Objective description
Art is a universal language that uses artists to tell stories. In art, emotions are conveyed through sculptures, drawings, architecture, and paintings. Art is also used to portray frustrations and sorrow. Such expressions help individuals to communicate either by using their own art or by relying on other people’s art. In the past, art was also used as a means of expressing and communicating useful ideas.
Therefore, it was easy to understand ideas that seemed significant for society. Similarly, music has the potential of transporting individuals beyond their ordinary levels. This means that people can increase their general understanding of different ideas and at the same time acquire critical thinking and the desired reasoning skills. Developing art and music through the ages involved a lot of important people and other elements that were viewed necessary.
In terms of music development, Chaloner (2010) asserts that stringed instruments like the pickers and scrapers were used during the 16th century. Currently, these instruments have been replaced with other advanced instruments like fiddles, violins, and guitars. The earlier string musical instruments were made of materials that were sourced locally. Such materials included animal intestines, hemp, and horsehair. Chaloner (2010) adds that other musical instruments like flutes were also very common during ancient times.
Just like the string instruments, locally available materials such as animal tendons were used to make the flute. These instruments were used during cultural events like sporting activities, conducting ceremonies and also in parades. Wind instruments like the horn were used to pass information to longer distances since they amplified the voice of a person.
Most of the wind instruments were made from horns obtained from cattle, goats or rams. During the middle ages, most of the music came from the monasteries. The foundation of this music was based on Gregorian plainsong. This was done since it was believed that basing music around Gregorian provided some form of inspiration to the people. The later music was characterized by a quasi system that was distributed to all voices in order to generate balanced polyphonies.
In terms of the development of art, the symbolism was an element that was regarded as a very essential part of society. The symbols were grouped into different categories by considering whether they were political or religious. Each piece of art created by a given artist is unique since it depends on the perception, experiences and the insights of the artist. Some aspects of the art might be exaggerated in order to achieve the intended purpose. Art considers not only the orientation of the artist but also takes into consideration the period of the artist.
Some people like Aristotle regard art as a form of intelligence that makes use of natural science and consequently interfering with its intended purpose onto human beings. The selection of the subject for creating a given art depends on the period in which the artist lives. For example, most of the art during the Middle Ages involved religious subjects. During this period, most issues concentrated around religion since this was the topic that received more focus at that time (Chaloner, 2010).
Subjective description
Learning about the development of art and music through the ages has impacted my life in quite a number of ways. To start with, I have been able to gain a clear understanding of how music or art can be used to portray different situations. For instance, there are times when an individual feels completely unable to express his or her thoughts openly. When some issues are communicated through music or art, it becomes easier for the audience to understand the information being passed.
This implies that expressing thoughts or ideas through music or art has a greater impact. Learning about the different materials used in making musical instruments has also impacted my life positively. Most of the modern musical instruments are made of materials that are easily obtained without causing any harm. On the contrary, traditional wind instruments like horn used the materials obtained from the rams or goat. This indicates show that there was some level of harm to such animals, especially in cases where cutting off the horn resulted in the death of the animal. This has helped me to ascertain the usefulness of relying on modern ways of making such instruments.
How and why the definition of “aesthetics” has changed
Initially, aesthetics was viewed as the beauty expressed through art, music or poem. Aesthetics is also defined based on the ability of individuals to interpret both their conscious and unconscious parts and from how they differentiate reality from illusion. This definition has changed because different mediums are being used to define this term.
The new definition also includes all the elements of aesthetics such as vision, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. In addition, it should be noted that even if something looks aesthetically pleasing, it is not an indication that it is pleasurable. Similarly, not all things that appear aesthetically displeasing turn out to be unsuitable. This is because attraction or rejection towards given products also depends on other factors like fashion and the risk involved.
Reference
Chaloner, R. (2010).History of the Science and Art of Music: Its Origin, Development, and Progress. New York: Kessinger Publishing.