Music: The Universal Language

By Anna Durkin

I have loved music my whole life. I remember begging my mother to let me take lessons to learn an instrument. My brother had taken piano lessons and quit after a decent amount of time and money had been put into them. Because of this, my mom wouldn’t let me pick it up because she didn’t want me to end up getting bored and quitting as he did. Unfortunately, the schools I went to never offered music classes either.

Even though I never learned an instrument, my love of music never left me. It just became an appreciation instead of a participation. As years have gone by, I’ve discovered more genres, bands, artists, and most importantly I’ve discovered what speaks to me. I remember the first CD I ever owned was Britney Spears’ Oops!... I Did it Again album. I listened to that album more times than I can remember.

My taste in music has vastly changed from that first album I owned, but that feeling I got when hearing a good song for the first time hasn’t. It is one of my favorite feelings I have ever experienced. When a song you have never heard before starts playing, and from the first note you’re drawn into the sound, it is unmatched. When I discover new music I love, I often have to put a conscious effort into not over listening to it.

It's true that I can’t read a music scale or play an F chord, but music has still become a huge part of my life and who I am. A common phrase people say is “music is a universal language.” From my experiences, I agree wholeheartedly. Even without lyrics, music has the ability to express emotions and cause listeners to feel emotions. I don’t think there has been a single day in my life without music, and I don’t plan on changing that anytime soon.