Music has existed since the dawn of man. It is so deeply ingrained in society and in our lives. There must be a reason why humans connect so deeply to music and why it has stuck around for so long. I believe this reason is because music communicates feelings and emotions so deeply. Let's take spirituals as an example. Slaves began using this music to pass the time and to communicate how they felt at this horrible time in their lives. “Have courage, my soul, and let us journey on/Though the night is dark and I am far from home” Tindley are the lyrics to a spiritual we are currently learning in my choir class. So much emotion is communicated in just these few sentences. Singing can be considered therapeutic for many. I believe that music is the best way to communicate a message or emotion. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay According to Kamien (2018), the first written music dates back to about the 9th century. The music of this period was centered around churches. Kamien talks about how this music is very symbolic. For example, choirs sang a singular melody in unison, to convey the idea that the church was a unified organization. They also avoided the use of tools, because they believed that using tools would communicate the idea of ​​evil to church followers and to God. Kamien says they believed this because pagans used tools in their rituals, making them of the devil. This symbolic communication continues through the use of the Latin text, which was the official language of the Roman Catholic Churches. The main reason choirs began using music vocally was to communicate more effectively. According to the author, choir singers were encouraged “to sing with appropriate pronunciation, concentration, and tone quality” (p. 67). This made it easier for churchgoers to not only understand the church's messages, but also actually understand the words themselves. In my music appreciation class, we discussed how, while singing, having proper singing technique makes it easier to understand the words because they are more extended and fit the acoustics of the church. This helped churches communicate the word of God in the best way they knew how. Kamien continues to describe how the Pope and Charlemagne, or Charlemagne, used music to communicate the idea of ​​unity. Carlomangio wanted the popes of his time to begin to find ways to transcribe music, so that music could be easily spread throughout the territory over which he reigned. This conveyed to his subjects that he wanted to unite them together, so his territory seemed stronger. A man named Guido d'Arezzo began to show how to communicate music teaching through a process that Kamien describes. He used his hand like a pentagram and indicated the places where the notes would be in traditional sheet music today. This helped him teach his students exactly what keys he wanted them to sing. Heller and Campbell (1982) discuss different ways in which musicians and listeners communicate through music. They suggest that one step towards this communication is through the musical cues used by an artist. This could include different lyrics, dynamics, or even chords. They suggest that these signals “must be decoded according to cultural rules known to both performer and listener.” This means that listeners will interpret these signals the way the performer is trying to convey them. Take, for example, a song that has a fast tempo and happy-sounding instrumentals but depressing lyrics. The listener.