1. Music originates from nature

The preface talks about some myths and legends about music and nature. Myths and legends reflect reality in a unique way. It can enlighten our minds, inspire us to recognize the close connection between music, and provide some clues. However, if we really want to explore how music originated from nature, we cannot rely on legends, but must carefully examine the history of music's occurrence and development.

The word "music" is a commonly used word, and it is also a word that people, regardless of gender, old or young, are very familiar with, and it does not require much explanation. However, if we want to truly understand the relationship between music and nature, we need to start from the word music and understand its meaning. Open Cihai and find the entry "Music". We will see this explanation under the entry:

"Music is a kind of art. It expresses people's emotions through artistic images formed by organized music. Thoughts and feelings reflect real life. The basic elements of music are melody and rhythm. Other important means of expression include harmony, polyphony, orchestration, etc. Music is a 'time art' that must be felt and produced by the audience through playing and singing. Artistic effect?"

No need to explain more. From this passage, we can not only understand the meaning of the word music, but also understand the composition of music and its basic elements, what content it wants to express, and How its artistic appeal or artistic effect is produced? From the following description, you will see that all of this is related to "nature".

(1) Musical sounds originate from nature. As we all know, all kinds of things have their basic structural units. Elements are composed of atoms. The basic structural unit of compounds is molecules. The basic structural unit of organisms is cells. Music Similarly, it also has its own "atoms" or "cells", which are musical sounds.

Music sounds refer to relatively harmonious and pleasant sounds, which originally existed in nature. When people walk into the forest, they will hear the chirping of orioles and the singing of hundreds of birds; when people walk to the water's edge, they will hear the gurgling water and splashing waves; when people walk into the mountain stream caves and knock on the white stalactite pillars, they will hear The sound of ding-dong echoed in the cave. Su Dongpo recorded this kind of music in nature in his "Shizhongshan Ji"①. There are many "stone caves" (xià, gaps) under the Shizhong Mountain. When the water raises shock waves, it will stir up music like bells and drums.

Between the two mountains and about to enter the port, there is a large stone flowing in the middle, which can seat hundreds of people. The sound of bells and drums "tang", Su Shi compared these natural sounds with the Wushe bell made during the reign of King Zhou Jing and the singing mirror of Wei Xianzi, which shows how beautiful the music is.

Coincidentally, there is a spring in Tunisia, called the "Music Spring". The place where the Music Spring flows out is very similar to the topography of Stone Bell Mountain. There is also a hollow rock there, and the water flowing through it will be divided into thousands of streams. The small streams collide and sing with each other, making ever-changing sounds.

The sounds of nature are far more than this. The singing of birds in spring, the croaking of frogs in summer, and the chirping of cicadas in autumn are all musical. Inspired by these sounds, our ancestors will naturally develop The singing voice given by nature sings loudly.