footprint in the snow and Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond are rated as amongst the least bright musical and painting examples. Despite their difference in raw materials, the attributes of ‘softness’, ‘blur’ and ‘cloudy’ are obvious in these examples. They reveal that different sensory inputs can evoke similar perceptual experiences in the spectators. Usually, the subjects have a tendency to pair ‘bright’ music with more colourful paintings. Features such as ‘blue’, ‘cloudy’, ‘blunt’, ‘soft’, ‘low’ dominate in Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond and Whistler’s Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach. The “blue” in “soft” and “cloudy” character in these two paintings creates a feeling of retreat in the spectators. Blue is the dominant colour in these two paintings. According to Graves (1952): Blue … a perspective colour … It does not press in on us, it pulls us into the remote. Blue and green are … essentially atmospheric and not substantial colours. They are cold, they disembody, and they evoke impressions of expanse and distance and boundlessness (p.85). Colour is a physical property (form) and also can be a psychological property (content) in an artwork. According to Murray (1952, p.293): It is generally recognised that colour is capable of producing an emotional response, and that such response is engendered largely by the relationship of one colour to another. Just as there are harmonies and discords in music, so it is possible to recognize colour harmonies and colour discords derived from the attributes of hue, luminosity and saturation. The harmonious use of colour in painting and the allied arts is for many people one of the most lively of the factors contributing towards aesthetic appreciation. The soft and dim atmosphere that blue creates corresponds with Hartshorne’s (Marks, 1978) believe that “sensory qualities are faithful psychological expressions of the physical stimuli” (p.71). In fact, it’s quite obvious that psychological properties are closely related to physiological issues. Waterlilies in Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond correspond with the mood of Footprint in the snow. The blur line and colour in Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond share similarity with the hazy sound in Debussy’s Footprints in the snow. According to The Museum of Modern Art (1999): The aim of his large Water Lilies paintings, Monet said, was to supply “the illusion of an endless whole, of water without horizon or bank.” While his garden in Giverny, his water-lily pond, and the sky above are the subjects of this monumental triptych, his representation of them can be seen to verge toward abstraction. In the attempt to capture the constantly changing qualities of natural light and colour, spatial cues all but dissolve; above and below, near and far, water and sky all commingle. In his enveloping, large-scale canvases Monet sought to create “the refuge of a peaceful mediation in the centre of a flowering aquarium (p.98). Further, the relationship of sound and colour is metaphorically illustrated by Albert Lavignac (Gravies, 1952) as follows: The art of orchestration seems to me to have much similarity to the painter’s art in use of colour; the musician’s palette is his orchestral list; here he finds all the tones necessary to clothe his thought, his melodic design; his harmonic tissue, to produce lights and shadows, he mixes them almost as the painter mixes his colours (p.89). On the other hand, colourful paintings (especially with bright colours) such as The Kiss, Red Studio and I and the Village are not likely chosen by the participants with the quiet piece, Footprints on the snow. This further demonstrates the relationship between brightness and sounds, as subjects tend to relate bright colours with bright and loud sound, and vice versa. As Hanslick (1974) states: Sounds, like colours, are originally associated in our minds with certain symbolical meanings, which produce their effects independently of, and antecedently to any design of art. Every colour has a character of its own; it is not a mere cipher into which the artist blows the breath of life, but a force (p.39). The matching preferences of Footprints on the snow with the above paintings examples illustrate the cross-modal transfer in auditory and visual perceptual experiences in human. 5.4.6 (D) Elgar’s Salute d’amour and O’Keeffe’s An Orchid and Picasso’s Les Demoiselles The subjects have a tendency to match Elgar’s Salute d’amour with O’Keeffe’s An Orchid. Elgar wrote this composition for his fiancée in 1888. The comments of Salut d’amour from the subjects are as follows: 1. Lively. 2. Like a flower blooming. 3. Elegant. 4. Like a growing flower or plant. 5. Fresh. 6. Like someone or the flower is dancing. 7. Pleasant. 8. Gentle. 9. Touching ... 10. Medium light. 11. Curve lines. 12. Dreaming. The performance direction ‘dolce’ (sweet and also implies softness) and ‘dolcissimo’ (very sweet) in Salute d’amour, which used in both the violin and piano part, highlight the warmness and tenderness of the music repertoire. The delicate and gentleness of the music correspond with the characteristics of a flower: elegant, fresh and pleasant. As Hanslick (1891) suggests that timbre and force attach on a tone can paint an object musically as follows: The falling of snow, the fluttering of birds, and the rising of the sun can be painted by musically only, by producing auditory impressions which are dynamically related to those phenomena. In point of strength, pitch, velocity, and rhythm, sounds present to the ear a figure, bearing that degree of analogy to certain visual impressions (p.53). In Salut d’amour, most of the time, the violin and piano play softly and the changing of dynamic level occurs in a gradual manner. Both parts (violin and piano) are balanced in harmony with one another. For instance, the performance direction ‘colla parto’ in the piano section indicates an accompanist should carefully take his tempos and rhythm from the soloist. These musical arrangements reinforce the lyrical, pleasing and relaxing atmosphere of the repertoire. On the other hand, Mondrian’s Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray is the painting example which shows the least matching preference with Salut d’amour among the three groups of subjects. The subjects tend not likely to relate Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray, which consists of regular, bold, colour rectangular pattern with the flowing, elegant melodies of Salut d’amour. They tend to associate the lyrical melodies of Salut d’amour with the blending, delicate curves of the painting, An Orchid. Referring to table 5.7 (5), unlike the previous matching examples, such as the Flowing Water, Hi-Ha, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and Footprints on the snow, a much more diverse matching preference (among different age groups) exists in this music excerpt. For instance, subjects (senior and young people) match Les Demoiselles d’Avignon with Salut d’amour and children tend to match with Starry Night, The Kiss and Rose of Versailles with it. Although the adult and children participants have chosen different paintings, however, they seem to relate female figures with this music excerpt. Some subjects states the lyrical and softness of Salut d’amour creates a sense of gentleness, femininity and loving atmosphere to them, therefore, they tend to match with a ‘feminine’ painting or something looks gentle. Also, some subjects states that the music creates an image of ‘being in the forest at night’ and the sound is not so powerful but medium, therefore, they pair it with Starry Night. These different matching preferences indicate the transferability of sensory information (auditory and visual elements) in human perception. 5.4.6 (F) Debussy’s Fireworks and Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII and Van Gogh’s Starry Night Referring to Figure 5.7 (6), subjects show preference in matching Debussy’s Fireworks with Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (especially young people and children) and Van Gogh’s Starry Night (especially senior and children). The reasons that the subjects chose to match Fireworks with Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII are as follows: 1. The painting and music are both medium bright. 2. The tempo of the music is very fast and the lines in the painting seem moving rapidly fast too. 3. The music and the painting are both in a chaotic condition. 4. The music and the painting are bright. 5. The painting is dark and chaos which suits the mood of the music. 6. They are running lines, moving quickly. The reasons that the subjects chose to match Fireworks with Starry Night are as follows: 1. I can see swirling patterns in the music and painting. 2. The music and painting make me feel scare. 3. Big. 4. Dark. 5. Like rectangular pattern. 6. Afraid. Not sure what is happening in the music and painting. Referring to Table 5.3(a) and Table 5.3(b), Debussy’s Fireworks are rated as medium- low in brightness when compared with other music excerpts. In Table 5.3 (a) and Table 5.3 (b), Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII is rated by the subjects as one of the brightest painting example whereas Van Gogh’s Starry Night is rated as one of the least bright paintings when compared with other paintings. If humans have a tendency to pair bright sounds with bright colours, then, the matching preference between Fireworks and Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII, and between Fireworks with Starry Night may seem contradict with each other. From these matching preferences, they reflect the cross-modal transfer between sound and shapes in music and painting. The relationship between sound and the lines/pattern is further stated in Willmann’s (Merriam, 1964, p.87) study, in which composers were asked to compose themes for the music according to the shape of the figures (See Figure 5.4). The results of this experiment revealed that different shapes (visual materials) evoke different sounds. Willmann (ibid, 1964) summarized the relationship between shape and sound as: (1) A square is linked with moderate, slow tempo, medium to loud dynamic and (2) the smooth consecutive convex pattern is associated with soft, quiet and flowing music. (3) A jagged pattern is usually paired with dynamic, loud and fast music. These shape and pattern exist in the painting Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII and Starry Night.. These two paintings are composed by different varieties of shapes and lines, such as the jagged and smooth convex pattern, rectangular and triangular shapes. Motion is another factor which may affect the perceptual experience of the listeners. Also, ‘motion’ can be experienced in both auditory and visual elements. Referring to chapter 2, the movement of the fireworks is illustrated by the performance direction, glissando (sliding) in bar 17. The performance indication, glissando is accompanied by the rapid descending movement of the pitch, which is similar to the falling and splashing of the fireworks from high to low. Also, the word marquY (accented) in bar 7 implies vigorous force upon a particular music note. The sound effect resembles the sparkling, winking flashing light of the fireworks displayed in the sky. Motion can be experienced in the moving lines of Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII and Van Gogh’s Starry Night. 5.4.6 (G) Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 (The First Movement) and Van Gogh’s Starry Night, Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Van Gogh’s Starry Night show matching preference between the senior and young subjects. Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 in C minor, opus 67 is also regarded as The Symphony of Destiny. The entire first movement is skilfully united with a four note (quaver) motive. The sounds of this musical motive metaphorically represented “So pocht das Schickal an die Pforte!” (That’s how destiny knocks your door). The intensity (strength) of visual and auditory attributes in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 (The First Movement) and Van Gogh’s Starry Night are obviously displayed through their exaggerated moving lines. The intensity in Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 (The First Movement) lies in its dynamic as about two-third of the first movement is dominated by the dynamic level f, sf and ff. The loudness of the sound creates a bright image to the spectator. The tension in the piece is further displayed by the alternation of loudness and softness, and varies from gradual to abrupt manner within the whole movement. In the opening few bars, the string family (First and second violins, viola, cello, double bass) and two clarinets in Bb played tutti and dynamic level of ff in this four quaver motive. Table 5.8 The dynamic distribution of Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 (The First Movement) Bar Number Dynamic level Bar 1-5 ff Bar 6-18 p Bar 19-24 f Bar 25-33 p Bar 34-37 crescendo Bar 38-43 sf Bar 44-51 f Bar 52-59 ff Bar 60-62 sf Bar 63-82 p Bar 83-93 p-crescendo Bar 94-124 ff Regarding the arrangement of the instrumentation, the instruments are frequently played in tutti which add the force and energy to the piece. For example, in the opening five bars, two clarinets in Bb, violin 1& 2, violas, cellos and basses) play together the four quaver motive in ff dynamic level. Following in bar 44-55, the woodwind section (flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons) play another tutti episode in f (bar 44-51) to ff (bar 52-55) dynamic level. According to Marks (1978), the acoustic volume (loudness) of the orchestra will take larger auditory space in the ear than a solo instrument. Beethoven’s treatment of timbre has created different levels of intensity to the piece of music. Take the flute as an example. The upper register of the flute is frequently used in the entire whole first movement. Examples include bar 18-24, bar 39-56 and bar 71-74. According Watson (1992), the tone colour of the upper octave of the flute is brilliant, yet shrill. For instance, in Bar 39-56, the dynamic level alternatively change from sf to f and then to sf in the upper register of the flute. The high pitch and the loudness of the tone add further brightness to the piece of music. Marks (1978) stated that ‘brightness’ is a more reliable than ‘hues’ in defining the characteristic of pitch and music timbre. Flute, because of its higher music register, is often regarded as ‘bright’ blue by Kandinsky when compared with the ‘dark’ blue of organ. In Van Gogh’s Starry Night, the contrast of brightness and darkness of colour (like the dynamic in Symphony No.5) is vividly displayed in the canvas. Yellow and Blue, the two complementary colour, are the dominant colours of the painting. As Graves (1952, p. 85) proclaims that: Blue and green are … spiritual, non-sensuous colours … The Faustian, monotheistic colours … those of loneliness, of care, of a present that is related to a past and a future … Blue … a perspective colour … It does not press in on us, it pulls us into the remote. Blue and green are … essentially atmospheric and not substantial colours. They are cold, they disembody, and they evoke impressions of expanse and distance and boundlessness. Van Gogh used yellow to depict the luminous stars and moon. According to d’Herbois (2005, p.135), “yellow is a colour that moves quickly, goes quickly over into another colour. The luminous ball-like stars and moon are derived from the imagination of the painter, as Van Gogh (Whiteley, 2000) once stated: “Why, I ask myself, shouldn’t the tiny dots of the sky be as accessible as the black dots on the map of France?” (p.92). Instead of purely derived from imagination and observation, his perceptual experience has been shadowed by his mental disorders. The contrast of yellow and blue (or warm and cool colours) are reflected by the eleven luminous bright yellow stars against the dark cityscape, which was silhouetted by the cool dark colours located in the lower canvas. The intensity in Van Gogh’s Starry Night not only exists in the contrast of brightness and darkness of yellow and blue in the palette but also in the arrangement of lines. The exaggerated horizon movement of the starry scene in the upper canvas contrasted with the still and motionless scene of the small town and the mountain- like figure which located in the canvas’s lower left corner. Kandinsky (1982) asserts that point and line penetrate in all art forms, whether it is expressed visually or auditory. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 (The First Movement) and Van Gogh’s Starry Night demonstrated the psychological relationship between the lines and the feelings of their creators. Van Gogh was in the asylum when he painted the Starry Night and Beethoven’s hearing ability had been shattered when he composed Symphony No. 5. The intensity level of Beethoven and Van Gogh’s auditory and visual elements are frequently manifested in an exaggerate manner, such as big contrast in dynamic level and colours (yellow against blue, warm colours against cool colours). All these devices depict the inner feeling and emotions more vividly. Referring to Figure 5.7 (7), the children participants tend to match Symphony No.5 with Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII. The reasons contributing to this matching preference owe much to the brightness and the exaggerate colours and patterns of the painting. The opening (with dynamic level ff) tutti section, which follows immediately by piano then ff performance direction, increases the intensity and dramatic content of this music excerpt. The continual alternation of loudness and softness reinforce the fluctuation, the instability mood of the music. All these dynamic arrangements motivate the subjects to choose a painting which implies contrast, instability or even chaos to them. Therefore, Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII, an abstract painting, which uses irregular, chaos patterns and exaggerated colours and lines suit the mood (fast and abrupt loudness and softness) of the music excerpts, such as Beethoven’s Symphony No.5, Brahms’s Hungarian Dance No.5 and Debussy’s Fireworks, which also show matching preference with this Kandinsky’s painting. 5.4.6 (H) Brahms’s Hungarian Dance Number 5 in F# minor and Matisse’s Dance and Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII Subjects have a tendency to match Brahms Hungarian Dance Number 5 (The First Movement) (senior and young participants) with Matisse’s Dance and with Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (children participants). These matching preferences further illustrate the transferability of intensity in auditory and visual elements in music and painting. Hungarian Dance Number 5 in F# minor (Brahms) begins with a forte dotted rhythm. The performance direction forte starts from bar 1- bar 12 and changed to piano, leggero (light) semiquaver passages from bar 13- bar 15, and suddenly, the dynamic changed from p to sf in the last chord of bar 16. Within these 16 bars, the changing from loudness to softness and vice versa increases the tension and movement of the music. Then, the melody of bar 1-bar 8 repeats in bar 17-24 in forte manner. The forte dynamic level continues till bar 28. In bar 29 to bar 32’s first beat, the dynamic level changes from forte to piano and leggero (light) and suddenly changes to sf in the last beat of bar 32. The dynamic arrangement from bar 17 to bar 32 is similar to bar 1-bar 17. These repetitive dynamic contrast devices create dynamic and vigorous motion to the music. The vivid movement of the music motivates the subjects to choose a painting which carries the qualities of dynamic and motion. The human figures in Matisse’s Dance are depicted by vigorous and energetic moving lines and colours. Kandinsky asserted that the lines in paintings are similar to the lines in music (such as melodic lines). The intensity of a line is related to the intention and arrangement of the artists. The intensity attributes in the arts, such as the arrangement of dynamics in a piece of music or the qualities of lines in painting will affect our perception experience. Also, the colour (red, blue and green) in Dance are vividly standing against each other. The relationship between music and colour is further assured by Cutietta & Haggerty (1987) as subjects frequently rate lively, energetic music with bright colours (red, orange, yellow) and pair dimmer colours (green, blue) with slow music. Also, Cutietta & Haggerty asserts that (1987) colour-hearing (sound evokes a colour) is well established in children and also widespread in adults. For instance, the children have a tendency to pair this music with Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII. The subjects’ comments about Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII are as follows: 1. Like triangular pattern. 2. Like screw-shaped pattern. 3. Like dancing. 4. The painting is similar to bright and vibrant sounds. 5. The painting suits the powerful rhythm and mood of the music. 6. The painting varies from darkness to brightness. 7. The shapes of the painting remind me of different facets of brightness. 8. Bold lines. 9. The painting is full of chaos. 10. Exaggerate, noisy and colourful. The comments of Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII coincide with some of the auditory qualities of Hungarian Dance No.5 in F# minor, such as bright and vibrant sounds, varies from darkness to brightness (the contrast from softness to loudness), powerful rhythm and like dancing. 