The most interesting and educational facts about music. The most interesting facts about music

There are a lot of interesting things connected with music. These are not only amazingly beautiful works, a variety of musical instruments, playing techniques, but also interesting facts about music. You will learn about some of them in this article.

Fact No. 1 “Cat harpsichord.”

In the Middle Ages, it turns out that not only people recognized by the pope as heretics, but even cats were subjected to the Inquisition! There is information according to which King Philip II of Spain had an unusual musical instrument called the “Cat Harpsichord.”

Its structure was simple - a long box with partitions creating fourteen compartments. In each compartment there was a cat, previously selected by a “specialist”. Each cat passed an “audition” and if its voice satisfied the “phoniator”, then it was placed in a certain compartment, according to the pitch of its voice. “Rejected” cats were immediately burned.

The selected cat's head protruded through the hole, and its tails were firmly secured under the keyboard. Every time a key was pressed, a sharp needle sharply dug into the cat's tail, and the animal naturally screamed. The entertainment of the courtiers consisted in “playing” such melodies or playing chords. What caused such cruelty? The fact is that the church declared the furry beauties messengers of Satan and doomed them to destruction.

The cruel musical instrument quickly spread throughout Europe. Even Peter I ordered a “cat harpsichord” for the Kunstkamera in Hamburg.

Fact #2 “Is water a source of inspiration?”

Interesting Facts about music are also associated with the classics. Beethoven, for example, began composing music only after he lowered his head into a large basin, which was filled with... ice water. This strange habit became so firmly attached to the composer that, no matter how much he wanted, he could not leave it for the rest of his life.

Fact No. 3 “Music both heals and cripples”

Interesting facts about music are also related to the not fully understood phenomenon of health. Everyone knows and has been scientifically proven that classical music develops the intellect and calms. Even some diseases were cured after listening to music.

In contrast to the healing effect of classical music is the destructive property of country music. Statisticians have calculated that in America, the largest percentage of personal disasters, suicides and divorces occur among those who are fans of country music.

Fact No. 4 “A note is a linguistic unit”

For the last three hundred years, innovative philologists have been tormented by the idea of ​​​​creating an artificial language. About two hundred projects are known, but almost all of them are currently forgotten due to their incorrectness, complexity, etc. Interesting facts about music, however, included one project - musical language"Salt-re-solt."

This language system was developed by Jean Francois Sudre, a Frenchman by birth. The rules of musical language were promulgated in 1817; in total, it took Jean's followers forty years to design the grammar, vocabulary and theory.

The roots of the words, of course, were the seven notes known to all of us. New words were formed from them, for example:

• si=yes;
• before=no;
• re=i(union);
• mi=or;
• fa=he;
• re+do=my;

Of course, such a speech could be performed by a musician, but the language itself turned out to be more difficult than the most complex languages ​​in the world. Nevertheless, it is known that in 1868, the first (and, accordingly, the last) works in which musical language was used, were even published in Paris.

Fact #5 “Do spiders listen to music?”

If you play a violin in a room where spiders live, the insects immediately crawl out of their shelters. But don't think they're connoisseurs wonderful music. The fact is that the sound causes the threads of the web to vibrate, and for spiders this is a signal about prey, for which they immediately crawl out.

Fact No. 6 “Identity card”

One day it happened that Caruso came to the bank without an identification document. Since the matter was urgent, the famous bank client had to sing an aria from Tosca to the cashier. After listening, the cashier agreed that his performance verifies the identity of the recipient and issued the money. Afterwards, Caruso, telling this story, admitted that he had never tried so hard to sing.

Musical instruments are an integral part of the wonderful and diverse world of culture. These melodic products keep many secrets and interesting stories. They made life more interesting and filled free time people with cheerful, sad or romantic melodies. People sang and danced to the rhythm of the music, and through songs, experiences were passed on from generation to generation. Let's look at some interesting facts about musical instruments.

