Music first or language? If you think about it, the spoken word has a sort of musicality to it. The way we pronounce, our voice changes, our word choices, and even the volume and speed at which we speak all have a musical effect.

In the scholarly paper Music and Early Language Acquisition (获得), researchers attempted to prove that in order to speak, people must first have an understanding of music. The authors argue that spoken language should be described as “a special type of music”.

By these standards, music is not a pointless part of life at all; it is necessary to all communication between humans. The researchers go on to point out that our brains process language musically, so there is much to be said of studying music alongside language, and at a very young age.

According to professor of theory and music composition Anthony Brandt, children as young as newborns have a basic understanding of music. In an interview with Medical News Today, Brandt said that the sounds of language, not the meaning of it, are what infants (婴儿) first learn. It is later on that they are able to associate those sounds with what they mean. Brandt, who co-authored the research paper mentioned above, said that newborns can break down parts of sound like tone and rhythm (节奏). Therefore, exposure to music trains babies’ brains for language comprehension and the art of speaking.

Brandt and his co-authors also found that infants cannot really tell what their native language is when compared to other languages, and the same is true with music. Once a baby has reached that one-year mark, he or she will start to distinguish the speech and music that are most closely associated with their own family and society. “This is why exposing infants to several languages and types of music is so important,” Brandt said, “The more sounds they hear, the wider their base of understanding of sounds, language and music as they grow older.”

Usually, when you listen to music you will expect it to be enjoyable. Music is everywhere these days. It can make an experience much more pleasurable, unless we are watching a horror movie. Then, we expect something different, or something that is also horrible!

Mark Korven writes music for movies and TV. He provided the music for a successful horror movie called The Witch .Its director, Robert Eggers, asked Mark not to use any electronic music for this movie. He wanted to create a more real sound. Following this experience, Mark began to think about how a more natural sound could be made for future horror movies. He got in touch with his good friend, Tony Duggan-Smith, a musician and maker of musical instruments. Tony camp up with something great.

Tony created a special instrument that he calls The Apprehension Engine. It looks a little like a mechanic or engineer's workshop table. The handmade instrument was inspired by something called the Soundtrack Box, invented by the Oslo-based new- music technologist Koka Nikoladze. Every section of the instrument is there to create a sound or noise that can scare you.

Mark has said that his purpose when writing music for the The Apprehension Engine is to help produce sounds that are disturbing. He showed his skills recently by giving a hugely successful performance one dark evening in Brooklyn, New York on Friday 13", of course! In the shadow of candles, members of people jumped out of their skin.(吓得魂不附体)

So, is The Apprehension Engine a musical instrument, a machine, or an engine? If you believe that the purpose of music is to excite the listener, you can probably call it a musical instrument-it’s just that the sounds the instrument makes do not necessarily make you feel happy or relaxed.

Wang Fang, a Suzhou native, has given her heart and soul to Kunqu Opera. Wang, who has twice won the Plum Performance Award-China’s top award for theater and opera performances — started to learn the traditional art form from a young age.

Born with a sweet voice, Wang loved to sing and dance and was selected by the Suzhou Kunqu Opera Troupe when she was in middle school. However, her parents refused the troupe’s invitation, insisting that she should concentrate on her studies. After members of the troupe visited the parents repeatedly, Wang’s parents finally agreed.

Learning the traditional art form was never easy, she started to learn how to pronounce words, sing them lyrically and make gestures gently. At first, she had to spend extra time practicing kung fu movements. Years later, Wang used the word “unimaginable” to describe how hard the days were when she first learned Kunqu. She was soaked (浸泡) in sweat when practicing movements in summer, while in winter she often had chilblains (冻疮) on her hands. “But I was determined at the time. No matter how difficult, I always got up early the next morning to practice,” Wang recalls.

Wang says she did not love Kunqu at first, but in her early 20s, when she watched the show Peony Pavilion performed by Zhang Jiqing, a master of the art form, it clicked. “I was shocked,” Wang says. “Her every movement was full of elegance. Each of her lines and songs was perfect. I was struck by the beauty of Kunqu for the first time, and it has stayed with me since.”

“I always believe that ‘Not everything is meant to be, but everything is worth a try.’ First you must be a dreamer, then a doer, and only then can you be a master. I believe in this order — that it should be this way and that I am this way.” Wang once said in an interview. Now, Wang has become a master of Kunqu. Her performances have impressed generations of audiences and helped to promote the art form among young people.