5.4.6 (I) Toccata (Charles-Marie Widor) (Music) and Klimt’s The Kiss. Further, from Table 5.3 (9), subjects tend to show preference to match Toccata (Charles-Marie Widor) with Klimt’s The Kiss (senior people and children), Chagall’s I and the Village (children), Picasso’s (senior people) and Kandinsky’s Watercolor (No.13) Related to Composition VII (young people), Klimt’s The Kiss. Referring to Table 5.5 (a) and Table 5.5 (b), most of the above painting examples are rated by the subjects as very bright to medium bright. The Kiss is regarded by the subjects as one of the brightest painting in the test: Brightest and Darkest in Music and Painting (see p. for more details concerning the brightness of this painting). These matching preferences reflect the transferability of brightness in visual and auditory elements. In Symphony No.5, Toccata, Charles-Marie Widor has transformed all the power and the complicated technique of an organ into this piece of toccata. According to Kennedy (1980), organ is reputed to be the ‘king of the instruments’ because of its size and its rich timbre (the manuals of the organ consists the sounds of most of the instruments in an orchestra). Widor’s popular Symphony No.5, Toccata is often performed in the occasion of Easter Day, wedding ceremony and in organ concerts. Widow uses devices such as the rapid repeated notes of the keyboard and the melody played by the pedals, which requires the organist played by their feet. The fast tempo, the colourful timbre (occasionally change the setting of the stop to produce different sound effects), the powerful sound of the pedal-board, and the dynamic contrast; all these musical elements add the brightness and force of the music. Some subjects’ states that listening to Widor’s Toccata is like dancing in the sunshine. They comment that the timbre is rich, colourful, noisy and very bright. Therefore, they tend to associate this music excerpts with Klimt’s The Kiss, as this painting gives them a feeling of being in a garden full of colourful flowers and very bright and shining. On the other hand, subjects are not likely to match Widor’s Toccata with painting such as Nocturne in Blue and Silver: Battersea Reach, Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond, Contemplating in the deep forest and Gold Marilyn Monroe. All the above paintings (except Gold Marilyn Monroe) are rated by the subjects as the least bright painting examples in the test: Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting. However, the subjects’ matching preferences are not as obvious and significant when compared with the previous music and painting matching examples, such as Flowing Water, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, Footprints on the snow and Hi-Ha. This matching example further illustrates the role of timbre in one’s listening experiences. Different timbre creates different perceptual experience for the beholder. Also, the perception of brightness (especially the intensity of the brightness, which may be affected by the characteristic of the timbre), is a subjective experience which based much on the beholder’s perceptual experiences. 5.4.6 (J) Final Victory and Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) Final Victory and Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi) were two examples rated by the subjects as ‘bright’ music and painting. According to Table 5.7 (10), it indicates that subjects (senior, young people and children) shows preference in matching Final Victory with Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi), although the trend is not as significant as the example of the matching of Flowing Water with Contemplating in the deep forest, or Dance (Matisse) with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and Hi-Ha among the subjects. The author would suggest that both music and painting examples create sunny, powerful and energetic out-door feelings in their listeners and spectators. Final Victory portrays the image of the sea to the spectators by its artificial sound of sea waves. The splashing of the sea waves, accompanied by the repetitive strong bass beat and melodic theme creates a vigorous mood for the music, which is energetic, full of power and sunshine. The music creates an impression of a relaxing seashore with waves approaching to the listeners. In Rose of Versailles (Himeno Michi), different varieties of yellow-green and blue dominate the picture. According to D’Herbois (2005, p.141), yellow-green is “a colour which lives entirely between light and air and plays with both”. D’Herbois (ibid, p.142) states that yellow-green is “luminous and very light, lighter than any other colour in front of the light” and it is the colour of “youth, of innocence and joy. In its movement it has a lightness and a looseness and we can partake in that when we concentrate on this colour” (ibid, p.142). For further description of the painting, Rose of Versailles, please refer to figure 5.3 and its description. On the other hand, subjects (senior, young people and children) also show the least preference in matching Final Victory with Contemplating in the deep forest. The subjects tend to associate strong, bold and lively rhythmic music, such as Final Victory with paintings that have clear contours and varied colours. The melody (musical line) of the Final Victory and the contour (line) in the Rose of Versailles are both clear and bright. 5.4.6 (K) Nozomu Aoki’s Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) and O’Keeffe’s The Orchid The subjects also showed preference to pair Nozomu Aoki’s Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) with O’Keeffe’s The Orchid. Nozomu Aoki’s Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) is taken from the Suite of the Japanese animation, Galaxy Express 999. Galaxy Express 999 is an animation about youthful adventure and the praise of the transitoriness of life. Some subjects considered that the mood of Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy- Bond for Andromeda) gave them an impression of a blooming flower, an image of space, full of delicacy and tenderness and resembling an object which has feminine qualities. Aurally, this owes much to the gentle, warm and delicate timbre quality of the instruments. In the opening section, the celeste and the strings set the mood of this musical excerpt. The timbre of the celeste is like a silvery, delicate, ethereal bell-like sound, which resembles the vastness and fantasy of the universe. The strings section is expressive, rich and blended harmoniously with the chorus (mostly female and children’s voices). According to the programme notes of Galaxy Express 999: Suite (1990), the strings section is a metaphor of the beauty and mystery of the galaxy and the chorus is an illustration of the serenity and tenderness of the space. The mood in Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) is similar to O’ Keeffe’s The Orchid, gentle, lyrical and soft. The blooming orchid gives an image of life, femininity, delicacy and vitality to the spectator. The image of delicacy and tenderness is also related to the arrangement of colours in The Orchid. Regarding the relationship between timbre and brightness, the subjects tended to relate the qualities of the timbre (bright/dim/thick/thin) to the intensity of brightness in colours. The timbre in Overture-Departure (Glittering Galaxy-Bond for Andromeda) is soft, gentle and flowing. The colour in O’Keeffe’s The Orchid is yellow-green and white and these colours blend harmoniously with each other. According to D’Herbois (2005), the characteristic and symbolism of yellow-green is as follows: Yellow-green is the colour of youth, of innocence and joy. In its movement it has a lightness and a looseness and we can partake in that when we concentrate on this colour. It can give us back the innocence, the confidence in life and the feeling of promise that we take for granted when we are young, but that leave us when we grow older (p.142). Referring to the programme notes of the Suite of the Galaxy Express 999, the opening section serves as a metaphor of the theme of this animation: about space, dreams, romance, the mystery of the unknown world. Hanslick (1974) concludes that ideas can be expressed through the modification of sounds. However, Hanslick (ibid) states that the element which affects our perception (as an observer) is our imagination. For instance, when we listen to the didgeridoo, the traditional Australian Aboriginal instrument, the sound of the instrument will remind us of the primitive wilderness, the wildlife and the natural world. It’s our imagination that transcends the spatial distance and brings us to the imaginative land. 5.4.6 (L) Marilyn Monroe’s River of no return and Andy Warhol’s Gold Marilyn Participants had a preference to pair Marilyn Monroe’s River of no return with Andy Warhol’s Gold Marilyn. Similar to the previous examples, Flowing water and Contemplating in the deep forest, cognitive appraisal plays a role in pairing these two examples together. First, many subjects recognised the character of the painting as American actress, Marilyn Monroe, and at the same time, they remembered that River of No Return was sung by Marilyn Monroe. Therefore, without any doubt, they paired them together. Second, some subjects said that the song has a ‘cowboy’ country flavour and, therefore, preferred to match something American with the music. Third, some Asian children paired River of no return (Marilyn Monroe) with Gold Marilyn Monroe (Warhol) is because they thought that an English song should be sung by a westerner (blonde lady). However, some subjects paired Warhol’s Gold Marilyn with Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water-lily pond. The reason was they thought that the lyrics mentioning a ‘river’ and the gentle female voice would suit a soft seascape painting. River of no return is a narration of ‘lost love’. The song, River of no return was composed by Ken Darby & Lionel Newman in 1954. Within the entire piece of the music, the female voice is accompanied by the guitar. The harmony is composed mainly based on tonic-dominant-subdominant relation. The female voice and the guitar create a lyrical, soft and tender mood to the music. On the other hand, according to MoMa Highlights (2004, p.241), Andy Warhol’s silkscreen Monroe image (which appears sometimes alone, doubled or multiplied in a row or column on top of the canvas) is based on her image in the movie Niagara in 1953.Warhol used only a single colour as background, such as blue, green and gold in his Marilyn series. Gold Marilyn was the one and only where he used gold as the background. The colour gold in Gold Marilyn is displayed in a more subdued manner, especially, when compared with the golden yellow of Klimt’s The Kiss. The smiling of Monroe also adds to the gentleness and femininity of the picture. 5.4.6 (M) Vivaldi’s Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8 (first movement) and its painting matching preference The main instruments in Vivaldi’s Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8 (first movement) is the string. The allegro and tutti opening section play by the strings creates a lively and flowing mood for this music repertoire. The dynamic occur in a gradual instead of abrupt manner like those in Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 and Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. The subjects’ comments about Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8. are as follows: 1. Joyful, like people dancing. 2. Flowing. 3. Bright. 4. Romantic, happy. 5. European. 6. Wisdom and understanding. 7. Theme. 8. Both light and dark. 9. The sound of spring and beginning of a new life. 10. It reminds me of a Jane Austin novel. 11. Fast. 12. There are many different colours in this music. 13. This music shows human civilization. 14. Like a group of children playing together. 15. Dancing. From the subjects’ comments, they reflect that listening is a cross-modal experience. This music excerpt has created sensory images (such as a Jane Austin novel and many different colours) and abstract feelings (such as happy, romantic, wisdom and understanding) to the listeners. Also, these comments also reveal to us the richness of human imagination. Divergence occurs in the subjects’ matching preference. Children participants tend to match Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8 with Composition with Red, Blue, Black, Yellow and Gray (Mondrian), young people show preference in matching this music excerpts with Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso) and seniors with Dance (Matisse). However, the painting Contemplating in the deep forest is rated by the three groups as the least matching preference with the music excerpts, Concerto in A Minor Op.3. No.8. Why does the above matching preference reflect to us? From the previous matching preferences, they reveal that subjects tend to relate lively and clear melodic line with clear and bold lines in painting. 5.4.6 (N) Stravinsky’s Ballerina and the Moor and Paul Klee’s Cat and Bird Stravinsky’s Ballerina and the Moor and Paul Klee’s Cat and Bird showed matching preferences (although not quite significant) among the participants. What are the factors that cause people to pair and relate them together? The author would suggest their correspondence lies in the metaphorical nature of the timbre. The repertoire Ballerina and the Moor is extracted from Stravinsky’s Petrushka, in Part 3, a scene in the Moor’s Room when the Ballerina is dancing with the Moor. Petrushka, the main character of this story, was frustrated when he saw the Ballerina dance with the Moor. The auditory elements in this musical extract illustrate the state of Petrushka’s mind, which is full of irritation and fantasy. In Ballerina and the Moor, the cornet is used in the original 1911 orchestration. The timbre of the cornet is similar but less vigorous and bright than the sound of trumpet. The cornet processes a warm, mellow tone quality. It’s more agile when playing the fast passages and it made the brass section sounds brighter and higher (in register). Some subjects said that the timbre of the music gave them an impression of a cat chasing after something. They commented that the sound of the music is joyful, lively, humorous and playful. These qualities motivated them to select a painting which suited the mood of the music. On the other hand, some subjects thought that Paul Klee’s Cat and Bird was funny, cute, playful and a picture full of ‘fantasy’. Some subjects even imagined that the cat and bird are good friends and companions. Regarding the pictorial characteristics of Cat and Bird, Paul Klee’s visual materials metaphorically suggest his cognitive process. According to MoMA Hightlights (1999, p.116): Klee was one of the many modernist artists who wanted to practice what he called "the pure cultivation of the means" of painting—in other words, to use line, shape, and color for their own sake rather than to describe something visible. That priority freed him to create images dealing less with perception than with thought, so that the bird in this picture seems to fly not in front of the cat's forehead but inside it–the bird is literally on the cat's mind. Stressing this point by making the cat all head, Klee concentrates on thought, fantasy, appetite, the hungers of the brain. One of his aims as an artist, he said, was to "make secret visions visible." According to Gettings (1967), Paul Klee is interested in creating a painting which is similar to a fairy tale - full of humour and wonder - that one can enjoy when looking at it. Klee’s fantasy in painting shares some similar features with children’s drawings. Klee would like to pour a sense of innocence and freshness into his artworks. This distinctive style of art making is further revealed in the arrangement of Cat and Bird as stated in MoMA Hightlights (1999, p.116) as follows: The cat is watchful, frighteningly so, but it is also calm, and Klee's palette too is calm, in a narrow range from tawny to rose with zones of bluish green. This and the suggestion of a child's drawing lighten the air. Believing that children were close to the sources of creativity, Klee was fascinated by their art, and evokes it here through simple lines and shapes: ovals for the cat's eyes and pupils (and, more loosely, for the bird's body), triangles for its ears and nose. And the tip of that nose is a red heart, a sign of the cat's desire. (p.116) Paul Klee’s Cat and Bird is similar to Stranvinsky’s Ballerina and the Moor in the sense that both of the sources are derived from the fantasy world. Klee and Stravinsky used their imaginations to make these characters live in the visual and auditory materials. Also, both of them use bright colours and timbres and vivid lines (such as the contour in the painting and clear melodic line) to portray the depicted objects. Regarding the dynamic arrangement in Ballerina and the Moor, the dynamic level mf is used in the opening section. Besides, the dynamic level f > pp occurs abruptly within one bar in a fast descending manner. The alternation from forte to piano adds to the intensity of the music. However, when compared with Hi-Ha and Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, the mood of Ballerina and the Moor is less vigorous and energetic. The tempo of Ballerina and the Moor’s opening section moves from Lento cantabile to Allegretto. As Cutietta & Haggerty (1987) state, subjects frequently rate lively, energetic music with bright colours (red, orange, yellow) and pair dimmer colours (green, blue) with slower movement. In other words, the intensity of the music corresponds with the intensity of the colours. Further, Cutietta & Haggerty state that (1987) colour-hearing (sound evokes a colour) is established around 6 years old in children. Modification continues as the child matures. Additionally, they state that colour association is also widespread in adults. Viewing the 145 participants (children, young people and the senior group) who participated in the test, they showed colour association in matching Ballerina and the Moor and Paul Klee’s Cat and Bird. 5.5 The educational Implication of the test, “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting”: the value of expression in art experience The focus in this section is on the role of ‘expression’ in art experience. The music and painting examples used in the test “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting” serve to give a brief sample of some facets of twentieth century music and art development. Each example carries a different perspective in expressing the intention of the creator. The works depict different dimensions of human nature and perceptual concepts. In the test, “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and the Visual Arts”, each section was designed to motivate the subjects to express their sensations and feelings. The perceiving of brightness is a subjective experience. Since there’s no correct answer for the test, the subjects can express themselves freely. Besides, the rating system from darkness to brightness, 1-7 (Osgood Semantic Differential Questionnaire) (see Table 5.1 and Table 5.2 A-C) to the rating system from darkness to brightness, 1-11 (the section for rating the brightness in music and painting) (see Table 5.3 A-B), serves as the sensory thermometer of the individual. In other words, the subject is communicating with his/her senses during this particular moment. The last music and painting matching section is a synthesis of ‘observation’, ‘cognition’ and ‘imagination’. These three facets of art experience have been discussed through the palette of Impressionists, Expressionists and animation in the previous chapters. Therefore, each part of the test is a visual-auditory activity of “sensation” and “cognition” in a cross-modal context. Also, this test is a testimony to the existence of cross-modal experience in music and painting, to different ‘intensities’ of ‘brightness’ and the ‘visual’, ‘picturesque’ qualities of sound. One of the aims of this dissertation is to apply the cross-modal experience into the realm of appreciation and, therefore, to discover how the art experiences of others (composers, painters, senior/young people and children) can inspire us to capture the facets of expression in the arts. Since every person’s perceptual experience differs, the studying of the arts provides a channel for everyone to express his/her sensations and feelings and at the same time to understand the different possibilities of human perceptual experiences. The matching (music and painting) section in “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and painting” suggests that internalized images occur in the cross-modal perceptual experience in music and painting. Also, the matching preference owes much to the beholder’s sensation and feeling. Regarding sensation and feeling, Hanslick (1974) states as follows: Sensation is the act of perceiving some sensible quality, such as a sound or a colour, whereas feeling is the consciousness of some psychical activity --- i.e., a state of satisfaction or discomfort. If I note (perceive) with my senses the odour or taste of some object, or its form, colour, or sound, I call this state of consciousness my sensation of these qualities; but if sadness, hope, cheerfulness or hatred appreciably raise me above, or depress me below the habitual level of mental activity, I am said to feel (p.19). The results of the matching of music