Story

Not only the instruments themselves are of interest, but also their history. Scientists agree that the most ancient musical instruments of humanity that we use today are the flute and the harp.

Chinese carillon

The tuning fork, with the help of which symphony orchestras are tuned, now sounds much higher than before, this is due to the fact that this instrument was not the same before and, accordingly, in different countries sounded different. Thus, in the 17th and 18th centuries, the highest sound of a tuning fork was in Italy, and the lowest in France. Over time, Europe began to strive to ensure that symphony orchestras sounded the same in all countries. However, the specifics of the new large concert halls and the desire to make the performance bright and memorable led to the fact that orchestras began to tune to a louder sound. Accordingly, the sound of the tuning fork began to be raised.

Archaeologists found ancient notes during excavations Sumerian civilization. They were images left by the Sumerians on special clay surfaces.

Cuneiform notes

The expression “raspberry ringing”, which refers to the beautiful sound of church bells, comes from the Belgian city of Malina, because in the 17th century this city was a center for the production of bells.

The ancestors of the piano and grand pianos were the harpsichord and clavichord.

In the 19th century in Great Britain, during concerts, special covers were put on the legs of the piano to make it look more decent.

Archaeologists found the harp in an ancient tomb in the city of Ur. It was made of gold, thanks to which it was well preserved. Images of this instrument are found on ancient Egyptian paintings.

In the 16th century, the guitar was played with a bow.

Unusual guitar

Manufacturers of musical instruments claim that violin strings made from light horse hair, as opposed to dark ones, give a softer sound.

The creator of the Fender company, specializing in the production of guitars, L. Fender, who designed the world-famous electric guitars, never played this instrument and did not know how to tune it.

Since Stradivarius violins are the most famous and by far the most expensive, it is believed that their sound is the best, but this is not so. In 2010, an experimental study was conducted in which 21 musicians took part. The violinists had to play 3 musical instruments modern production, 2 Stradivarius violins and 1st Guarneri violin. At all stages of the study, the musicians did not know which instrument they were testing. After which the researchers came to the conclusion that modern violins sound much better than their ancient counterparts.

In Finland there is a competition for playing air (imaginary) guitar. Participation in this competition is open to people who do not know this musical instrument, but are good at playing the guitar. The winner of the competition is the one who plays the non-existent guitar more emotionally and artistically. To the thunderous applause of the audience, the participants play the air strings with all their hearts and fall to their knees.

Brass

To non-standard musical instruments refers to a pyrophone that produces sounds through special pipes using the movement of air masses heated by fire.

Chinese legends say that the man who invented the music was named Ling Leung. He invented a bamboo flute and began to use it to make sounds similar to birdsong.

Vegetable pipe

Despite the fact that the saxophone was invented back in 1840, it became popular in the 40s of the last century, when jazz appeared.

In America, the Luray Caves were equipped with unique organs made from stalactites, connecting 37 stalactites to the organ pipes, which have different sounds.

The bazooka is called not only a formidable weapon, but also an instrument resembling a trombone.

Music is something extraordinary, magical, bewitching. We sometimes think it is very simple, but in fact music is one of the most complex and delightful things in the universe. It is built on mathematical principles, it obeys the laws of physics, it affects the human brain, healing it or destroying it. Music is a separate world into which each of us is immersed every day. This world is amazing and interesting. There's a lot to do with him incredible facts, which will be discussed further.

