The Value of Uncertainty in Music

During summer vacation I will on most mornings sit down at the piano for a few minutes and sight read (rather poorly) through some Bach. The other morning it was the "Fugue # 1 in C Major" from the Well Tempered Clavier. You can see and hear a nice playing of this work by Stephen Malinowski below.

The work starts with a fairly simple, mostly stepwise, subject. It is quickly imitated following the normal rules of a fugue exposition. No great genius here, nothing a good student of counterpoint couldn't pull off (well, OK, a really good student).

At measure 8 things start to become a bit more intriguing. The harmonic direction becomes less clear and there is a slight increase in dissonance. This tension is quickly resolved but then at measure 12 it once again becomes more dissonant and the harmonic destination less certain. What is Bach up to? Where is he taking us? It is only when we reach the resolution in measure 14 (on an A minor chord) that we understand what Bach was doing.

Bach continues in this vein for the rest of the 27 measure piece (as well as in other works in the The Well Tempered Clavier). Sections of increased tension and harmonic precariousness are followed by resolutions. It is like watching a tightrope walker who (purposely) looks like he is about to falter and plunge, only to right himself at the last second to the relief of the seat-edged crowd. It takes a certain amount of trust to experience such feats, but in the end, it is what makes the show memorable.

And so it seems in life. Times of uncertainty can make us look at things in a new light. We question, rethink, examine, and revalue things we have taken for granted.

My wife was recently laid off from Macy's after being with the company for over 20 years. We didn't feel that we were in an immediate financial crisis, but the possibility of falling into one suddenly became real. What would we do if things became truly bad? Would we lose our home? What about funding college for our kids? What could I sell to get some quick cash?

I suddenly began to have a greater appreciation of our townhouse. I put a higher value on my family and friends. I realized that I would always have music and literature, and those things took on a new importance. I became more sympathetic to those who had less. The world looked a little different. My wife has a new job now, but in an odd way, I appreciate the little side trip into uncertainty that has refreshed my outlook on life.

It would be interesting to know what happens in our brains when we become uncertain (both in life and in music). Do we experience a slight bump in epinephrine or adrenaline resulting in increased perception and energy? Is our fight or flight center alerted and put in the ready mode? And what happens at resolution? Do we get a rush of serotonin or dopamine? Are our neurons rewarded for finding a solution to our uncertainty?

Would all this help explain why music is so important to us, especially in times of stress? Do we resolve that stress vicariously through music? When Bach leads us back to harmonic safety, does that feeling of having triumphed over a crisis cross over into other aspects of our lives? Does the feeling of resolution given to us by music allow us to get up the next morning and face life's challenges with renewed hope?