and painting further confirm Bonnie Southwind’s (Brand, 1985) concerns regarding the perceptual difference between teacher and student in the learning process. Southwind mentioned that teachers may make assumptions or have inappropriate expectations of students’ art experience because of their pre-existence teaching experience. Therefore, teachers should be sensitive and pay attention to students’ special needs and need for emotional expression. Otherwise, both parties (student and teacher) will lose a valuable chance to capture the other’s art experience. For example, some subjects (all child participants about 8 years old) shared with the author that the test “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting” contains pornographic elements. The target is Picasso’s painting, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. In their conversation about their art experience and their perception of Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, some children (both boys and girls) commented that the women are naked and a painting should not contain nudity. Some even used the rating system of movies and television to support their arguments that programmes containing nudity are inappropriate for young audiences. Children on the other side of the argument added their comments and started an informal ‘debate’ about ‘nudity in the arts’. The debate lasted for a few minutes. Finally, they came to the conclusion that in the realm of the arts, although nudity is inappropriate, it is, however, still acceptable if the image carries a particular symbolic element. One of the participants even said, “Don’t you know Picasso often acts like this ...” , and the other said, “Hmm, I’ve seen this painting in a magazine few years ago ... therefore, I am used to it! (He may still have been a kindergarten student at that time). The children’s reactions and perceptions about exotic elements in the arts were similar to those expressed in the debate on ‘Nudity in the arts’ held in the university to target university students (include undergraduate, post-graduate) and staff. Surprisingly, their conclusions and perceptions were a close match for each other. Further, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon created other sensations in five other participants. These five participants were also subjects who participated in the test, “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and the Visual Arts”. However, they gave their comments to the author during an informal conversation in a bible study group. These five participants described their impressions of the painting as follows: 1. Their faces are dark, not happy. (33 years old) 2. It reminds me of a Jane Austin’s novel. The girls are dancing, or perhaps standing, or waiting to dance. (31 years old) 3. Feminine and pink figure. (21 years old) 4. The colours are soft. (24 years old) 5. Pink and White. (25 years old) Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d’Avignon has created different perceptual experiences among the participants. Their responses reflect that art experience is inseparable from sensation and cognition. Their art experiences also reveal the uniqueness of the beholder’s art experience. However, in the study of the arts, the individuality of art experience will be ignored if only the ‘fact’ instead of ‘expression’ is emphasized. Lack of reinforcement will influence the urge for “expression” in the arts. As Albert Einstein states (Rogers, 1968): ... It is in fact nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry; for this delicate little plant, aside from stimulation, stands mainly in need of freedom; without this it goes to wrack and ruin without fail (p.2). Einstein expresses the importance of ‘curiosity of inquiry’ in the acquisition of knowledge in the above statement. Inquiry can contribute to independent and critical thinking. However, students are not given enough opportunities to foster their thinking in the current teaching pedagogy. The ‘freedom’ to explore teaching materials generates one’s thinking skills. Teachers and mentors play a crucial role in this ‘stimulation’ process. If they can understand the learning pattern and characteristics of their students, they may be able to implant a more effective means to assist their students to ‘express’ themselves. Regarding music expression, aurally, Walker (1987) states that children at an early age possess the ability to generate personalized symbols in auditory perceptions. Apart from children, Walker (1987, p.235-236) also demonstrated that the congenitally blind use ‘imagery’ as a means of detecting auditory information. In his journal paper, Mental Imagery and Musical Concepts: Some Evidence From the Congenitally Blind, he states: This finding would tend to suggest that the basis for choosing a cross-modal matching for sound by blind subjects, whilst possibly owing something to verbal mediation, is concerned with their mental image of what they think the sound ‘does’ in space. Thus their favoured tactile image reflects this. Walker’s studies have indicated that humans have a tendency to search for a medium to express their perceived information. However, the chosen medium differs according to individual’s physical limitations and other personal psychological factors, such as preferences, experiences and perhaps cultural issues. Regarding art expression, Hanslick (1974) insists the raw material (no matter the visual and auditory qualities) is the conceptual embodiment in the arts. Understanding the raw materials in the arts can assist the level of expression and appreciation in the arts. Hanslick (ibid, p.32) states that: A philosophical disquisition into an art demands a clear definition of its subject- matter. The diversity of the subject-matter of the various arts and the fundamental difference in the mode of treatment, are a natural sequence of the dissimilarity of the senses to which they severally appeal. Every art comprises a range of ideas, which it expresses after its own fashion, in sound, language, colour, stone, &c. A work of art, therefore, endows a definite conception with a material form of beauty. This definite conception, its embodiment, and the union of both, are the conditions of an aesthetic ideal, with which critical examination into every art is indissolubly connected. Visually, take the perception of a flower as an example, artist Georgia O’Keeffe’s (Lewis, 1995-2006) sensation and feeling of ‘seeing’ a flower is expressed as follows: So I said to myself --- I’ll paint what I see --- what the flower is to me but I’ll paint it big and they will be surprised into taking time to look at it --- I will make even busy New Yorkers take time to see what I see of flowers. In the cognition of Georgia O’Keeffe, a flower is not only limited to its sensory qualities, such as colours, shapes, and species, but she uses a flower (a magnified flower) as a metaphor to remind us the importance of appreciating the world. Her imagery of a flower is manifested and confessed in her format of expression on the canvas. O’Keeffe ‘sees’ the living style of the New Yorkers (in other words, the busy city life) through the flower. The message behind this artwork is similar to the song, Stop and Smell the Roses. According to the music program notes of The Most Inspiring Songs of the Century, the intention of Mac Davis and Doc Severinsen in writing this song, Stop and Smell the Roses, is to address to the American businessmen and women and remind them to enjoy the tiny things in one’s life instead of focusing in the pursuit of material things and fame. As the lyrics in Stop and Smell the Roses mentioned “There’s a whole lot more to life than work and worry. The sweetest things in life are free. And there right before your eyes. You got to Stop and Smell the roses.” The art experience of the subjects in the test “The Brightness and Darkness in Music and the Visual Arts” and the confession of Georgia O’Keeffe imply the existence and necessity of sensation and cognitive appraisal in art experience. The missing of any of the above elements will affect the quality of the art experience. The understanding of the symbolic representation of the arts can improve one’s art experience. However, Broudy (1988) asserts that the arts (such as artwork, music repertoire, sculpture) can’t be analysed in a systematic manner as he (1988, p.64) states: For the truth of the matter is that in viewing a painting or listening to music we rarely perceive much of what the artist or composer created. Most of our perception in ordinary life is selective rather than complete. We use the appearance of the object as a cue or signal. Aesthetic perception is distinctive in that what is in the image cannot be overlooked or ignored. If it can be ignored, then it has no place in the work of art. It is a flaw in aesthetic unity. For most individuals aesthetic perception of works of art has to be cultivated deliberately. So, how can the quality of art experience (especially the facets of expression) be enhanced and improved? This may be an open question as art experience subjectively exists in the perceptual experience of the beholder. However, art experience is a two-way communication between the rtwork/composition and its spectators. In this process of communication, the perception of the creator and the perception of the spectator meet together. Although we may not fully or exactly ‘understand’ the aesthetic expression of the creator and the symbolic meaning behind the artwork, the studying of arts, however, enables us to wonder at the creativity of a human mind and the different dimension of expressing human nature. In the final chapter of this dissertation, the research problems, “the role of music as an independent subject or a link to other arts in the context of education/aesthetic education” and “the value of the arts (music) in the holistic development of an individual” will be defined. Further, the facets of expression will be enriched through discussion of the above two research questions. Chapter 6 Music linked to other expressive forms: redefining the essence of contemporary aesthetic education 6. 1 Music as an educative force Barrett (2001) states the two fundamental concepts of the design of music curriculum in The National Standards for Music Education are “understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts” (Content Standard 8) and “understanding music in relation to history and culture” (Content Standard 9) (p.27). Barrett (ibid) draws our attention to the issue that the integrity and the wholeness of music education are manifested through interdisciplinary relationships. Since Barrett (2002) mentions that one of the objectives of aesthetic education is to foster the ability to perceive the expressive form of an artwork. However, are these elements reflect in the design of music curriculum? Therefore, she argues that music can be expressed more fully with the aid of other subjects, whereas actually, music can be incorporated with other subjects, such as visual arts, drama and performing arts to enhance the students’ experience in arts. However, Barrett (2001) also brings our attention to the shortcomings of the interdisciplinary curriculum in music education because “the discipline of music is often distorted or trivialized in order to fit common models of the interdisciplinary curriculum” (p.27). So, what is the element in music that educators and teachers should preserve, promote and teach in the context of interdisciplinary studies? Metaphorically, it is similar to formulating a balanced diet. The core is how to allocate the different ingredients into a balance diet. This thesis argues that it is a question concerning the function of music in relating to human behaviour. Radocy & Boyle (1997) conclude Merriam’s perception of the function of music as serving the role such as emotional expression, aesthetic enjoyment, entertainment, physical responses and symbolic representation. Regarding emotional expression, Merriam states that music provides a channel to convey one’s sentiments and emotions, such as joy and grief. For aesthetic enjoyment, music has the power to evoke ‘a feelingful experience’. For physical reponses, Merriams states that every culture uses music to accompany rhythmic activities, such as dance, march and ritual services. As for symbolic representation, music can represent ideas, behaviours and non-musical things (such as water), which usually bears a cultural significance. For instance, Johann Strauss II’s Blue Danube Waltz might serve as an example to illustrate some of the above claims. This ‘evergreen’ waltz not only expressed Strauss’s personal affection towards the River Danube, but also brings enjoyment and entertainment for the people in the world. The Blue Danube remains one of the most popular waltzes in the history of music and it has been played extensively in concert halls, ball rooms, classrooms and on other occasions. Freeland (2003) concludes Dean’s and Devereaux’s concern that it is time for a urgent renewal on the role and value of art, especially in the development of moral imagination and the relationship between moral and aesthetic values. Dean and Devereaux (ibid, 2003) propose a perspective of exploring “humanness” and “human nature” through art experience. As Kandinsky (Hahl-Koch, 1984) states, “Art travels … along the path of human nature.’ With the development of the human spirit, art too is eternally enriched, and enriches in its turn with new means of expressing the human spirit (p.129). From a humanitarian perspective, Radocy & Boyle (1997) cite Gaston’s viewpoint that aesthetic expression and experience are essential in order to develop humanness. Sensitivity to beauty and the making of beauty are recognized as one of man’s most distinguishing characteristics. Individuals who are not sensitive to beauty may not be able to achieve their full potential as human beings. Through studying the arts, they provide opportunities and possibilities for the spectators to explore, to recognize and to express beauty. Within the process of art appreciation, the perception of the artist and the viewer meet together. So what is the value and function of ‘aesthetic’ in our life? Maslow (1970) asserts that aesthetic experience is an essential human need, especially to the well-being of an individual. In Maslow’s five levels of Hierarchy of Needs: Physical Needs, Safely Needs, Love Needs, Self-Esteem Needs and Self actualization Needs, aesthetic experience is rated as one of the highest level of need. Maslow regards aesthetic experience as the full development of an individual’s ability and talents. For instance, Gulik (1969) stated that in ancient China, the arts (the quadruplet lute (Qin)-chess- calligraphy-painting) have been used as a tool to develop one’s temperament. During the process of art making and art appreciation, the facets of ‘humanness’ are experienced, whether from a teaching or learning perspective, or from a creator’s or perceiver’s perspective. The meaning of the arts is exposed through the different combinations of sound, colour and the movement that penetrates within them. Educationally, according to Reimer (1989), the three mainstream approaches in perceiving the ‘aesthetic’ in music or in art are referentialism, formalism and absolute expressionism. In brief, the watershed among these three concepts lies in the meaning and value of the artwork. For instance, a referentialist believes the value of art exists outside the artwork itself, whereas a formalist argues that the meaning of art exists mainly in the artwork itself. On the other hand, an absolute expressionist takes an intermediate position where the inner and outer values of an artwork are both essential and important. Alternatively, Freeland (2003) explains that by the end of the nineteenth century, the emphasis of the intrinsic expressive value of the arts outweighed the importance of moral value of the arts. The difference among these three approaches lies in ‘perception’. Perception is the invisible sentiment towards the perceived object: a kind of synthesis between the natural and the human world. This dissertation embraces both the intrinsic and extrinsic value of arts. For in the realm of art experience, both the external and internal qualities of an aesthetic object suggest to us the different facets of human nature. Ultimately, this research serves as a document, which records the humanness and beauty of the arts. Regarding the perception of aesthetic, Bosanquet (1966) concluded that: The History of Fine Art is the history of the actual aesthetic consciousness, as a concrete phenomenon; aesthetic theory is the philosophic analysis of this consciousness, for which the knowledge of its history is an essential condition (p.2). Duncan (Freeland, 2003) also points out the lack of historical perspective in aesthetics in the late eighteenth century and he “suggests that the word ‘art’ denotes a unique historical phenomenon”. The ancient and classical aesthetic theories (such as Confucius and Plato) argue that the role of aesthetics is somehow inseparable from morality. However, this kind of interpretation changed in the late eighteenth century when the doctrine of art for art’s sake became the mainstream of art perception. 6.2. Chinese and Western perspectives on the educative function of music Why is philosophy an important element to us in perceiving the entity of music? Originally, aesthetic is derived from the branch of philosophy, which is concerned with the meaning of ‘beauty’. In the realm of the aesthetic, it defines the essence of ‘beauty’. Aesthetic experience is still regarded as a vague term by educators. However, this thesis argues that aesthetic experience is associated with art experience, which can be apprehended through studying the arts, in their interconnectedness, as explained in each chapter. In this section, Confucius (China/Asia), Plato (Greece/Mediterranean) and Hanslick’s (Germany/Europe) aesthetic concept and function of music are discussed. Despite their historical and cultural differences in perceiving the function of music, they share the same perspective: that music represents the wisdom and creative mind of human beings. Traditionally, Confucius (Gulik, 1969) believes that the greatness of music lies not in the perfection of tone, but as a tool for cultivating temperament and attaining wisdom. Confucius believes (ibid, 1969) that music comes from the heart. Also, Confucius agrees that humans create the feelings in their heart as a basis and then shape and furnish that feeling in music. Because of this, Confucius argues that music functions as a means of self-cultivation and he emphasizes that “virtue is more than the arts”. According to Gulik (1969), the evidence of virtue outweighing art can be taken from Ch’eng Yun-chi (a qin player in the 18th century, in the Ching dynasty), who asserts that playing the qin (Confucius’s favourite instrument) is a way to achieve wisdom and not mainly for the sake of the arts. He also strongly recommended that all who intend to teach, to pass the knowledge of the qin should wait until they meet a pupil who have good character and with sensitive cultural taste. Further, Gulik (ibid) states the craftsmanship of the qin (the only official religious instrument recognized by Confucius who was himself also a qin player) lies not only in musical entities but in the idea of moulding the character. Further, Plato, like Confucius, also linked beauty and wisdom with music (Fubini, 1990; Gilbert, 1972). For instance, in the Phaedrus, Plato (Fubini, 1990, p.36) concludes that “the pursuit of ‘music’ is almost one and the same thing as the pursuit of philosophy itself, and that practicing philosophy is another way of honouring ‘music’”. Also, both Confucius and Plato appear to share the same cosmic interpretation of music. In Yueh-chi, Confucius (Gulik, 1969, p.23) states that “music is the harmony of heaven and earth” and he mentions that “music and man are closely connected, because music corresponds to what is Heavenly in man”. On the other hand, Plato’s musical point of view (Fubini, 1990, p.21) is shaped by the tradition of Pythagoreans, in which “the Pythagoreans saw ‘harmony’ as first and foremost a unification of opposites.” Plato thus points out that a true ‘musician’ will be the man who is in harmony with his soul for he believes that music “is a medicine for the soul” (ibid, p.38). Therefore, “this is not the sort of music that can be played by trained performers on earthly instruments. It is a kind of pure harmony, conceived in the abstract” (p. 38). In the other words, ‘real harmony’ in music is a spirit which derived from the heart. Therefore, Plato (Fubini, 1990, p.38), coinciding with Confucius’ idea, asserts that “the harmony within music echoes the harmony within the soul, and at the same time the harmony of the universe”. They both believe that music can nourish the temperament of human beings. In the other words, music can bring ‘harmony’ to life. The core of Confucius’s (Chai, 1961) teaching, which includes arts education, is to achieve “jen” (human-heartedness). Confucius (Parrinder, 1977) asserts that self discipline (such as the cultivation of ‘jen’) is derived and rooted in the heart. In order to purify the heart, Confucius proclaims the importance of Chung Yung. In brief, Chung Yung (the middle way) is standing firm in the middle, without leaning to any side. Chung Yung is acting in a restrained way where excessive emotional elements are restricted or eliminated. In order to apply the concept of Chung Yung to art, Confucius (Parrinder, 1977, DeWoskin, 1982) believes