Post by a_muppet on Oct 28, 2015 13:52:42 GMT -5
The phrase was coined by William Congreve, in The Mourning Bride, 1697:
Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.
I've read, that things inanimate have mov'd,
And, as with living Souls, have been inform'd,
By Magick Numbers and persuasive Sound.
What then am I? Am I more senseless grown
Than Trees, or Flint? O force of constant Woe!
'Tis not in Harmony to calm my Griefs.
Anselmo sleeps, and is at Peace; last Night
The silent Tomb receiv'd the good Old King;
He and his Sorrows now are safely lodg'd
Within its cold, but hospitable Bosom.
Why am not I at Peace?
I think we all do believe that too. We all believe that music is a calming influence in our lives.
Yet, our generation and all those who follow have got music, literally coming out of our ears. FAR more than our parents did. It is absolutely everywhere. There is even a genre called elevator music, that we can listen to as we go around shops.
But, and here is where the analogy falls flat on it's face. Wars are common place, thuggery is common on our streets, lawbreakers are carrying guns, and even lawkeepers are being caught out being violent to innocent people.
Does music calm the beast?
There doesn't seem much supporting evidence.
Does there?
Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.
I've read, that things inanimate have mov'd,
And, as with living Souls, have been inform'd,
By Magick Numbers and persuasive Sound.
What then am I? Am I more senseless grown
Than Trees, or Flint? O force of constant Woe!
'Tis not in Harmony to calm my Griefs.
Anselmo sleeps, and is at Peace; last Night
The silent Tomb receiv'd the good Old King;
He and his Sorrows now are safely lodg'd
Within its cold, but hospitable Bosom.
Why am not I at Peace?
I think we all do believe that too. We all believe that music is a calming influence in our lives.
Yet, our generation and all those who follow have got music, literally coming out of our ears. FAR more than our parents did. It is absolutely everywhere. There is even a genre called elevator music, that we can listen to as we go around shops.
But, and here is where the analogy falls flat on it's face. Wars are common place, thuggery is common on our streets, lawbreakers are carrying guns, and even lawkeepers are being caught out being violent to innocent people.
Does music calm the beast?
There doesn't seem much supporting evidence.
Does there?
::Sgc7Hl4::
creaking floors, you make me laugh,