Music: An Art and a Language
What is music, exactly? This question animates Spalding's elegant treatise on musical understanding, one that argues music occupies a unique space: it is an art that functions as a language, capable of expressing emotions that words cannot name. Written in the early twentieth century for listeners seeking deeper engagement with composition, the book insists that passive appreciation misses music's true power. Spalding explores the foundational elements that unlock musical meaning: rhythm, sound, and the underlying grammar that gives structure to emotional expression. He argues that familiarity with these elements, combined with active intellectual engagement, transforms listening from background noise into profound communion with the composer's vision. The text serves as both philosophy and practical guide for anyone who has ever been moved by music and wondered why.
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“Music, to be sure, is a universal language, but each nation has used this language in its own way.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“Make art the hand-maiden of humanity. Seek not for beauty but for truth. Go to the people.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“This brings us face to face with the perplexing question as to the essence of music. To some it is a record of intellectual activity tinged with emotion; to others, an emotional outpouring controlled by intellect. These two types of music will always exist, being the natural expression of the corresponding classes in human nature.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“In reality, a musical idea is as wonderful a thing as we can conceive”
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“It is true that all music is the expression in tones of the imagination of the composer; true, also, that music must fulfil certain conditions of its own being. But imaginations differ.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“In all worthy music, in fact, the chief point of interest is the music itself which speaks to us in its own language of sound and rhythm. A knowledge of form is but a means to an end: for the composer, that he may express himself clearly and convincingly, and for the listener, that he may readily receive the message set forth.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“The first question, in the presence of an elaborate work of music, should never be, "Do I like it or not?" but "Do I understand it?””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“The mystery of music must be approached with reverence and music must be loved for itself with perfect sincerity.””
— Walter Raymond Spalding
“The fact indeed that music”
— Walter Raymond Spalding