that the aesthetic is associated with the modification of human temperament. Therefore, good music should be clear and simple, instead of being complex and raucous, which generates excessive sensuality within the audience. From an educational point of view, Plato and Confucius believe that music can impart serenity to a human soul and modify one’s human nature. Therefore, the selection of music should not only base on the beauty of the music but should focus on the outcome of its effect. For instance, Plato (Fubini, 1990) once critized: The music-lovers and the theatre-goers are delighted by the beauty of sound and colour and form, and the works of art which make use of them, but their minds are incapable of seeing and delighting in the essential nature of beauty itself” (p. 32). On the other hand, Confucius (Gulik, 1969; Chai, 1961), when contemplating in the beauty of Shao music, becomes oblivious to the taste of meat. Thereafter, Confucius uses the Shao music as a model of good music, and banished Tseng music since the complexity and variability of that music polluted the mind of the people. Confucius (ibid, 1961, p.20) also claims that the purpose of “music is to teach harmony”. On the contrary, Hanslick, unlike Confucius, believes that the beauty in music has no direct relationship to emotion and morality. For example, Hanslick (1974, p.44) disagrees that music has the power to express or represent definite emotion/feelings for he asserts that “to represent something is to clearly exhibit it; to distinctly set it before us” and music does not do this. Hanslick (ibid, p.32) explains that “a work of art, therefore, endows a definite conception with a material form of beauty” and he (ibid, p.20) stated that: “the beautiful, first of all, affects our senses”. Therefore, Hanslick (ibid) concludes that: The beautiful is and remains beautiful though it arouses no emotion whatever, and though there be no one to look at it. In other words, although the beautiful exists for the gratification of an observer, it is independent of him (p.19). The beautiful in music lies not in its external effects (such as modifying good behaviours) but in its internal effects (i.e. the musical elements, such as a lyrical melody). If feelings and emotion are the subject of music, Hanslick (1974, p.33) argues that “definite feelings and emotions are unsusceptible of being embodied in music”. According to Hanslick (ibid, p.35), “music can express only those qualifying adjectives”, such as being gentle, graceful, delicate or powerful. Hanslick points out that music has the ability to depict certain aspects of objective phenomena, such as snowing or whispering, but not the exact objects. Unlike language, music is an “indefinite form of speech”, and therefore, incapable of expressing definite ideas (ibid, p.35). On the contrary, Confucius uses music to depict specific human characteristic. For example, in the qin piece, “The Orchid”, Confucius (Gulik, 1969) metaphorically describes himself as an orchid standing alone in the common grass. In Chinese painting, the orchid usually represents beauty, elegance, refinement and the perfect human being. Standing alone, the metaphor implies a distinction between the corrupt government and the ordinary people, which is symbolized as common grass. Further, in the qin piece, ‘Three Variations of Plum Plossom’ (ibid, 1969), the allegro section is used to depict the movement of the plum blossom in the freezing wind of the winter, which represents the nobility and persistent image of a scholar and a gentleman in times of adverse situations (such as poverty and dismissal from the government). From Hanslick’s point of view, the idea of music illustrating “nobility” and “morality” would be far beyond the nature of music itself as he sees it. Hanslick regards music functions as a kind of aesthetic experience and as a kind of symbolism. The arousal of feeling is perceived as a subordinate factor. Because of this, Hanslick regards the beauty in music has nothing to do with morality, but is closely related with one’s imagination. As Hanslick (1974, p.22) asserts that “if music, therefore, is to be treated as an art, it is not our feelings, but our imagination which must supply the aesthetic tests.” The element which affects our perception (as an observer) is our imagination but not our feelings. The pleasurable feeling that we gain from music is independent from the artwork itself, as the aesthetic of music already lies in itself. Therefore, Hanslick commented that imagination establishes the relationship between one’s sentiments and the raw materials in the arts. Everyone can use their imagination to re-group and re-mould the musical elements in their listening, composing or performing experience. Also, Hanslick argued that no matter how beautiful the music is, once it becomes a composition, it arouses our attraction only as a complex of musical factors. Thus, he draws a conclusion that music is an objective image and aesthetic analysis can take no position which lie outside the work itself. In brief, Hanslick, Confucius, and Plato acknowledge the essence of arts penetrates the mind (temperment and imagination) of the creator; and the materials are the manifestation of the abstractness of the human mind. In other words, we are experiencing both the artistic entities and our humanness at the same time in art experience. On the whole, regarding aesthetic experience, the bisecting line between Hanslick, Confucius and Plato is probably the detail of musical entities (Hanslick’s perspective) compared with the macrocosm of the universe (Confucius and Plato’s perspective). 6. 3. The role of listening and seeing in Arts Education The educational and philosophical aspects of music further demonstrate the essence of art experience, which is, indeed, inseparable with sensory experiences. In this section, the facet of ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’ in music and visual art will be discussed. Attention will focus on the role of listening and seeing in art experience. Also, the factors which may improve our listening skills will be discussed and examined. 6.3.1 Listening Music, as defined in the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary Of Current English (1989, p.816-817), means the “art of arranging the sounds of voice(s) or instrument(s) or both in a pleasing sequence or combination”. Music is also perceived as “the art of expressing sensations by modulated sounds” as argued by C.F. Michaelis (Hanslick, 1974, p.29). Radocy & Boyle (1997, p.14), citing Kaplan, regards music as “an aesthetic knowledge based on the essence of originality in putting together things, objects, ideals, sounds, forms, and space and time relationships in ways that have not been done before, but on the principle of beauty.”Kaplan, therefore, appears to acknowledge the multi-dimensional nature of music experience. These different interpretations convince us that music appreciation is related to ‘sensation’ and ‘cognition’ of the sounds. In other words, the cultivation of listening skills is a crucial process in order to achieve a more thorough appreciation of music. Music appreciation is an art of listening. Different kinds of concrete and abstract materials are being expressed by composers in terms of sounds. A composer’s perceptual experiences and feelings are being selected, organized and symbolized in his or her compositions. The cultivation of listening skills will increase one’s ability in music appreciation and understanding and enhance the musical experience. According to Flowers (1990), the development of listening skills is crucial for effective music learning. Almost every category of music activities, such as performing, conducting, singing, composing and aural training requires the skill of listening. The importance of listening activities in early childhood music education has been highlighted by Wendy L.Sims (1990) as follows: Up until about third grade, children are very open to almost any kind of music, so take advantage of this receptive period to expose them to music in a variety of styles and from non Western cultures. Beginning at around the fourth grade, children demonstrate much stronger opinions, including well-documented preferences for instrumental music with fast tempos and a prominent beat (p.42). From the children’s responses and their music preferences, Simms concludes that children have the ability to listen, distinguish and choose their music in the early stages of primary schooling. Children’s music perceptions will improve if they are exposed and introduced to different varieties of music by their teachers and mentors. How can one’s listening skills be cultivated and improved? Flowers (1990) explains that the cultivation of listening skills is related to the ability to expression and response to musical materials. In the realm of music education, facets of expression are explained and commonly instructed through a designated curriculum. The design format of the curriculum tends to focus on the acquisition of ‘factual’ knowledge, such as the pursuit of technique and information. Haack (1990) illustrates the practice in current music learning, where the content of the lesson focuses on instruction and information rather than on expression and communication, as follows: They speak of aims that include a personal orientation but curricula that emphasize objective musical aspects. The aims tend to focus on music as experience, while the content tends to focus on information about the music, and not on the effects of human interaction with it. (p.29) Concerning the balance between musical and human interaction in music/aesthetic education, personal interaction with the artistic materials is a crucial step to foster the understanding and appreciation of the arts. However, these kinds of feelings and emotions are not always being expressed, consciously or unconsciously in music lessons. In reality, some teachers may limit their students’ expressive format and limit their frame or scope of expression in order to maintain a better discipline in the classroom. Naturally, when we’re listening to a piece of music, the mood of the music may influence our sensations. We may feel the solemnity of the national anthem or joyfulness when we sing the song “Happy Birthday to you”, consciously or unconsciously. However, how can these subjective feelings enhance our musical experience? What do these music reactions mean to us, especially in relation to human listening behaviour? And how can we improve our listening skills, especially in relation to the ‘effects of human interaction’, as Haack (1990) proclaimed, instead of just paying attention to ‘information about the music’? Take the song, ‘The Sound of Music’ as an example. The lyric of ‘The Sound of Music’ reflected Maria’s (the character) feelings and emotions. The song is set in ternary form (ABA). Maria’s feelings are demonstrated in words such as “My heart wants to beat like the wings of a bird”. In this sentence, visual and kinetic (to beat) experience corresponds with each other. Apart from focusing on the objective entities in music (such as pitch, rhythm), Haack (1990) insists on the need to cultivate the subjective (i.e. the feeling) side of music listening. As listening is an abstract task, it is important to make the listeners (whether children, adolescents or adults) aware their personal feelings in the progress of musical experience. If we can think of the musical materials and pay more attention to our interaction with them, this will enhance our listening experience. Therefore, Flowers (1990) puts forward a principle for music teachers and educators to apply when seeking to enhance students’ music experience as follows: It is clear that meaningful music description is primarily the result of education and training. Although untrained adults are more verbally fluent than are children, there is little evidence to suggest that simply growing older increases verbal-descriptive abilities in music. These observations and examples of musical description have important implications for curriculum and instruction. It seems worthwhile that music educators nurture careful listening and encourage verbal communication while developing students’ music vocabularies. (p.23) Flowers (1990), Haack (1990) and Sims (1990) share the viewpoint that the development of music vocabulary is essential for teaching, learning and expressing music. Regarding ‘introducing’ new vocabulary to students during listening activities, Haack (1990) states that it is time for teachers and students to develop an experimental vocabulary, which goes beyond the use of only ‘happy’, ‘sad’ and ‘scary’ to describe mood in experiencing music. Visual aids, such as words, can assist the development of an expressive vocabulary of music. Words can be imagined and related with sensory experiences. The use of words assists the portrayal of the mood in a piece of music. A typical example is the use of performance directions. Performance directions are a metaphor for the ‘ideal’ sounds. Performance directions expand the vocabulary for expressing music, and this topic has been discussed in chapter 2 and 3 in this dissertation. Further, similar to painting, exploring the vocabulary of colours and lines enhances one’s ability to express himself/herself. There are many different ways to draw an object. For instance, traditionally, a sun is usually coloured red or yellow. However, the colour vocabulary of the sun can be expanded by using different combinations of colours. At the beginning of this dissertation, the idea of viewing sound/music from a multi- modal dimension was put forward. Sound functions as a kind of representation and it speaks on behalf of an idea, a depicted figure or an event. Sound can create the mood of a piece of music. During the progression of the dissertation, the many facets of art experience are being emanating from the dimensions of art making and appreciation. If the cross-modal experience in music and art can apply in the realm of music/art appreciation more explicitly and systematically, the awareness and quality of the listening experience will be enhanced and enriched. 6.3.2. Seeing The technique and facets of ‘seeing’ can be cultivated and polished through studying the arts. In order to understand and recognize an artwork, our ‘seeing’ not only applies to the sensory dimension but also requires an ability to ‘see’ the meaning and the metaphor behind an artform. Regarding the essence of ‘seeing’, painters symbolize the depicted objects in contours, lines and colours. The art of ‘seeing’ is like a visual training exercise, which sharpens one’s expressive abilities and awareness of the external world. The art of seeing, especially an aesthetic way of seeing, can be glimpsed from Erickson’s (1979) comment: To have an aesthetic experience, the subject must be perceiving actively. A subject may be contemplating his environment (or an art object) to discover an aesthetic order which can be enjoyed for its own sake. Or he may be contemplating his environment to discover a pervasive aesthetic quality which can serve as the basis for the production of an art work. In either case his contemplation is active --- it selects, joins, divides, and reforms the perceptual qualities of experience until a unity is created from the situation. These activities are imaginative, i.e., they are the skills necessary to give form to an idea or image (p.86). How can the skills of ‘seeing’ be improved and cultivated? According to White (1957), the world of art is a world of pattern. We can discover different pattern groupings and constructions of patterns (such as repetition, alternation, counterchange tuning, waving lines) in the arts. The arrangement of a pattern characterizes one’s observational experience. The art of seeing is to become aware, to recognize and to understand the symbolic meanings behind these varieties of patterns. Sulzer (1995) states: “variety must appear as the constantly varied effects of a single cause, or as the different forces that act upon a single object, or things of the same kind that are distinguished by their individual shadings (p.47).” Take the image of a waterlily as an example. Monet has created many possibilities for his spectators to see the different facets of the waterlily. We can see the blossom, serenity, brightness, colours of his waterlilies, painted in different moods, dimensions and sizes. Similar to the act of listening, the act of seeing should cover both the ‘physical property’ and ‘emotional property’ in a piece of music. The physical quality usually refers to the lines and colours in an artwork, and the pitches, dynamics, and instrumentation in the musical repertoire. The expressive qualities of an artwork imply how the physical properties are being interpreted and expressed. The arrangement and design of the physical properties express the creator’s thoughts and cultural background. Take Renoir’s experimental study of colour as an example. Practically, it took time for Renoir to observe and to experience the essence of ‘black’. Black is a colour which most of the Impressionist painters ignored. The opaque nature of black decreased the brightness and transparency of the colours on the canvas. This made the Impressionist painters avoid using it, especially since one of their artistic aims was to depict the changing ‘light’ in the natural world. However, Renoir (Dunstan, 1976) confessed that: Black is a very important color … the mistake the academic painters made was in seeing only the black, and in its pure state. Nature abhors ‘pure’ colours … a horse is never black or white. To a horseman, one which looks black is a ‘brown bay’ and a white one is a ‘light gray’. The hair on their coats is mixed. It’s the combination of tones that gives the impression of black. We should use black, but in a mixture as it is in nature (p.58). From Renoir’s perception of black, we can see a highly logical and sophisticated human mind and visual skills. This was the outcome of consecutive re-experiencing and re-observing the qualities of the depicted object. Through repetition, the characteristic and essence of the object ‘stands out’ to the eyes of its beholder. Renoir’s observation illustrates the importance of ‘repetition’ in art experience. Repetitive activity enables us to discover, revise and construct new meanings in object relationships. The concept of object relationships is further illustrated by Renoir (Dunstan, 1976) as follows: After all, a picture is meant to be looked at inside a house, so a little work must be done in the studio, in addition to what has been done out-of-doors. You should get away from the intoxication of real light and digest your impression in the reduced light of a room. Then you can get drunk on sunshine again. You go out and work, and you come back and work; and finally your picture begins to look like something (p.58). In this case, the object relationship is applied to both outdoor and indoor displays. This kind of judgement requires logical and critical thinking skills, and a thorough understanding of the displayed objects. A thorough understanding of an object is related to consecutive exposure of certain images or experiences. Renoir has discovered a different perspective in ‘seeing light’ from that of other Impressionist painters: the pursuit of ‘light’ in a display context rather than pursuit of the light purely from out-door based perspectives. The art of seeing is displayed aurally in Ravel’s composing of music. Stravinsky praised Ravel as a “swiss-watch maker” for his distinctive craftsmanship. Ravel’s scientific mind owed much to his care of the smallest details. As Léon-Paul Fargue (Orenstein, 1991) stated as follows: One of the most striking traits of this curious Pyrenean was his passion for perfection. This man, who was profoundly intelligent, versatile, precise, extremely well informed, and who did every thing with a facility which was proverbial, had the character and qualities of an artisan. And he liked nothing better than to be compared to one. He liked doing things and doing things well... His passion was to offer the public works which were “finished,” polished to the ultimate degree (p.118). Ravel’s demand for perfectionism and accuracy can be glimpsed in one of his USA tours, described by Davies (ibid, 1967, p.153) as follows: Ravel “took with him twenty pairs of pyjamas, a dozen suits and shirts and fifty-seven ties, most of which he claimed were half an inch too long to be worn.” Ravel’s precision was reflected in his intellectual arrangement of notes (melody and harmony) and his exact precision in rhythmic matters. This process of art making is the summation of his infinite patience and attention to the detail of the musical materials. Ravel (Orenstein, 1991) states: In my own work of composition I find a long period of conscious gestation, in general, necessary. During this interval, I come gradually to see, and with growing precision, the form and evolution which the subsequent work should have as a whole (p.207). Ravel’s compositional technique functions like an empirical study of auditory relationships. For instance, Ravel demanded strict tempi and exact interpretation of note values. According to Vinès Ricardo (Perlemuter & Jourdan-Morhange, 1988, p.46) states: “since Ravel liked exact interpretations, he created a precisely placed rubato: the graded rubato.” For fast passages, he insisted that the player not play it too fast. For sentimental pieces, such as Pavane pour une infante defunte, he also recommended not slowing down the tempo for expressive