Really Cool Prose
by Elizabeth Knight
Elizabeth J. Knight is an undergrad honors student at Northwest University pursuing a degree in Contemporary Music Industry with a track in Music Production. As a student and lifelong musician, she is passionate about music creation, music education, and how music affects us psychologically. This research was inspired by music theory and sound design classes sparking a curiosity of the complexity of 20th Century music and the effect modern architecture and technology have on listeners. Elizabeth hopes this research will encourage educators, musicians, and casual listeners to embrace diverse music to reflect on and learn and grow from
Abstract
This study explores the psychological effects caused by the transition from Romantic Era music (1800–1910) to 20th Century Era music (1900–present day), focusing on the listener’s perspective of music and the emotional, compositional, and educational responses to each piece they listen to. Research suggests that while the Romantic Era is popular for its traditional harmonies, emotive depth, non-musical stimuli, and autobiography, the 20th Century Era challenges tradition and introduces experimental techniques, making it a disliked and misunderstood era. To test the research, the author conducted twenty qualitative surveys with four participants having some formal musical education and sixteen having no musical education. Each survey contained questions about the participant’s age, musical background, favorite musical era, emotional and artistic judgment, and psychological response to music. The data shows that the expectations, psychological responses, and other cognitive aspects of the listeners reveal how listeners with different backgrounds respond to the Romantic and 20th Century eras differently.
Introduction
While most music eras build off and maintain similar styles of music from the previous eras, like the Romantic Era does with the Classical Era, the 20th Century Era introduced new, unique, and exotic music. David Sonnenschein (2001) explains that the structure of a pattern in a sound can change the listener's emotions. Since the 20th Century Era introduced so many new styles and patterns of music, it has caused unfamiliar and negative emotional responses for those listening to the music. In addition, research by Mencke et al. (2023) shows that 20th Century Era
composers created their music to have more emotional responses than the Romantic Era. Mencke et al. (2023) say that 20th Century music “is often dissonant and lacks a tonal hierarchical structure, as, for example, in serial musical pieces.” Because musical eras directly impact composers, classically trained musicians, and music educators, research suggests that familiarity, age, and musical background when listening to different music eras will also play into the specific psychological reaction that impacts the feelings towards the music. Preliminary research reveals that the foundational factors of the psychological differences between the Romantic and 20th Century eras lie in their musical history, structural patterns, use of psychoacoustics, neuromusicology, and higher music education.
Conclusion
In examining the psychological effects caused by the transition from the Romantic Era to the 20th Century Era, the study highlights the impact of familiarity, compositional complexity, and the exposure of music eras in music education on the listener’s preference and psychological responses when listening to a musical piece. The data shows that although almost all participants liked compositions from the Romantic era and considered them beautiful, only those with musical experience heard and understood the true beauty of 20th Century Era music. The participants with a musical background could perceive beauty through a more objective stance, but they were quicker to criticize 20th Century music than those with no musical background. Yet, unlike those with no musical experience, they could listen beyond the actual melody of the song and appreciate its composition, story, and performance level. Despite the large amount of negative responses that the 20th Century Era received from participants, the music from this era was more likely to stimulate listeners, causing high stimulations and more emotions than music from the Romantic Era. Thus, the research reveals that a composition’s psychological impact extends beyond a person’s musical preference and includes their background and education
These elements structure listeners’ cognitive and emotional foundation while also reflecting the cultural and historical transformations that have shaped classical music as society knows it today.