Music that touches the heart

I've always found it very fascinating that music has such a potent effect on human emotions.

Different genres of music each has its own distinct feel and touch. In general, classical music tends to give a soothing and calming effect; jazz makes me feel lazy and cozy; latin dance tracks makes one feel like shaking (or tapping fingers/hands/feet) to the rhythm; popular songs are nice for easy listening; etc...

Of course, different people react differently to the music they listen to.

And in each genre (as mentioned above), there is also a wide spectrum of different "classes" of music that evokes totally contrasting emotions. Just take for example, listening to the light court music of Mozart and sipping some nice afternoon tea, as compared to listening to one of Rachmaninoff's piano concertos in a stormy and windy night. :)

Another interesting observation (or experiment) is that watching a movie without its corresponding soundtrack makes the whole experience totally different - something which i'm sure many people will agree whole-heartedly.

I think I mentioned this before - one of the movie which always brings a tear to my eyes is <新不了情>. Watching the scene where 袁咏仪's character lay dying on the hospital bed, and 刘青云 being totally helpless as he watched her slip away - it was absolutely heart-wreching. But I have to say, the wonderful soundtrack of the show (sang by 万芳) made it happen. Without the beautiful melody and lyrics that accompanied it, the show would have been "emotionally dead".

Hppmhh.. imagine watching "BraveHeart" without the hauntingly beautiful soundtrack...think one of the tunes is called "For the love of a princess" or something... mesmerising..

And so it is the same for Christmas. Without those wonderful songs to bring the festive season alive, the whole experience would have been so "flat" and tiresome.

Can't imagine what life is like without MUSIC...