purposes. Ravel measures and mixes the musical elements with precise accuracy, like mixing the chemical substances in a chemical formula. Renoir and Ravel are both searching for an order and a meaning in their making of the arts. The order is derived from observation (cross-modal sensations) and object relationships (cognitive appraisal). In Renoir’s case, he re-experienced the characteristic of ‘black’ when he studied it in detail. He added new meaning to the use of black which was different from his contemporaries. He saw the different combinations and ‘tints’ of black in the natural world and its objects. Ravel wanted to create his own style of rubato - a rubato which follows the precise auditory intention of the composer instead of the performers - as Renoir wanted to control the precise visual elements of Black. Renoir and Ravel applied their ‘sensory observations’ of colours and tempi into their artworks and compositions. In other words, they are using their cross-modal experiences in a systematic and sophisticated manner. They are expressing their sensory experiences in their art works. Addiss &Erickson (1993) state that the arts foster our imagination, and enable us to ‘see’ life in other times or cultural contexts. According to Baglin & Mullins (1997), art is an essential element in the life of Aboriginal people. They perceive art as ‘magic’, they use art to record their lives, such as their achievements, religious beliefs, hunting, daily gossip, loves and hates. The essence of Australian Aboriginal art can be expressed through a poem from the Pitjantjatjara people (ibid, 1997, p.2), which is translated by Thomas Murray as follows: He clutched the heart in his hands and ran in fear. But having trod there, his footprints are left Where he trod and ran away. His marks still stand, clear and good, Where for fear of a whirlwind he fled. And the story of the emu is there, The cutting and eating. And the wind still talks and will always talk, The grass will light and the trees will light And the big wind will blow. I’ve finished now. Functionally, as well as for entertainment, the arts provide an outlet for communication. Art is the communication of human nature and the expression of human perception through physical materials. Art fosters one’s understanding about the complexity of human affairs. The arts as a medium of understanding the world and human affairs are further illustrated by the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial, designed by Maya Lin. Maya Lin (Zelanski & Fisher, 1994) summarized her concept of ‘seeing’ in the making of this artwork as follows: Many earlier war memorials were propagandized statements about the victor, the issues, the politics, and not about the people who served and died. I felt a memorial should be honest about the reality of war and be for the people who gave their lives … I didn’t want a static object that people would just look at, but something they could relate to as on a journey, or passage, that would bring each to his own conclusions …I didn’t visualize heavy physical objects implanted in the earth; instead it was as if the black-brown earth were polished and made into an interface between the sunny world and the quiet, dark world beyond, that we can’t enter (p.61). Maya Lin uses the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial as a “remembrance”, as her afterthoughts of the war. She addressed her memories and thoughts through the construction of this monument and chose the patterns and format to express her feelings to the world and her country. From her sharing, we acknowledge that art enriches our experience of life. Art can transcend time and space and enter into our perceptual and emotional world. The realm of the arts provides opportunities for spectators to understand the changing format of visual representation (or auditory representation in the realm of music). In the realm of music and visual art, the depicted objects are being varied and symbolized in terms of visual and auditory materials by their creators. Through symbolism, the essence of the object can be clarified and new meanings or ideas emerge. However, the way of ‘seeing’ and ‘hearing’ symbolism in the arts affects our perception and appreciation of the depicted objects and states. 6.4. The function and value in art experience So, what is the function of ‘experience’? The last five chapters of the dissertation have argued that experience, particularly art experience, is inseparable from two kinds of experiences: sensation (cross-modal experience, responses of our senses) and cognitive appraisal (cross-modal experience and thinking). Functionally, apart from entertainment purposes, art experiences enrich our understanding of perception and human nature. In this section, several paintings and music examples are selected from the test used in Chapter 5 dealing with “Brightness and Darkness in Music and Painting”. Each of the following music and painting example illustrates a specific aspect of perception and the thinking of the creator. Although some of the artworks have received harsh criticism at their debut, nevertheless, they introduced a new perceptual experience to their spectators which nobody else had created. 6.4. (A). Flowing water: the psalm of friendship The composition Flowing Water was related to the friendship of Po Ya and Chung Ch’I. Referring to Gulik (1969), Kao-shan-liu-shui (High Mountains and Flowing Streams), which later divided into separate tunes, Kao-shan (High Mountains) and Liu-shui (Flowing Waters), was regarded as one of the most famous qin melodies. Po Ya was considered as one of the best qin players and Chung Ch’I was a great listener who never failed to understand his music. According to Gulik (1969): Po Ya while playing the lute thought of ascending mountains. Then Chung Ch’I said: “How excellent! Impressing like the T’aishan!” And when Po Ya thought of flowing streams, Chung Ch’I said: “How excellent! Broad and flowing like rivers and streams!” (p.97) Po Ya and Chung Ch’I ‘s art experiences demonstrate Merriam’s (Radocy & Boyle, 1997) perception of music: music serves as a channel for emotional expression and communication. The power of music, as a communicator, enters directly into the spiritual experience of the beholder. Further, Radocy & Boyle (1988, p.14), citing Kaplan, regards music as “an aesthetic knowledge based on the essence of originality in putting together things, objects, ideals, sounds, forms, and space and time relationships in ways that have not been done before, but on the principle of beauty.” Po Ya and Chung Ch’I were sharing and experiencing the beauty of music together, in a speechless way. In other words, music speaks on behalf of them. Radocy & Boyle (ibid, p.14) also states: “such knowledge also involves subjectivity, the essence of which is undefinable. This subjectivity, Kaplan maintains, gives art its strength and reason for being.”Therefore, referring to Gulik (1969, p.98), “when Chung Ch’I died, Po Ya broke his lute and tore the strings, and he did not play any more, as he deemed the world not worthy to be played to”. Furthermore, Po Ya illustrates “the moral and symbolic force” of music experience, proclaimed by Kaplan (Radocy & Boyle, ibid, p.14). For the qin is a symbolic instrument for the scholastic class for more than 3000 years in China. Historically, the function of the qin served as a medium for nurturing one’s human nature. Gulik (1969) also claims that the Taoists perceived this instrument as a means of becoming one with nature whereas Buddhism saw it as an instrument for meditation. 6.4. (B) Picasso’s Demoiselles d’Avignon: the facet of seeing The power of the arts and human creativity are demonstrated in Picasso’s Demoiselles d’Avignon. Picasso has re-moulded the image of ‘women’ in modern art history and re-shaped the method of representation in painting. Take Picasso’s Demoiselles d’Avignon as an example for viewing the facet of ‘seeing’. The core of Demoiselles d’Avignon is illustrated by Walther (1986) as follows: Picasso wanted to destroy absolutely everything. His rebellion against the myth of feminine beauty was relatively insignificant compared with his other rebellion: with this picture he wanted to destroy the image that people had been forming of him as a painter, and he was rebelling against the whole of Western art since the Renaissance. Nevertheless, his painting had not been created out of nothing. Picasso had been studying Iberian and African sculptures. They contained precisely those archaic forms which inspired him to create stylized natural forms, then arrange them in rigorous geometrical patterns and finally radically deform form (p.37). Picasso combined the essence of exoticism with cubism, a new perceptual concept which changes the aesthetic concept of modern art history. Exoticism, which achieved great popularity in Europe from the late Romantic period till the early twentieth century, brought oriental materials to the art world. Exoticism usually refers to the use of artistic and musical elements from the countries of the western Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Hungary and Spain. Picasso’s love of African art is demonstrated in Demoiselles d’Avignon. Picasso (Walther, 1986) emphasises that the function of painting is to foster one’s vision and the understanding of the world, as follows: I can say it with pride. I have never regarded painting as an art merely for the purpose of entertainment and amusement. As my pen and my paint do happen to be my weapons, I wanted to use them to penetrate deeper and deeper into a knowledge of the world and of people, so that this knowledge might set all of us more and more free each day … Yes, I am aware that I have been fighting with my art like a true revolutionary…” (p.10) Picasso perceived art as his speech and pen. His art (painting, drawing, print and sculpture) speaks on behalf of him and sets his spirit free. Educationally, the studying of the arts (music and visual art) improves one’s skills of expression. As Reimer (1989) suggests, art experience is an intellectual one (and emotional factors are subordinate). This is because studying of art trains us to observe the ‘object relationship’ and to express our perception in a creative and personal way. 6.4.(C) Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night Starry Night, one of the masterpieces in modern art history, manifests Beardsley’s (Robinson, 1979) concept of art expression as follows: If a painting expressed anything, it would be something in the mind or spirit of the artist, his feelings or emotions. But what the painting is said to reveal is something in the objective physical world outside the artist, or a reality behind the physical world (p.11). Therefore, Robinson (ibid, p.11) summarized the idea of Beardsley as “what a work of art is said to “reveal” are properties of a “world” of the artist’s fantasy”. Van Gogh completed Starry Night near the mental asylum of Saint-Remy, just thirteen months before his tragic death. Starry Night is Van Gogh’s subjective response, his imagination and memory to nature. It was a scene he saw from his window before sunrise. He exaggerated the image of the morning star, which according to his perception, was very big that particular day. The picture itself is full of energy and contrasting elements, such as exploding stars and the serene village. As Van Gogh (Whiteley, 2000, p.92) once mentioned “Why, I ask myself, shouldn’t the sunny dots of the sky be as accessible as the black dots on the map of France?” In other words, Van Gogh’s painting exceeds the boundary of purely sensational observations, he used his imagination and emotion to paint. The use of a natural scene to depict a model reflects Bennett Reimer’s (1989) perception of arts, for Reimer regards art experience is a kind of human experience that includes the appreciation of objects and events (for example, contemplation of nature) that are not originally intended to be art. According to Don McLean’s website Americanpie.com, Don McLean composed the song, Vincent after he read a book about the life of Vincent Van Gogh in 1971. The song, Vincent was played daily with the copy of the music sheet, and a set of Van Gogh’s paint brushes in the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam during the 1970s. The lyrics of the song relate to the painting, Starry Night. Both the painting and the song depict the loneliness and psychological struggles of Van Gogh. The loneliness and struggle of Van Gogh is explicitly illustrated through the eyes of his perceiver, Don McLean. As Picasso (Walther, 1986) states “Nothing has ever been created without loneliness. I have created a loneliness for myself which nobody can see” (p.79). Further, Po Ya’s loneliness in the music world and his respect of his friend, Chung Ch’I was reflected in the moment he destroyed the qin. In addition, Schoenberg (1984) stated in his essay, entitled “How one becomes lonely” as follows: I had to fight for every new work; I had been offended in the most outrageous manner of criticism; I had lost friends and I had completely lost any belief in the judgements of friends. And I stood alone against a world of enemies (p.41). So, what do these examples tell us about art experience? As Kaplan (Radocy & Boyle, 1997, p.14) states “arts as personal experience” for the arts provides the “opportunity for relaxation, memory, fragmentary or sustained enjoyment, contemplation, or any other subjective mood or need”. The above personal experiences are manifested in the qin music, Flowing Water, Picasso’s Demoiselles d’Avignon and Van Gogh’s Starry Night. Further, these examples demonstrate that art experience is inseparable from humanity. Broudy (1966) states: “The humanities taken in their broadest and most generous intent include works of art, literature, music, architecture, history, and philosophy which depict the human ideal” (p.19). The depiction of these human qualities is achieved by intelligence and imagination, as Broudy (1966) concludes - “by intelligence he can reflect on his experience and by imagination he can expand it, even to the point of changing its quality” (p.19). Thus, the arts are humanized in the perceptual experience of the creator, perceiver and the perceived subjects. The creator’s perceptual experience is reflected in the symbolic meaning of the arts. For instance, the perception of ‘fisherman’ differs between the Taoist writer, Chuang- tzu and Nobel Prize Winner, Hemingway. Chuang-tzu (Gulik, 1969) used the old fisherman as a symbol of ‘wisdom’, someone who has discovered ‘tao’ (wisdom), has excluded himself from the pursuit of earthly fame and has harmoniously united with nature. In contrast, in Hemingway’s classic, The Old Man and the Sea, ‘wisdom’ refers to the old fisherman’s courage and ability to conquer nature. Traditionally, strength and force are against Taoist’s teaching of passivity and submission. Drinking wine is another example. The word, ‘drunk’ always bears an ironic meaning in Taoism. For instance, Taoist writers, such as Chuang Tzu (4-300 B.C.), His K’ang (223-262) and Su Tung-p’o (Sung Dynasty) metaphorically used drinking wine as a kind of escape from earthly boundaries and worries. Drinking wine allowed them to stand aloof from present consciousness, from fleeting laughter and from fame in life. Musically, a typical example is the qin piece, “The Drunkard”. According to Gulik, His K’ang (a great musician, philosopher and poet) found “realness” in drinking wine because he was unable to pursue “Tao” (wisdom) in the devastated society. Reflecting cultural differences, the image of drinking wine is captured from another perspective in Verdi’s “Toast”, from the opera La Traviata, in the following lyrics: To life and to love and to light hearted laughter we joyously lift our glasses, We celebrate moments too fleeting to capture before the magic expires. The ecstasy of love will live for all too brief an hour, a frail and fragile flower that blooms and fades away. Tomorrow, tomorrow we cannot recapture the pleasure we live for today. Although both examples are about drinking wine, the philosophy behind “The Drunkard” (influenced by Taoism) differs from the “Hedonism” portrayed in Verdi’s “Toast”. According to The Library of Essential Knowledge (Reader’s Digest, 1980), “Hedonism” is seeking pleasure while avoiding pain and is normally based on “personal” fulfilment. As for Taoism, even at the moment of seeking pleasure and entertainment, the searching for Tao (wisdom) will not cease. ‘Seeing’ the qualities of an aesthetic object is inseparable from sensory experiences. Sensory experience (from a cross-modal dimension) is one of the most direct experiences in the arts. Such experience is also one of the shortest distances between the spectator (including the creator and the perceiver) and the depicted object. Sensory experiences can access the boundary of interdisciplinary or cross-disciplinary studies in learning and teaching. 6.4.(D) Humanity in the arts Applying the theme of “experience” to educational principles, John Dewey (1966, p.89-90) states in Democracy and Education that the definition of education is “reconstruction or reorganization of experience which adds to the meaning of experience, and which increases ability to direct the course of subsequent experience.” An example is the dispersion of musical experience through education. Edward Bailey (Music Educators National Conference, 1966) stated that the purpose of introducing music into public schools in the United States in around 1720 was to improve singing quality in church services. This function of music education corresponds with Lowell Mason’s concept of music’s value as a channel to unite with God. Apart from communicating with God, Mason insists that music experience can assist the self- actualization of an individual. According to Buffington (2007): Music was the first of the expressive subjects to take its place in the curriculum of the public schools. This occurred at a time when the value of a subject was judged on its importance to the lives of the community and society as a whole. In other words, music is a social experience in which everyone can participate. In Mac Davis’s hit song, I believe in music (1970), the power of music in social life is illustrated as “Maybe I’ll come up with a song. To make people want to stop all this fussing and fighting.” As a composer and lyricist, Mac David believes that ‘music has life’. Music is not only a channel for personal expression and enjoyment but it can foster brotherhood and unites different countries. The music legend, Pavarotti is a typical example of one who demonstrated ‘brotherhood’ in musical experience. How did audiences experience the singing of Pavarotti and regret of his departure? The following comments are typical of Pavarotti’s impact on people. What does the history of music tell us about him as a musician? Pavarotti was the world’s best-selling classical artist, with more than 100 million records sold since the 1960s, and he had the first classical album to reach No.1 on the pop charts. (Pavarotti receives last standing ovation, Yahoo News, Sat, Sept.8, 2007) And, what did the music authorities say about the ‘King of High Cs’? “Pavarotti was the last great Italian voice to move the world”, said Bruno Cagli, president of the Santa Cecilia National Academy in Rome. (Crowds mourn Pavarotti in his hometown, Yahoo News, Sep 6, 2007) How did the world say ‘farewell’ to him? Thousands of admirers filled the piazza outside the cathedral watching the service on a big screen. The crowd erupted in applause when the white, maple casket covered with flowers --- including Pavarotti’s favourite, sunflowers --- was carried outside by 11 pallbearers. At the same instant, the Italian air force’s precision flying team roared overhead, trailing vapors of green, red and white --- the colors of the Italian flag. (Crowds mourn Pavarotti in his hometown, Yahoo News, Sep 6, 2007) What did Pavarotti say about his experience with music? I think a life in music is a life beautifully spent, and this is what I have devoted my life to. (Pavarotti’s website, lucianopavarotti.com) Figure 6.1 Larger than life ... Pavarotti on stage Music can assist the development of human activities. This is the ‘essence’ of music, an auditory experience which Plato regarded as “the medicine of the soul”, a cultural asset which it is necessary to pass on. From a visual perspective, the fine arts create another dimension of human experience for its spectators and creators. Sulzer (1995, p.25) states that “the primary goal of fine arts is to awaken in us a vivid feeling for the true and good.” Further, Sulzer (ibid) concluded from DuBos’s art theory, especially from the perception of an artist, as follows: Every person at certain times has the need to exercise his emotions and engage his feelings. However, he was content to limit himself to drawing only a few basic rules from this premise, and thus remain as empirical in his methods as were his predecessors. Still, his work is full of excellent observations and rules (p.25). DuBos brought our attention to the ‘scientific facets’ of art experience: observation and experimental studies in the making of the arts. DuBos’s perception of the arts shares similar conceptions with Rudolf Arnheim. Arnheim (1969) regards art education as a means to train and foster one’s ability to perceive and think visually.No question Barrett (2002) states that one of the objectives of aesthetic education is to foster the ability to perceive the expressive form of an artwork. Educationally, Buffington (Music Education