From Russia to the Ocean
Music has come along way since it first began as an art form. This development coincides with the development of human beings. And as we have evolved, so has music. Music also evokes many feelings and thoughts upon hearing it. With this development of music and humans, feelings and thoughts have also developed. Through the changing pitch, rhythm, dynamics and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture, and the change of manipulation of these things to produce sound, many different types of creations have formed over time. This development in music has occurred with the development of technology, the invention of new instruments and the improvement or modified versions of classic instruments, as well as the musical genius’ mind behind their creations. Music is something that can make or break the mood of settings. It fills the silence, and without music, life would be boring. Two vastly different artists from different times that have evoked many different reactions from their art are Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Frank Ocean.
An artist’s music is largely impacted by their life experiences, and sometimes the music can be an outlet to express these emotions. This pipeline that funnels the emotions into music can make music even more powerful, or completely destroy an artists appearance. To properly express such emotions in music and for this art to be received by the public in a positive way is an art in itself, which Tchaikovsky and Ocean have been able to do to perfection. Tchaikovsky is an example of the classical form of music. He brings with his music a sound much more natural and flowing. Ocean is an artist increasing in popularity day by day. His unique sound fuses some classical sounds with the synthetic to create something different, which is hard to come by nowadays, and is the reason for much of his success.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer that lived from 1840 to 1893, whose works included symphonies, operas, concertos, ballets and more. Tchaikovsky’s works were and are very popular to this day. With this popularity, Tchaikovsky became the first Russian composer to make a lasting impression internationally. Despite all the success, Tchaikovsky’s life was also plagued with personal crises and depression; these significant times include having to leave his mother for boarding school, his mother’s early death, the end of an enduring relationship, his relationship with a widow and also the nature of his sexuality. All of which provided emotions for Tchaikovsky to inject into his art. Symphony no. 4 is Tchaikovsky’s symphony that he wrote between 1877 and 1878, which he wanted to dedicate to his best friend and widow, Nadezhda von Meck, who paid Tchaikovsky throughout this time. (The Symphonies of Brahms and Tschaikowsky in Score) In 1878, Symphony no. 4 was first performed in Moscow and was well received, but has still a lot of critique to it as a whole, behind its production.
Frank Ocean is an American singer-songwriter that has only just become popular over the last two years. His album Channel Orange, in my opinion, is an album that the world has been waiting for, we just didn’t know what we wanted. It is an album unique in every sense, from the lyrics and meaning to the instrumentation. It eludes the usual and mainstream R&B music components, yet at times echoes elements of R&B songwriters such as Prince, Stevie Wonder, and Marvin Gaye. (Time)
Symphony no. 4 and Channel Orange are completely different sounds as whole. Besides the emotion and feeling that has been put into them, there is not much similar to the two. In a letter to von Meck, Tchaikovsky wrote of the symphony,

“You asked me whether there is a definite programme to this symphony? Usually in respect of a symphonic work I would answer: none whatsoever. And indeed, this is the answer to your question. How can one put into words the intangible feelings which one experiences, when writing an