And the music will sound

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The International Day of Music was celebrated with the ballet "Creation of the World" by Andrei Petrov at the Bolshoi Theatre of Belarus. The holiday of the unique language of culture appeared in 1975 by the decision of UNESCO. Yehudi Menuhin, violinist and conductor, stood at its origins, he was born 105 years ago in New York, where his father had moved to from the Belarusian Gomel.

I won't reinvent a wheel if I say: we would be infinitely spiritually poor if we did not hear music that awakens deep emotions in us and expresses them much more powerfully than words can do. Each of us has experienced its emotional power. But why it is so powerful, why it has such a powerful effect on the psyche, and where it comes from into the minds of those who compose it – this remains a mystery to me. For example, the father of the evolutionary theory, Charles Darwin, was puzzled by the human ability to perceive music and called this ability "the most mysterious of those that humanity is gifted with." We are able to get into a state of euphoria, listening to a longfamiliar melody and reliving forgotten feelings. I don’t remember who said that our current existence on Earth – from impregnation, gestation, birth to funeral, with everything that can happen in between – is accompanied by a certain musical line. And it is not surprising that the sounds of our favorite tunes are able to give us such an intoxicating mix of emotions and memories.

Thanks to music, we also feel more keenly the togetherness with other people. So it was the case, when the music of Andrei Petrov sounded at the Bolshoi. On the International Day of Music in the Theatre, we enjoyed the philosophical

parable "Creation of the World" directed by Valentin Elizariev.

Let me remind the readers: this performance has been staged in the theatre for over 40 years. The composer Andrei Petrov created the music for the ballet inspired by the drawings of popular in the Soviet Union French artist Jean Effel, who told the biblical story of Adam and Eve in a humorous manner. – When I got acquainted with the musical material, it seemed to me surprisingly deep, – says the artistic director of the theatre, People's Artist of the USSR, Professor Valentin Elizariev. – And I thought about the way to reveal this topic globally, giving it a universal character. How to dare and tell about humanity as a whole, about what it can face in the future...

By the way, Petrov created a musical version of the play pointedly for the Belarusian theatre. Indeed, in the original it is a three-act ballet. But the composer was so

inspired by Elizariev's plan that he even added some pieces. And at the premiere in Minsk in 1976, congratulating the artists and directors, Andrei Petrov could not hold back his emotions and said that this performance could be called, perhaps, the most successful of all that existed at that time in the Soviet Union and abroad. The audience shared this opinion: at each performance there was a full house. An interesting story happened on tour in Poland. After the ballet "Creation of the World" was shown on the stage of the Bolshoi Theatre in Warsaw, the establishment and celebrities approached Valentin Elizariev with congratulations. And the choreographer still remembers one person and his words. The performance was attended by the Polish cardinal Karol Wojtyla. Smiling warmly, he approached Elizariev, shook his hand and said briefly: "Thank you for God." Literally after some time, the cardinal was elected the Pope, whom the whole world knows as John Paul

II. – A modern person will always be emotionally affected by the biblical theme touched upon in the play, – continues Valentin Nikolaevich. – God created mankind, and it, in turn, creates a modern world in which hope and harmony should live...

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– This is so symbolic, because music is designed to comfort people and harmonize society, and harmony arises from chaos, – Nikolai Kolyadko seems to echo Elizariev. It was he who conducted "Creation of the World" ballet on October 1 at the Bolshoi. – Besides, doctors have long established that good music – classical, rock or jazz – lengthens

life. Therefore, I urge everyone to listen to only good music. I will add that the main parts that evening were performed by our recognized ballet stars – Irina Eromkina, Egor Azarkevich, Konstantin Geronik, Taro Kurachi.

Yes, music affects us. Why? And how does the mechanism of its perception work? Of all the questions about the way our mind captures and processes music, this one seems to be the most difficult, indecipherable. Indeed, there is something unique and intangible in the magical effect of music. Physicists who study our world at the quantum level are increasingly convinced that the material world, which includes our human bodies, is vibration at different levels. Music is also a vibration, moreover, arranged in a certain way. Therefore, scientists believe, there is nothing strange in the fact that musical vibration interacts with the vibration of our body.

The great physician of antiquity, Avicenna, called the melody a "nonmedicinal" method of treatment, along with diet, smells and laughter. Pythagoreans also noticed that music somehow influences humans. They used special melodies against rage and anger. And they had their math classes to music, as they noticed that it made learning more

effective. In the 3rd century BC in the Parthian Empire, a special musical and medical center was built. Here music was used to cure melancholy and emotional distress (https://mir24.tv/).

All these and other questions arose on the day of another contact with the high art of Belarusian ballet. It would seem that I saw "Creation of the World" more than once, both in its old edition and in its updated version. And again, like the first time, I experienced deep feelings. Delight, surprise, pleasure, joy, the universal feeling of unity with all that exists... And again the question arises: how does music come to the minds of composers? How do they compose their music? In connection with the topic of my interest, on the Internet I came across the arguments of an anonymous music composer who called himself an audioman (ttps://habr.com/ru/). They seemed to me interesting, partly shedding light on the question of interest. There are several ways to create music. The socalled intuitive way or the way based on inspiration, a methodological way or a knowledge-based approach, and a combination of these two. The first way is when the whole piece is born in the head. First you hear it and then you record it. It just pops up in your head out of nowhere. Our audioman says: "I composed one piece this way and it was a strange experience. While I was inspired, I had the feeling that I "lent" my hands, and "something" played the composition with them, and I wrote it down on paper." As for the methodological way of creating music, the music composed like this may seem boring, unemotional or predictable. It takes a lot of theoretical knowledge to compose decent music. And it seems that the combination of the two is a priority for our anonymous author. Here's what he writes about it: "It's hard to get the whole melody only out of inspiration. It is also difficult to create an entire melody based only on theoretical knowledge. Therefore, you can mix the two methods. You come up with a motive that you like (inspiration), and then, using your knowledge, you turn it into a complete composition (harmony). As you play, inspiration can come back and bring the rest of the melody along."

Well, quite a decent explanation. And yet, only those who create music can understand this. And we will settle upon the fact that music, as well as opera, is a miracle of wonders. It can be different: tender and affectionate like a mother's lullaby. And bright, gushing, cosmic, sparkling, like in "Creation of the World".

On the day of the holiday at the Bolshoi, ballet dancers obeyed it – the main roles that evening were performed by our recognized stage masters – Irina Eromkina, Egor Azarkevich, Konstantin Geronik, Taro Kurachi, as well as other ballet dancers.

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Mikhalina Cherkashina