Web, 2007) mentions that the expressive essence of arts education changed when the first satellite, Sputnik, was sent into space by the Russians in 1957. This incident created anxiety and concern in the field of science and education in the United States. Scientific leaders and educators began to see the importance of ‘technology’ in educational curriculum. They perceived ‘technology’ as the means to remain competitive with others in the future. Therefore, science and science-related subjects became the mainstream goal in educational systems. The concept “pursuit of excellence” emerged in the realm of education, including the arts. This move sacrificed and dissolved one of the basic music education principles which Mason proclaims: music is for every child. Buffington adds (ibid, 2007): It was during this period that the aesthetic education movement became a viable force in forming a philosophical framework to meet the fundamental concerns of the educational system. Proponents of aesthetic education proposed a fundamental approach to music education. These people were concerned with the artistic values of music more so than the traditional performance for performance’s sake. Then, to what extent do the philosophical implications of music modify our experiences in the arts? Viewing music education through a philosophical perspective implies the pursuit of critical thinking in art experience. Art or music making is inseparable from the experience of observation and thinking. We observe, we think, and through these consecutive actions and deeds, ideas and thoughts are being conceptualized and embodied into expressive artwork. The arrangement of the artwork is the product of the above selection and deduction process. On the other hand, ‘philosophy’, a branch of study which emphasises the ‘observation of mind and thinking’, is similar to the essence of art making --- the arrangement of natural objects and phenomenon. Traditionally, philosophy is about the pursuit of wisdom and the art of logical thinking and argument. The word ‘philosophy’ is derived from the Greek word, ‘philo’ (love or befriend) and ‘sophia’ (wisdom). Philosophy is related to the study of natural objects or phenomena, like Aristotle’s common sensibles. According to David Hume, the laws of nature were formed through the human mind contemplating the regularity of events, selecting the reliable factors and adopting them as principles for prediction and action. In other words, laws are regulations formed from logical and critical thinking. Logical and critical thinking is demonstrated not only in the sciences but also in the making of the arts. Practically, observation and experiment are inseparable in the process of knowledge acquisition. However, the knowledge (especially in the area of critical thinking and capacities of expression) that we gain and are inspired by art experience differs greatly from some other general subjects in the school curriculum. The arts provide us with a means to express our sensations and feelings. Broudy (1988) believes education can link a diverse society, and his mission and aim is to search and promote a common curriculum for all students. He considers the ideal curriculum will enable students to have a better understanding of the world, society and self. Broudy emphasized the importance of associative and interpretive uses of knowledge. He argued that the arts (from an interdisciplinary perspective) provide a channel to cultivate this knowledge, which can increase a person’s capacity for criticism and self-expression. Inner reflection and assessment are crucial elements in knowing the 'self'. Ultimately, the purpose of education, as Maslow (1970) proclaims, is to fulfil the goal of self-actualization; a term which corresponds with Carl Roger’s ideal of human life and relationship. The arts are the ideal subject to foster our understanding of the world (from a social sciences perspective), society (from the humanities perspective) and self (from cognition and the psychological perspective). The history of the arts is the adventure of human expression and experience. 6.5. Cross-modal experience in learning and teaching What is the role of experience, especially cross-modal experience in learning and teaching? Experience is a crucial element for the formation of concept in learning. Take the musical/movie “My Fair Lady” as an example. This play, written by George Bernard Shaw, was based on Ovid’s Pygmalion and put into an early 20th century context. As an experienced and notable linguistic teacher, Professor Higgins encountered Eliza (his most difficult and also his most successful student) in a street in London. Annoyed by Eliza’s poor pronunciation and rough manner (visual and auditory correspondence), he felt pity for her. On the other hand, Eliza was frustrated but inspired by this stranger’s harsh comment. In just a brief encounter, Professor Higgins sent an important message to Eliza: ‘education’. Then, Eliza intended to use all her savings to request Professor Higgins to teach her ‘proper English’ in order to find a better job (selling flowers in a shop instead of selling them in the market). This is their first sensory experience which involved sound. Higgins was dismayed by the spoken sounds Eliza made. In the following months, Eliza went through strict speech training day and night but without much success. Her training experience was focused on “replication” and “practical” vocational training (which Broudy considered as subordinate when compared with associative and interpretive knowledge). Eliza forgot and couldn’t relate these spoken ‘symbols’ to her daily life. Every day, she is encoding so many meaningless auditory “symbols” in her mind. The teacher and the student arrived at a point of exhaustion and intended to end this training programme. Sometimes, hard work is not the only element to contribute to successful learning. If practice makes perfect, why did Eliza fail to learn what Professor Higgins had insisted she must, even though she spent an enormous amount of time practising? Skinner (Milhollan & Forisha, 1972) believes that learning doesn’t simply occur through experience or simply by doing the task. He insists that an effective learning module is based on ‘observable’ and ‘selective’ behaviour outcomes. In order to achieve the desirable outcomes, the teacher should reinforce the desirable behaviour pattern and discourage the undesirable learning behaviours. Practically, Skinner (ibid, 1972, p.74) insists: “[f]or learning to occur we must recognize the response, the occasion upon which the response occurs, and the consequences of the response.” Skinner’s behaviour approach to learning has been used and modified in the realm of teaching. However, Edward T. Clark, Jr. (Miller, 1991) states some of the outcomes of the behaviour approach to learning and teaching as follows: The result of this way of thinking has been an attempt to reduce all learning to that which can be measured. To accomplish this, we have created an elaborate system of testing based almost entirely on those learning that can be demonstrated and quantified. In doing so, we have reduced concepts like understand, know, appreciate, enjoy, and believe into measurable behaviours like write, recite, identify, list, compare, and contrast. Since the only learning that can be accurately measured without ambiguity is recall, we have, implicitly if not explicitly, reached the conclusion that the measure of recall is a measure of learning. As a consequence, virtually the entire teaching/learning process is centred around the presentation, memorization, and recall of facts (p.21). In Eliza’s case, even if the content of the linguistic lesson was perfectly designed by Professor Higgins but, however, did it fit Eliza’s cognitive style of thinking and her learning style? Professor Higgins may have been an expert in his field, but could he transfer his knowledge into the heart and mind of an ‘uneducated’ person? So, how did Eliza finally overcome the language barrier? It is the moment when she ‘experienced’ the ‘essence of the teaching materials’ while singing the song, The Rain in Spain. By singing this song (with sound, movement, colour), her language experience was reinforced and re-confirmed. The song, The Rain in Spain is a ‘dialogue’ between a teacher and a student. It served as a buffer zone during the phase of teaching and learning. From a learning perspective, Erickson (1979) states: Each student must understand through his own subjective experience the participation of a perceiving subject in an experience with an aesthetic object. Therefore, a significant part of the content of aesthetic education is the subjective experience of students (p.81-82). Why is experience an important element in the role of learning in the arts? Frank Sibley states (Parsons, 2002, p.26) states, “it does no good, he said, simply to be told that a work of art has a certain character or meaning; one has to see and feel its qualities and import for oneself. Appreciation is possible in no other way”. When applied to the case of Eliza, it took time for her to grasp the meaning of ‘linguistics’, the ‘sound’ of different vowels and consonants and, the structure of a sentence. This also arouses a phenomenon of knowledge acquisition: the importance of cross- modal experience and the interdisciplinary approach in teaching and learning. The breakthrough came when Eliza, Professor Higgins and Henry sang the song, The Rain in Spain. Through singing, Eliza was inspired to ‘rethink’ the sounds of the words. The Song, The Rain in Spain, provides an opportunity for Eliza to practice, revise and display her knowledge in front of others. This example demonstrates the essence of interdisciplinary in learning and acquisition of knowledge. Through adopting an interdisciplinary approach to learning and teaching, the ‘door’ of knowledge is expanded bringing possibilities and surprises. Also, experience is an essential element for concept formation in learning and teaching. However, the quality of the experience is more important than the quantity of the experience. Another example which uses sensory interaction as a means of concept formation is Helen Keller’s sensory adventure. Helen Keller’s The Story of My Life is regarded as one of the ‘evergreen’ classics of American Literature. Helen Keller wrote this book when she was only twenty-one years old. The whole book provides evidence of the cross-modal experience in learning and teaching. The book was later transformed into a musical and into a feature film in 1962. The film, The Miracle Worker was directed by William Gibson and won the Academy Awards for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. ‘Miracle Worker’ was a term used by Mark Twain, as a metaphor to pay homage to Helen Keller’s teacher, Anne Sullivan. From an autobiographical perspective, The Story Of My Life is the sensory journey of Helen Keller and her teacher, Anne Sullivan. The Story of my life reflects the importance of ‘observation’ and ‘cross-modal experience’ in the acquisition of knowledge. Sullivan used tactile responses to interpret visual-auditory experiences. In other words, Sullivan demonstrated the existence and importance of cross-modal experience in obtaining information around the world. Helen Keller’s breakthrough in life started in this moment of cross-modal experience as stated in The Story Of My Life (1904) is as follows: We walked down the path to the well-house, attracted by the fragrance of the honeysuckle with which it was covered. Some one was drawing water and my teacher placed my hand under the spout. As the cool stream gushed over one hand she spelled with the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten --- a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that “w- a-t-e-r” meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing over my hand. That living word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, joy, set it free! There were barriers still, it is true, but barriers that could in time be swept away. This outdoor incident changed the life of Helen Keller forever. This was the first time she experienced the essence of language and a way to express herself. How did Helen experience the image of water? The impression of water was reinforced through the modified form of sign language – writing the words on the palms in order to feel the contour of the words; and at the same time, provide the touching experience of that depicted object. For instance, when a real object (water) is accompanied by the written word ‘water’, a more vivid experience has been created. The vocabulary of Helen Keller was not limited to a concrete, touchable object, but also to abstract ideas and concepts. The following incident from The Story of My Life (1904) illustrated how sensory experience assists the recognition of abstract ideas. A day or two afterward I was stringing beads of different sizes in symmetrical groups --- two large beads, three small ones, and so on. I had made many mistakes, and Miss Sullivan had pointed them out again and again with gentle patience. Finally I noticed a very obvious error in the sequence and for an instant I concentrated my attention on the lesson and tried to think how I should have arranged the beads. Miss Sullivan touched my forehead and spelled with decided emphasis, “Think.” In a flash I knew that the word was the name of the process that was going on in my head. This was the first conscious perception of an abstract idea. Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan’s sensory journey continued for 50 years till Sullivan’s death. Their experimental journey demonstrated to us the existence and importance of cross-modal experience in obtaining information and knowledge of the world. In other words, tactile experience can suggest visual qualities. Also, they have created a miracle for the world as well as creating other possibilities for expression and communication among the deaf and dumb, a modified visual sign language. Helen summarized her school days in The Story of My Life (1904) as follows: From the beginning of my education Miss Sullivan made it a practice to speak to me as she would speak to any hearing child; the only difference was that she spelled the sentences into my hand instead of speaking them. If I did not know the words and idioms necessary to express my thoughts she supplied them, even suggesting conversation when I was unable to keep up my end of the dialogue. Each day Miss Sullivan went to the classes with me and spelled into my hand with infinite patience all that the teachers said. In study hours she had to look up new words for me and reread notes and books I did not have in raised print. The tedium of that work is hard to conceive. However, there are some invisible teaching materials in Sullivan’s lessons which turn Helen into a significant figure in the 20th century. What are those materials? They are the spirit of patience, perseverance and love, a teacher who teaches students from the bottom of her heart. Regarding the role of a teacher in learning and teaching, Karen Katafiasz (1997, p.3-4) states: Be aware that you teach so much more than a subject. You are opening minds and hearts; you are shaping lives. Radiate enthusiasm for your students, for learning, for life --- and for engaging students in learning and in life. Your students --- and you --- will be so much richer. A successful teacher does not always need a superior textbook or a well-designed curriculum. Some of the best teaching materials are invisible as Helen (ibid, 1904) recalled the tenderness of her teacher in The Story of My Life are as follows: Miss Sullivan put her arm gently round me and spelled into my hand, “I love Helen.” What is love?” I asked. She drew me closer to her and said, “It is here,” pointing to my heart, whose beats I was conscious of for the first time. From the knowledge of water (concrete concept), to thinking (abstract concept), and the cognition of love (psychological and spiritual concept), Helen Keller demonstrates the importance of sensory experience and cross-modal interaction in the acquisition of knowledge. Helen Keller’s learning journey further convinces us that the emergence of ‘concept formation’ in learning is inseparable from ‘experience’. The preliminary step to experiencing an ‘idea’ is through sensory interaction. By nature, we generalize and organize ‘experiences’ and transform them into something meaningful to us; meaningful in a sense that we can relate to our life and with other pre-existing knowledge. In this process of concept development, teaching materials should be organized and selected in a way planned to arouse ‘meaningful experiences’ in the learners. Concept development is crucial in the process of teaching and learning. Music and visual arts provide their spectators with different opportunities to develop, understand and illustrate concepts. In order to appreciate and recognize these concepts, we need to experience music and the visual arts through their visual-auditory entities. Within the entire dissertation, the author is building and demonstrating a ‘concept’: the ‘multi-modal sensory dimension’ in art experience and perceiving these experiences from an interdisciplinary perspective. The arts are the generalization and characterization of human experience, and the symbolization of object relationships. According to Department of Education --- New South Wales (Division of Services), Background Papers, Social Studies: Kindergarten to Year Six, ‘concept development’ is crucial in the progress of teaching and learning. Regarding the formation of concepts, Ferguson states that ‘generalization’ and ‘inference’ are important elements for conceptual formation. Generalization refers to the process of establishing relationships among different concepts and viewpoints. For instance, the sentence “Asian people have black hair and dark eyes” is a generalization. Generalization is a conclusion drawn from observational experiences. As for inference, it resembles the idea of drawing a conclusion from facts or reasoning. An inference is a summation of ideas after thinking about given information. Inferences, like generalizations are obtained through sensory interactions, such as from the experiences of looking, listening, feeling, tasting and smelling. No matter the kind of concept (concrete, abstract or spiritual) they infer object relationships to us. For instance, the sentence: “The garden looks beautiful” may imply the following inferences: (1) The gardener might be a hard-working person, (2) The soil might be well fertilized, (3) The flowers and trees might be healthy and strong. Inferences also suggest and imply a specific condition and situation. Pragmatically, the development of concept is through ‘selected experiences’ among other ‘ordinary experiences’. In this process of concept development, teaching materials should be organised in a way that will arouse ‘meaningful experiences’ to the students. The preliminary step to experiencing an ‘idea’ is through sensory interaction. Then, we generalize and organize this ‘experience’ into something meaningful to us; meaningful in a sense that we can relate it to our life and with other pre-existing knowledge. In art experience, according to Broudy (1988), expressive properties in an aesthetic object are the most difficult properties to define and explain. In order to appreciate an aesthetic object thoroughly, Broudy emphasizes the importance of expressive properties of the arts and these should be interpreted clearly and precisely. Broudy (ibid) further argues that: Any assertion or attribution of a property to the object is open to the demand that the property in question be pointed out, i.e., located and identified for others to perceive. Given reasonably healthy sense organs, it is not unreasonable for A to assert that American Gothic has sensory properties x,y, and z, and, if necessary, point them out for B’s perception (p.63). So, how can expressive properties in an aesthetic object be experienced and be expressed, as ‘expression’ and ‘experience’, and especially spiritual experience, are abstract entities which are difficult to express in conceptual forms? The appreciation of hymns is an example. According to The Baptist Hymn Book Companion, Hugh Martin (1967) states: “Behind our hymns there is often adventure, romance, tragedy, heroic Christian witness, long faithfulness of service in Church or Sunday School, patient discipleship on a bed of pain, persecution endured for the sake of Christ (p.viii)” Different facets of spiritual experience can be felt in the hymns. For instance, the hymn Amazing Grace is a reflection of God’s grace and love, which the lyricist John Newton experienced. Voyaging on the slaveship, Greyhound, and fearing that he might die during the storm on the ship, John Newton prayed to God for help. The lyrics mention the fear and danger he had gone through during the tough moments of his life. Newton experienced the sweetness of God’s love. Later, he became a Christian and a minister. Newton’s experience has touched millions of people around the world. Below are the lyrics from the hymnal (1967) as follows: Amazing grace! How sweet the sound. That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found, Was blind, but now I see. ‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, And grace my fears relieved; How precious did that grace appear, The hour I first believed! Thro’ many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come; ‘Tis grace has bro’t me safe thus far, And grace will lead me home (p.380). The hymn, Amazing Grace