Facts from the world of classical music

1. The world composer Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninov had a unique feature - the greatest coverage of the keys. So, he could cover 12 white keys at once, and with his left hand he could absolutely freely play the “do-e/flat-g-do-g” chord. His hands were so beautiful that the paparazzi wrote the following caption under Rachmaninov’s photo in their article: “Hands that are worth a million!”
2. Lullabies have a beneficial effect on a child: they calm, create a comfortable emotional background, and bring balance.
3. Compositions by Vivaldi, Beethoven (2nd movement of the 6th symphony), Brahms (“Lullaby”), Schubert (“Ave Maria”), Debussy (“Light of the Moon”) help get rid of fear and excessive anxiety and evoke a feeling of security.
4. Correctly selected classical works can reduce irritability, nervous agitation and aggressiveness. Therefore, classics are often used in music therapy.
5. Mozart's music helps reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures in patients.
6. Mozart's works improve the functionality of the human brain. Researchers have called this ability of the composer's works the "Mozart Effect."
7. Mozart's unique musical abilities began to emerge when he was only 3 years old. Then the legendary composer, playing the harpsichord, composed various harmonies and played melodies from plays he had heard earlier.
8. Beethoven created music while deaf. However, his hearing gradually disappeared over several years. Lack of hearing did not cause Beethoven to give up his favorite activity.
9. Bach after unsuccessful operation After cataract removal, he became completely blind, but this did not stop him from continuing to create extraordinary musical compositions.
10. Antonio Vivaldi might not have become a great composer. IN adolescence(at the age of 15) he was ordained a priest. But he was so passionate about music that he was never able to become a full-fledged clergyman. They say that during the service, Vivaldi often ran into the sacristy in order to write down the melodies that came to his mind.
11. Beethoven, before starting to compose compositions, immersed his head in a basin with not just cold, but ice water.
12. Paul Wittgenstein, Austrian pianist, lost his life in the First World War right hand. However, this did not stop him from resuming his concert career. He learned to play music with his left hand so deftly that he achieved exceptional skill. At the same time, he played compositions that were difficult even for musicians with two hands.
13. Plants love classical music– flowers grow faster if they are regularly given classics. But heavy music (rock, metal, rap) causes plants to die.
14. If cows are regularly played soothing classical music, their milk yield will increase significantly.
15. Musicians' hearing is much better developed than people without musical education.

1. Worldwide famous song“Happy Birthday to You” is still under copyright protection. It can be performed with family or friends, but commercial performance (for example, in a movie, a musical greeting card) is prohibited, unless, of course, a royalty has been paid to the company that owns the rights to it.
2. Music improves a person's endurance if listened to while exercising.
3. Not a single participant of the legendary music group The Beatles didn't know how to read music.
4. The heartbeat adjusts to the rhythm of the music being listened to.
5. The famous inventor of the Telecaster and the Stratocaster guitars, Leo Fender, did not know how to play these instruments at all.
6. In 2001, the world's longest organ concert began in Halberstadt (Germany), which is scheduled to end in 2640.
7. The world-famous idol of millions Elvis Presley for his musical career didn't write a single song.
8. Researchers have proven that too loud music provokes the desire to drink alcohol.
9. The musicians from the band Metallica are so tough that they were not afraid to play a concert in Antarctica. Thus, this group became the only one that played on all 7 continents of our planet.
10. The fastest rapper can read 23 syllables per second. However, the guy never got into the Book of Records, because for this he needs to rap in English.
11. In Islamic countries, whistling is considered “the music of the devil.”
12. The lowest note of 0.393 Hz was sung by Roger Menis in 2010 and was included in the Guinness Book of Records. But the paradox is that a person is not able to hear sounds below 18 Hz.
13. Surprisingly, in the Middle Ages, rats were lured out of urban settlements by playing the pipe. There was even such a profession - piper-pied catcher.
14. Music can improve memory, attention, develop Creative skills person.
15. There are music roads in Japan. These are sections of the route with grooves of different depths located at a distance from each other. Driving at a certain speed along this section, the vibration from the wheels falling into the grooves moves into the cabin, where it turns into a melody.

There are still many amazing things in the world of music. Have fun exploring it!

Is music a safe drug?

A group of neuroscientists led by Robert Zattore from Canada's McGill University traced the processes that occur in the human body while listening to their favorite music. It turned out that the effect observed in this case is akin to drug euphoria, reports The Scientist.

