“People usually complain that music is so ambiguous; that they are doubtful as to what they should think when they hear it, whereas everyone understands words. For me, it is just the reverse. It is the words that seem so ambiguous, so indefinite, so open to misunderstanding in comparison with real music, which fills one’s soul with a thousand better things than words. To me, the music I love does not express thoughts too indefinite to be put into words, but too definite… The word remains ambiguous; but in music, we understand each other perfectly.”
This unfamiliar perspective is what inspired Felix Mendelssohn to create short lyrical piano pieces that would tell colorful stories without the help of any text. During the mid-19th century, most middle class families owned a piano and at least one sufficient piano player. The home music market demanded more simple yet elegant piano pieces and Mendelssohn met to the challenge. He composed eight volumes of Songs Without Words at different times in his life, two of which were published posthumously.
Here we have Song Without Words Op. 30 No. 1 transcribed for violin and piano. What conversation do you hear between the melody and harmony? Let your heart sing all that it feels. Allow the music to bring you to a moment of peace, a time of reflection for all the beautiful things that are happening in your life today.