demonstrates the essence of cross-modal experience in listening activities. The inter-relationship between music and words are demonstrated in this hymn. Both of them speak to our sensations and influence our perception and attitude towards the perceived object. Through music and words, Newton transformed his abstract spiritual experience into vivid artistic form. The lyrics of Amazing Grace have played an important role in conveying the abstract feeling of reconciliation to the listeners. The entire piece is a narration, the spiritual experience of an individual, and this individual could be any listener. Lyrics such as “Amazing grace! How sweet the sound. That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found” serve as a metaphor of the joy and peace of redemption. Words can metaphorically depict and suggest spiritual experience to the readers. For instance, in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (Holy Bible, New International version), King Solomon uses words to express his feeling concerning the transitory of human affairs as follows: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: A time to be born and a time to die, A time to plant and a time to uproot, A time to kill and a time to heal, A time to tear down and a time to build, A time to weep and a time to laugh, A time to mourn and a time to dance, A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, A time to embrace and a time to refrain, A time to search and a time to give up, A time to keep and a time to throw away, A time to tear and a time to mend, A time to be silent and a time to speak, A time to love and a time to hate, A time for war and a time for peace (p.366). King Solomon uses the different human activities as a metaphor to illustrate the different facets of human nature. These activities, such as weeping, tearing, dancing and embracing involve different sensory interactions. Solomon uses these human activities to suggest another dimension of experience --- spiritual experience. Spiritual experience can’t use purely observation and scientific analysis to understand it but can be felt or recognized through one’s sentiments. Sulzer (1995) states sentiment is concerned more with the spiritual quality of an object rather than the physical character of the object. Also, sentiment is a contagious experience which radiates from elevated humanity. Spectators or listeners can experience a spiritual awakening through artistic expression, such as the usage of words and songs. For instance, the therapeutic essence of music lies in it can touch the deepest emotional level, “the deepest secrets of human willing and feeling” (Dale, 1996, p.205). Even though Amazing Grace was composed several hundreds years ago, the lyrics still resonate with the twentieth-first century society, which gives comfort and hope to many people. This hymn has been used extensively for drug and alcoholic treatment, in church, in commercials and in the mass media. From Eliza and Helen Keller’s learning experience, from John Newton and Solomon’s spiritual experience, they have illustrated that expression (whether artistic and personal one) is inseparable with cross-modal experience. The dimension of feeling (whether from the beholder’s or spectator’s perspective) and idea (the symbolic meaning behind the arts) are expressed through the creators’ selected sensory experiences. Coda: Conclusion and recommendations Redefine the values of appreciation in aesthetic education and in our life 6.2.1.The facets of appreciation: the sensory side, the cognitive side and the emotional side The ‘value’ of aesthetic education is inseparable from the cultivation of ‘appreciation’. What is the role of appreciation in aesthetic education? And how can the cultivation of ‘appreciation’ in the arts enrich our experience in education and in our life? Also, when compared with other subjects in the educational curriculum, music has no embodiment, so, how can we appreciate music? This dissertation begins with a consideration of the sensations of human beings and ends in the exploration of the role of appreciation in aesthetic education. The cultivation of appreciation is a multi-modal experience. The core of the entire dissertation emphasises the different facets of art experience (observation, cognitive appraisal and imagination). The reason behind these investigations is to reconfirm the value of art in our educational system and in our daily life. Art is not limited to a classroom or institutional context, the skills which one attains in arts lessons can be applied to our daily perceptual experiences. To appreciate requires the skills of observation, cognition and imagination. Practically, the skills of appreciation are inseparable from sensory experiences in our daily lives. Cultivating the skills of appreciation is like training/exploring one’s perception skills, broadening one’s way of seeing, hearing and observing things around the world. The skill of appreciation enables one to appreciate ordinary things in an extraordinary way. Appreciation is inseparable from sensory interaction. Take the artist Edward Hopper as an example. Hopper’s (Goodrich, 1964) appreciation of the contemporary American city is illustrated as follows: He was one of the first representational painters to realize the pictorial possibilities of the modern city, the many kinds of visual material presented by New York --- the forms of buildings, their individual character, their surfaces and ornamentation, the effect of light on them; the waters surrounding Manhattan and the bridges spanning them; the omnipresence of glass, and the phenomena of life seen through windows; the drama of night in the city, with its interplay of lights, and the mysteriousness of night shadows. On the other hand, he has never been interested in the obvious spectacularity of New York --- skyscrapers, and the famous skyline. His viewpoint is more intimate, concerned with the immediate surroundings of everyday life (30-31). Hopper’s Night Window is one of his artworks that demonstrate the contrast of brightness and darkness in the canvas. Hopper captures the essence of contemporary city life in his drawing. Another similar example is Chagall’s I and the Village (Figure 6.8). According to The Museum of Modern Art, MoMa Highlights (1999, p.63), I and the Village is a summarization of Chagall’s perceptual experience of his native Hasidic, community outside Vitebsk. Chagall has put the characteristics of this village into his canvas. For example, the peasants and animals lived close to one another, which is symbolized by the eye contact of the cow and the peasant. Also, the flowering sprig which the peasant carries is a metaphor of life, the outcome of partnership between the human and the natural worlds. Further, the circular form in the canvas suggests the orbit of sun, moon and the earth. The content of Chagall’s I and the village is in contrast to Hopper’s painting, Night Window. The former depicts an episode of city life whereas the latter illustrates harmonious country life, where animals, humans and nature are closely bonded with one another. Appreciation is an experience, which consists not only of the intervention of sensory interaction but also requires thinking, understanding, recognition and true ‘value’ in something. From a psychological perspective, appreciation is also an attitude, which implies pleasant and positive feelings towards the depicted objects. Take Debussy’s (1962) experience in Rome as an example: My happiest impressions connected with the Prix de Rome were independent of it. I was on the Port des Arts awaiting the result of the competition and watching with delight the scurrying of the little Seine steamers. I was quite calm, having forgotten all emotion due to anything Roman, so seductive was the charm of the gay sunshine playing on the ripples, a charm which keeps those delightful idlers, who are the envy of Europe, hour after hour on the bridges. Suddenly somebody tapped me on the shoulder, and said breathlessly: “You’ve won the prize!” Believe me or not, I can assure you that all my pleasure vanished! I saw in a flash the boredom, the vexations inevitably incident to the slightest official recognition. Besides, I felt that I was no longer free. Debussy is a true lover of the natural world. His appreciation of nature excluded any commercial intention or implication and was derived purely from his sensations and feelings. In the Cannes Film Festival (1971), Yoko Ono shared her ‘appraisal’ of art in the topic entitled: “What is the relationship between the world and the artist”. The abstract of the discussion is as follows: Many people believe that in this age, art is dead. They despise the artists who show in galleries and are caught up in the traditional art world. Artists themselves are beginning to lose their confidence. They don’t know whether they are doing something that still has value in this day and age where the social problems are so vital and critical. I wondered myself about this. Why am I still an artist? And why am I not joining the violent revolutionaries? Then I realised that destruction is not my game. The job of an artist is not to destroy but to change the value of things. Appreciation is a skill that is explicitly manifest in the area of the arts. The arts (including music) not only give us satisfaction and enjoyment, but also polish our abilities of observation. For the arts give their spectators space to imagine and re- define the meaning of things in this world. The appreciative skills and taste of the creator are embodied and reflected in the artwork. Crawford (1991) states the essence of aesthetic education is to cultivate the awareness and creation of beauty in each individual student. Regarding the recognition of beauty, Hanslick (1974) states: The beautiful, first of all, affects our senses. This, however, is not peculiar to the beautiful alone, but is common to all phenomena whatsoever. Sensation, the beginning and condition of all aesthetic enjoyment, is the source of feeling in its widest sense, and this fact presupposes some relation, and often a highly complex one, between the two (p.20). The appreciation of music is an example. From where and how can we capture the essence and beauty of music? The song, I write the Songs, is about the inspiration of music. In this song, music speaks on behalf of itself. The lyrics said: “I am music”. “I write the songs that make the whole world sing.” The song also revealed to us how to ‘find’ and how to ‘feel’ music, as it stated that “It’s from me it’s for you, It’s from you, it’s from me.” To appreciate the beauty of music is an art experience: an aesthetic experience which requires the skills of observation and imagination. Further, the beauty of music embraces both the intrinsic and extrinsic value of the aesthetic object. The beauty of an artwork or a piece of music can touch our feelings and emotions. Take Charles Baudelaire’s poem Correspondences as an example. Baudelaire put his personal feelings in perceiving the natural world as follows: Correspondences Nature is a temple where living pillars Let escape sometimes confused words; Man traverses it through forests of symbols That observe him with familiar glances. Like long echoes that intermingle from afar In a dark and profound unity, Vast like the night and like the light, The perfumes, the colors and the sounds respond. There are perfumes fresh like the skin of infants Sweet like oboes, green like prairies, —And others corrupted, rich and triumphant That have the expanse of infinite things, Like ambergris, musk, balsam and incense, Which sing the ecstasies of the mind and senses. Here, beauty has been expressed through simile and metaphor. Baudelaire absorbed the images of the natural world in his mind and expressed these sensations in words. On the other hand, the readers use their sensations to recall what they have experienced about nature in the poetry. Another example is Psalm 23 (Holy Bible, New International Version, p.304) in which King David used the daily duties of a ‘shepherd’ as a metaphor to illustrate God’s tenderness and loving nature, as follows: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. In the arts, Zelanski & Fisher (1994) divide the facets of appreciation into two dimensions: form and content. Form refers to the physical qualities of the arts, such as their raw materials, their arrangement and design formats. Content refers to the subject matter of the artwork, such as their ideas, symbolic meaning and spiritual implications. An appropriate knowledge of the object, both its external and internal features, is necessary for appreciation. The two facets of appreciation (form and content, which Zelanski & Fisher state ) are displayed in the concept of cross-modal experience in music and visual arts and in the interdisciplinary approach to viewing the arts. The form, the physical properties of the artwork/music repertoire, is perceived from a cross-modal dimension by viewing the palette of the Impressionists, the Expressionists and Japanese animation. For the content, the subject matter of the artwork and the ideas behind the artwork are discussed in this dissertation through the studying of the aesthetic concept expressed through the cross-modal perception of art making of various composers and artists. The content of an artwork is inseparable from the creator’s subjective experience, which arises from the artist’s sensations and imagination. In order to experience the arts, in particular music and visual art together, a two-way channel (observation and expression) should be adopted so that the perceiver can use his or her own sensory modalities to explore the raw materials in the arts ---- to re- experience the metaphor of the creator. 6.2.2. The cultivation of appreciation in aesthetic education How can the awareness of and response to ‘beauty’ be cultivated through education, particularly in the realm of aesthetic education? Broudy (1988, p. 83) said that effective learning of the arts should contribute a valid and concrete understanding of “how to ‘read’ a work of art or any object aesthetically. Broudy (1988) states: Aesthetic perception differs from cognitive perception. The latter has as its goal the understanding of the conceptual significance of signs, and it differs from practical perception in which the symbol or sign is interpreted for its relevance to our purposes (P.83). Further, Broudy (ibid) distinguishes the difference between aesthetic perception and ordinary perception as follows: Paradoxically, aesthetic perception, which should require no formal instruction, requires it almost as much, if not more, than the non-iconic symbols systems. The reasons for this have already been touched upon. The most important one is that ordinary perception is highly selective, whereas aesthetic perception is not. For example, the lights on a traffic signal are perceived as directions: stop, slow down, go. We do not, as a rule, become absorbed in the precise shades of red, green and yellow of the lights. The lonesome pine is perceived differently by the lumberman, the landscape gardener, and the casual passer by. But aesthetically, perception has to be complete: not just a yellow signal circle but the precise shade of yellow, not just a pine tree or so many broad feet of lumber, but the highly complex qualities of colour, shape, form, and the expressiveness of feeling that trees as trees do not have (P.83). In other words, what makes aesthetic perception differ from cognitive perception is that the former adds the element of ‘sentiment’ from the beholder’s perspective to the perceived object. The facets of the sentiment may include personal feeling, emotion and experience. For instance, the beholder perceives that the pine is lonely. The essence of humanity contributes to the uniqueness and subjectivity of the aesthetic experience the beholder’s perception of the object. Also, effective learning of the arts requires disciplined observation that is both analytic and holistic”. What is the essence of ‘analytic and holistic’ observation? In order to understand the symbolic meaning behind an artwork, the study of its physical qualities is important. If possible, one should also understand the creator’s intention in art making. Through viewing the physical (colours/lines/pitch/loudness) and spiritual qualities of an artwork, a more analytical and holistic approach to appreciation will be achieved. Broudy (1988) categorizes the aesthetic properties into four categories: sensory properties, formal properties, technical properties and expressive properties. A brief description of the four categories is as follows: Sensory properties refer to the qualities of the stimulus, such as its colours, shapes, lines, pitches, volumes etc. Formal properties refer to the design format of the sensory properties. Technical properties refer to the method and the means by which an aesthetic object is being made. Broudy regards expressive properties as the most important and yet also the most difficult element to explain among the four aesthetic properties, as expressive properties embody abstract ideas and language, such as courage, majesty and suspense. Broudy (1988) says that the above categorization is based on the assumption that aesthetic properties can be perceived by subjects with normal sensory organs and perceptual abilities. However, the preliminary step for students is to experience the arts personally, to ‘taste’ the arts from a subjective, cross-modal dimension. This is similar in some ways to eating an apple. One can read hundreds of books or view hundreds of pictures about apples, or one can search the characteristics of an apple from a medical, agricultural or dietetics dimension, but, it’s better to taste the apple personally. Only through personal interaction with an apple, the essence, the image of an apple becomes a concrete experience for the beholder. Then from this subjective, personal experience, all other objective information will enrich our experience and understanding. However, as Zelanski & Fisher (1994) state, our concept of appreciation may be influenced by friends, art critics or other authorities in a particular field. For instance, Roberts (1996) states that the Japanese Ukiyo-e paintings were first introduced to Debussy by Rodin’s mistress, Camille Claudel. Debussy viewed and was impressed by Hokusai’s Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji and Hiroshige’s Fifty-three stations of the Tokaido. His love of the Ukiyo-e paintings was revealed in his insistence on using Hiroshige’s Great Wave off Kanagawa as the front page of La Mer and this painting was also found in his home in Paris. Debussy’s (Lockspeiser, 1980, p.68) admiration for Japanese art was revealed in his words: “I assure you that I’d very much like Pelléas to be played in Japan, for our fashionable eclectics might approve of it.” However, historically, the judgement of the critics is not always convincing for critical tastes have changed dramatically over time. A typical example is Munch’s painting. Although now recognized as one of the greatest masters of modern art, during his lifetime, Munch’s drawing/painting received harsh criticism and attacks from his contemporaries. The cultivation of independent and critical thinking is important for an individual in order to appreciate and experience the beauty of the arts (free from the superficial critical comment). One should aware that it is easy to fall into perceptual bias because of one’s own habitual perceptual patterns and experiences. Some of the common biases and perceptual habits which museum/gallery visitors may encounter in appreciation (observed by the author when she worked in a national gallery), expressed in the form of dialogues, are as follows: Dialogue 1 Visitor: Can you tell me where is Picasso’s painting? Author: You like Picasso’s painting? Visitor: No. I’m not his fan. However, I’m only interested in famous people’s drawings and probably the most expensive painting in a gallery. At least I can tell other people I’ve seen Picasso’s painting today. Dialogue 2 Visitor: I would like to join the gallery and become a member! Author: Fantastic! You’re enjoying the exhibition, aren’t you? Visitor: The motivation for joining the gallery is very simple. I can get a free ticket to the current exhibition and I can go to the member’s lounge to chat with others. Dialogue 3 Author: This is the catalogue of the current Giacometti’s exhibition. Visitor: Well! I’ve got less than 10 minutes before the closing of the gallery. I will have a quick glance. I don’t want to come again next week. Where is the Giacometti’s exhibition? After a few minutes later ... Visitor: This exhibition is horrible. The figure is too scary and I couldn’t understand why the artist created it. Anyway, I’ve seen this exhibition and no more “Giacometti” next time. Dialogue 4 Visitor A: The sculptures of Giacometti are marvellous, lovely and cute. I love them so much. Then, Visitor B interrupts: I think his works are sad and lonely. I can feel his loneliness and his passion in his artworks. Then they asked the author: What do you think? In Dialogue 1, the visitor is an example of pursuing brand names instead of having personal interaction and understanding of the arts. The value of an artwork, according to the subject’s value system, is based on the popularity of the artist rather than the artistic qualities of the artwork. This may due to the influence of media or art critics. In Dialogue 2, the commercialization of art has been implanted into the mind and attitude of the public. And the ultimate goal