It's all about, as scientists say, the pleasure hormone - dopamine. Thus, with the help of positron emission and functional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, it was possible to find out that when a person listens to a favorite melody, the caudate, which is responsible for the processes of memorization and learning, and the accumbens, in which the feeling of pleasure is formed, the centers of the brain become excited. This is where dopamine is released.
In addition to observing changes in brain activity, scientists also recorded changes in the volunteers' heart rate, breathing, body temperature and skin conductivity.
At the same time, as researchers admit, science cannot yet give a reliable answer to the question of why music can awaken such strong emotional experiences in people.
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Until the 1990s, Iceland had a law that required a foreigner wishing to take Icelandic citizenship to Icelandic name or change yours according to the traditions of the Icelandic language. But exceptions were made for celebrities. When did he emigrate to Iceland? Soviet conductor and pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy, the government of the country added a new name to the official list of permitted names - “Vladimir Ashkenazy”.

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Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein lost his right hand in World War I, but resumed his concert career and achieved exceptional skill playing with his left hand. Masterly mastery of pianistic technique allowed Wittgenstein to successfully perform works comparable in complexity even to a pianist with two hands

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Every time, before sitting down at the table and starting to compose music, Beethoven lowered his head into a basin of ice water. This technique became such a habit for him that the composer could not give it up for the rest of his life.

Beethoven couldn't multiply.

Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky-Korsakov explained to his students in one of his lessons that the last part of a symphony or sonata must necessarily be written at a fast tempo.
- Why did Tchaikovsky write the fourth movement of the Sixth Symphony in at a slow pace? - asked M.F. Gnessin.
The professor paused, then solemnly said:
- Exceptions are possible if they are brilliant.

One day a young man came to the director of the Milan Conservatory and asked to be examined. At the entrance exam, he played the piano and showed his compositions. A few days later he received the answer: “Give up the thought of the conservatory and find a teacher among the city musicians.” This was in 1832, and several decades later the Milan Conservatory sought the honor of bearing the name of the musician it had once rejected. This name is Giuseppe Verdi.

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The word "MUSIC" was given to us by the ancient Greeks. Muses in ancient greek mythology- daughters of Zeus, goddesses who patronize the sciences and arts. There are nine of them. True, among them there was not a single one who was specifically involved in the art of sounds. Some believe that it was the muse of dance, Terpsichore, who, as if on duty, had to patronize the music that accompanies the dances. Others believe that this was the work of Euterpe, the muse of lyric poetry (the ancient Greeks sang poems to the sounds of an instrument). Even today, the word MUSIC is a reminder of distant gods and legends.

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The word "KEY" comes from the Latin "claves", which means key. And the reason for everything is the ancient instrument organ. On an organ, each key acts like a key: a pressed key opens air into one of the organ pipes - and it produces a sound of a certain pitch. On very old simple organs of the 10th century, the keys, so that the player does not get confused, were signed with letters Latin alphabet A, B, C etc. Recording from keyboards moved to paper. In the distant past, music was written in letters. And the key letter was placed at the beginning of the entry. Over time, three key letters were preserved: C (the sound of C), F (the sound of F) and G (the sound of G). These are now the keys in modern notes.
This is the path from keys to keys.

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The most expensive violins in the world are instruments made by Stradivarius from the late 17th and early 18th centuries, supposedly sounding better than all other violins thanks to the master’s still unsolved secret. However, in 2010, this prejudice was refuted in an experiment in which 21 professional violinists tested 3 modern violins and 3 old instruments - 2 by Stradivari and another by Guarneri - in double-blind testing. Most of the musicians participating in the experiment were unable to distinguish old violins from new ones. Moreover, best quality As it turned out as a result of testing, instruments of living masters have the same sounds, while Stradivarius violins, more than a hundred times more expensive, took the last two places.

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In 1984, Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen was caught in car accident and lost left hand. This did not affect his desire to be a musician, and he began to practice on a hybrid setup specially designed for him. It contained samples of blows that he had previously made with his left hand, and they were played back various movements left leg. Since then, Allen has contributed to many of Def Leppard's successful albums, as well as several side projects.