of attending an artistic event is to achieve non-aesthetic activities/experiences. In Dialogue 3, there is a failure to understand that appreciation takes time to nurture and comprehend. Unfortunately, the misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the arts are frequently due to superficial, subjective impressions or understanding of the arts. Dialogue 4 is in contrast to the other three dialogues. The subjects have shown interest and have devoted time to viewing the artworks. However, apart from voicing personal opinions, one should also be aware of the creator’s intention and concept in order to understand the artwork. Comparing MSN Encarta dictionary online’s definition of appreciation - “recognition, understanding and liking of something or somebody’s qualities” - with the above four dialogues, the factors in appreciation were incomplete or uncomprehended by the speakers whose views were based on individual subjective preferences and perceptions. The symbolic meaning of the artworks and the ‘metaphor’ of the creator were ignored and even distorted. Cultivating the skills of appreciation nurtures one’s ability to discover and become aware of the beauty of the world. To learn to respond to and express ‘beauty’ is one major purpose of aesthetic education. On the other hand, aesthetic education is the ‘embodiment’ of ‘expression’, the exploring of ‘human expression’ through art. In this expressing process, the beholder will encounter different facets of human nature. Through the cultivation of appreciation, one’s understanding of other cultural practices, aesthetic concepts and characteristics is broadened. In the field of architecture, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul provides an example. The Byzantine church, Hagia Sophia (Figure 6.2) is described in artbooks and related websites as a masterpiece of architecture in human history. According to Zelanski & Fisher (1994), Hagia Sophia, which was built around 1400 years ago (around 532-37), is 184 feet (56 meters) high. The completion of Hagia Sophia in the Medieval period is metaphorically described as having been ‘with the assistance of the angels from heaven’. The craftsmanship of the building, such as the installation of the columns, the precise measurement and balance of the interior design are often the focus of the appreciation of its architecture. This is in line with Zelanski & Fisher’s (1994) emphasis on the importance of elements such as form (physical qualities of the arts) and content (the subject matter and the meaning) behind an artwork. The symbolic significance of the Hagia Sophia relates primarily to its religious history. The author’s attention was drawn to this by a local tour guide. Her informative and in depth understanding about the topic, Hagia Sophia, caused her audience to re-think the meaning behind it as an artwork. The tour guide mentioned that Hagia Sophia is the only architecture in the world which comprises the elements of Christianity and Islam. The architecture is a metaphor of ‘brotherhood’ and the harmonious integration of diverse beliefs. Figure 6.2 The Byzantine church, Hagia Sophia, is the only architecture in the world which comprises the elements of both Christianity and Islam. The circular-disk located in the church was made of deerskins and inscribed by Islamic calligraphists. Even though appreciation is a subjective attitude or feeling towards the depicted objects, the act of appreciation should, however, be expressed in an appropriate manner. Take the news/article “Woman convicted of kissing painting” (yahoo.news, 2007) as an example. The episode was reported as follows: A woman who left a lipstick kiss on an all-white painting by the American artist Cy Twombly was convicted Friday of "voluntarily damaging a work of art" and ordered to do 100 hours of community service. The court in Avignon, southern France, also ordered Rindy Sam, a 30-year- old artist of Cambodian origin who lives in France, to pay damages. She must hand over $1,485 to the painting’s owner, $730 to the Avignon gallery that showed it and $150 to the painter. The owner, Yvon Lambert, had asked for more than $2.9 million in damages, which included the value of the painting and the $47, 000 restoration cost. During the trial, Sam argues that she had committed an “act of love” --- not vandalism. “I didn’t think,” she said last month. “When I kissed it, I thought the artist would have understood.” This incident reveals that there are different perspectives to appreciation and there will not always be agreement between the creator and the audience. Imagine, if a museum visitor expressed his/her appreciation by inscribing his/her name on Rodin’s sculpture. The consequences would be similar. In reality, sometimes, even though a sign “Don’t touch” is put in front of a displayed item in a gallery/museum, visitors will still touch the artwork intentionally or un-intentionally. If the ‘value’ of an artwork is perceived from a cultural heritage perspective, one may respect it as a public asset instead of individual property. In the light of the different facets of appreciation discussed above, it is obvious that appreciation implies valuation of the aesthetic object. However, the valuation differs according to individuals. The valuation of an aesthetic object commonly derives from its historical, cultural, aesthetic or even monetary significance. What is the meaning of appreciation in education and in our daily life? Cultivating the skills of appreciation nurtures one’s ability to discover and become aware of the beauty of the world. Appreciation is a human behaviour, which implies the experience of sensory, emotional, spiritual, aesthetical and cultural integration. To teach students to respond and to express ‘beauty’ is a main aim of aesthetic education. Aesthetic education is the ‘embodiment’ of ‘expression’, the exploring of ‘human expression’ through the arts. In this expressing process, the beholder is experiencing different facets of human behaviour and human nature. The skills of appreciation can be cultivated through polishing one’s observation and understanding of object- relationships. Such appreciation also broadens one’s understanding of other cultural practices, aesthetic concepts and characteristics. In this research, the cultivation of appreciation is found to start with sensory experiences, then enters the dimension of thinking at an intellectual, emotional and spiritual level. The sensory experiences of both the creator and spectator are examined and discussed according to three facets of art experience: observation, cognitive appraisal and imagination. The value of appreciation lies in the beholder’s active involvement in ‘seeing’, ‘discovering’ and ‘recognizing’ the beauty of the perceived object. The beholder is building a relationship between ‘he/she’ and the aesthetic object. Regarding the cultivation of ‘appreciation’ in aesthetic education, this research adopts a cross-modal approach in ‘seeing’ the arts. As Schelling (Walker, 1990) states: Art, according to the most ancient definition, is wordless poetry. Without doubt, the author of this statement meant to imply that, like those spiritual thoughts, it should express ideas whose source is the soul, not, however, by means of speech, but, like silent nature, by configuration, by form, by sensuous works which are independent of it ... art, therefore, manifestly occupies the position of an active link between the soul and nature, and can only be comprehended in the living centre between the two of them (p.135). Appreciation is paying attention to the things around us and identifying their characteristics and beauty. Broudy (1988) regards the ‘expressive properties’ in an aesthetic object as the most important and difficult properties to express and interpret. However, such knowledge can be cultivated through appropriate motivation, such as through personal connection with the artwork or/and through the guidance and inspiration of teachers/mentors or others. The expressive properties of the aesthetic object, especially in the arts, frequently exist in the form of metaphor and representation. As Cooper (1992) states, expression is linked to representation. He (1992, p.364) regards representation as “generally referring to pictorial representation.” For instance, he also (ibid, p.364) states: “Raphael’s Portrait of Pope Leo X represents Pope Leo X. So representation is a relation of a picture to the thing of which it is a picture (the object of the picture).” So what is the representation in music? How can the representation of the arts be understood and be appreciated by the spectators? How can one ‘see’ the metaphor in the art? This thesis argues that this occurs through cross-modal perceptions. As Broudy (1988, p.83-86) states: How to “read” a work of art or any object aesthetically, therefore, requires disciplined observation that is both analytic and holistic. The lack of such a method of analysis has restricted arts education to performance training and appreciation courses that combine historical knowledge and critical judgement about works of art and artists that tell students what they ought to have perceived, but not how to do so (p.83-86). To experience and understand the representation and metaphor in the arts through sensory interaction are crucial steps that contribute to analytical and holistic art experience and appreciation. The representation of arts (including music) is embodied in the physical qualities (such as colours, lines, pitch) of the arts and aesthetic concept and perception of the creator. For instance, there must have been a reason why Beethoven felt compelled to compose Symphony No.5, and to name it “Fate”. This motivation influenced his selection and arrangement of musical materials in this orchestral symphony. In summary, through observing and studying others’ creations, the spectator can personally experience the aesthetic properties in an artwork or in a composition. When we’re listening to a piece of music or viewing a painting, we are using our senses and thinking to grasp the meaning of the arts. This dissertation emphasises, therefore, the exploration of the cross-modal experience in art experience, particularly in the activities of ‘listening’ and ‘seeing’, in the realms of music and visual art. 6.2.3. The essence of interdisciplinary learning in aesthetic education In this last section, the phenomenon of interdisciplinary learning will provide recommendations arising from this research. Regarding the nature of the aesthetic, Fisher (1982) states: No knowledgeable philosopher ever questioned that studies of perception as it applies to art demand a core of psychological insights and investigations. And no knowledgeable psychologists of art ever suggested that theories of aesthetic perception do not require philosophical concepts (112). First, in order to attempt to address this question of perception and philosophical concepts, the author poses a question: What is the status of interdisciplinary studies in the 21st Century educational context? From an epistemological perspective, Roger (1968, p.4) states that we are entering into a stage of transformation and experiment in learning and teaching as follows: We are, in my view, faced with an entirely new situation in education where the goal of education, if we are to survive, is the facilitation of change and learning. The only man who is educated is the man who has learned how to learn; the man who has learned how to adapt and change; the man who has realized that no knowledge is secure, that only the process of seeking knowledge gives a basis for security. Changingness, a reliance on process rather than upon static knowledge, is the only thing that makes any sense as a goal for education in the modern world (p.4). Although Rogers made this statement in 1968, it is, however, still a current issue for educators and learners in the 21st century. Rogers brings out an important concept concerning the ‘skills of knowledge acquisition’ which is highly relevant to the changing epistemological nature of the 21st century. According to Rogers, real knowledge can enable one to think and act, critically, independently and reflectively. Further, according to Clark (Miller, 2002), he summarized the trend of learning and teaching module of the current worldwide educational system as follows: If we think of a worldview as a cultural mindset, it seems clear that a technological worldview has guided Western thought since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Based on the analytical perspective of Newton and Descartes, it reduces things to their smallest component parts in order to understand them. Its strategies are fragmenting, linear, and sequential. Its empirical logic discounts intuition and value-based perceptions and forces us into an “either/or” problem-solving and decision-making mode. This reductionist worldview is explicitly taught in our schools and forms the conceptual framework for most social decisions (p.17). Further, Clark (Miller, 2002) states the nature of changing epistemological as follows: This changing worldview obviously represents a major shift in the context within which education is conducted. Since “context” is “the frame of reference that provides meaning,” when the context changes, meaning changes. This contextual shift reflects, at a micro-level, a change in the basic assumptions that have shaped the purposes, goals, and methodologies of education since the early part of this century. This shift has resulted from research in the nature of intelligence, thinking, and learning, which has thrown a new light on the vast area of human potential (p.17). Practically, from Rogers and Clark’s perceptions, they perceive that the goal of education is to equip an individual, to foster one’s flexibility in thinking and adaptability to the changing world. Ultimately, the meaning of education in Rogers’ (Milhollan & Forisha, 1972) perspective corresponds with the current trend of educational development, that is, to nurture a ‘fully functioning people’. This holistic educational concept is manifested through an interdisciplinary approach to learning. According to Burton (2001, p.18), the terminology of interdisciplinary is “ a knowledge view and curriculum approach that consciously applies methodology and language from more than one discipline to examine a central theme, issue, problem, topic, or experience” In this research, the interdisciplinary approach in perceiving the multi-modal dimension of the arts is derived from the cross-modal experience of human perception. Habitually, humans have a tendency to link similar perceptual experiences together in perceiving object relationships. For instance, take Lowell Mason’s educational principle as an example. Mason (1990) believes that music can enhance worship and religious experience. Therefore, he insisted that the nature of the hymns, such as their melody, should be simple, natural and fit the human voice. In other words, music is used as a tool to unite humanity with the divine; it is expressed from a religious perspective instead of purely musical elements. Mason was a major figure in 19th century music education in the USA and Asia. The terminology of interdisciplinary studies is further expanded by Burton (2001) as follows: An adjective describing the interaction among two or more different disciplines. This interaction may range from simple communication of ideas to the mutual integration of organizing concepts, methodology, procedures, epistemology, terminology, data, and organization of research and education in a fairly large field (p.18). In other words, the concept of interdisciplinary studies lies in the re-organization and re-shaping of an existing learning and teaching module. Through integration with different subjects, the purpose is to develop a more holistic perspective of knowledge. Pragmatically, Langford (1982) reports that Texas Tech University is one of the pioneer public universities in America which adopted the concept of developing fine arts leadership through the scope of interdisciplinary training in the post-graduate programme. The interdisciplinary programme was approved by the State Coordinating Board in 1972. Thirty-two graduates in 1981 are “interdisciplinary-trained” among three major fields in this institution and over 80 percent of them expressed their enthusiasm and belief in this teaching framework. In this research, the investigation of the common elements in music and visual arts starts from cross-modal experience in human behaviour, a perceptual phenomenon which derives from psychology. Other psychological human behaviours, such as thinking, cognition and imagination are also discussed through the study of art making and art appreciation. Further, this dissertation concludes with recognition of the importance of the use of a philosophical perspective to re-define the meaning of the arts and aesthetic education. The philosophical implications of this research lie in the discussion of the nature of ‘knowledge’ and the pursuit of beauty, aesthetic and appreciation in the arts. The appreciation of the arts is inseparable from the existence of the mind and self, a research problem which has been discussed in the realm of philosophy since ancient times, certainly since the era of Plato and Aristotle. Further, this research has investigated the “implications of ‘existence’, ‘who am I’, in other words, the search for ‘self identity’ in the aesthetic concept and the art making of various musicians and artists. So, what is the educational significance of interdisciplinary studies in the realm of music education/aesthetic education in the 21st century? From a summarization of over twenty international educators in the international seminar “Interdisciplinary in General Education with Special Regards to Integrated (INTART)” (Karpati & Abonyi, 1987) in Hungary 1984, interdisciplinary study has been regarded as a “hot potato” issue in education for the past decades. More than twenty years later, Interdisciplinary Studies still create controversy in the academic world. For instance, Interdisciplinary Studies has been a term which provoked a great deal of controversy in Asian countries, especially in music education. Referring to the notes of the panel discussion of The 6th Asia-Pacific Symposium on Music Education Research (ISME Asia Pacific Regional Conference – 2007), “integrating music with other subjects is now a world-wide trend” (p.1), especially in Asian countries. According to this report, Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea and Taiwan have adopted different methodologies for integration. However, when compared with other East Asia countries, Japan adopts a more independent perspective in defining the role of music in the educational curriculum. Pragmatically, the factors contributing to the popularity of interdisciplinary are summarized by Ben Schasfoort (Karpati & Abonyi, 1987) as follows: (1) a more efficient way of allocating insufficient funding among the existing curriculum, (2) traditional teaching methods can no longer satisfy the changing demands of society, (3) a better personality development may be achieved and enriched by a cross- discipline learning model and (4) to motivate cooperation among different schools and teachers. The traditional teaching and learning pattern of aesthetic education is summarized by Broudy (1988) as follows: In schooling it has meant a division between the arts and the academic subjects that have prevented the arts from achieving a permanent place in the roster of studies required for general education. To be sure, scholars write learned books on the history of art, the meaning of art, and role of art in society. This knowledge, however, has been too arcane for the school curriculum, while the making of art --- drawing, painting, singing --- was a skill that many try, but only an accomplished few would pursue once their critical faculties were developed. Repeated reforms demanding that art become a required subject in the schools flounder as imitations of studio training or simplified versions of art appreciation are suggested as models of art programs (p.61). Broudy’s (1988) summarization reveals that the status of the arts is perpendicularly reflected in its ‘practical’ value in the world and society. Part of the reason why music and art education is regarded as a subsidiary subject within the entire curriculum is due to its ambiguous ‘pragmatic’ value and function. What is the ‘pragmatic value’ of the arts? How can our life be enriched through the study of the arts? How can art be united with other subjects and assist other subjects in the curriculum? If educators can prove to the public that arts and art experience can benefit the development of an individual and is irreplaceable by other subjects, then, the status of the arts in education/aesthetic education will be increased and its place in the curriculum assured. This dissertation has argued that the study of the arts indeed enriches life, benefits individuals intellectually, psychologically and emotionally and, therefore, contributes to education in a way no other discipline can. The essence and beauty of the arts manifest in the transitory moment of cross-modal perceptual experience, a moment which is captured through the coordination of sensory modalities and the skills of appreciation, like a butterfly hunter, capturing the beauty of the fluttering butterfly through the interaction of our senses. Reference Abbate, Francesco. (1972). Impressionism Its Forerunners And Influences. 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