The Expression of Deception
On one of those days, we wake up tired with flashbacks into the unmentionable past. We try to shred the pain, the triviality of being a mortal, and the routine. I’m not sure if our mind projects a certain voice, as a friend has repeatedly asked me a question, “what language is your thought in?” My answer is that I don’t think thoughts have any language.
Hence, on this moody Friday, my mind seeps repeatedly through a melody. It is thick, resounding, wide, and generous, as in the low-register timber of a cello.
I managed to trace it back, thanks god.
It is this infamous theme in Tchaikovsky 6:
This theme first appears in ppp. We could barely hear it. It is so insignificant as compared to the ominous first section— almost to the extent of being inaudible. It reappears again in a different orchestration after another turmoil, except that there is an added bass line.
Whether the F#-E-D theme shows up in the form of real music that we listen with ears, or in the form of thought that we choreograph through inner mind, its resurfacing means “no more, no more.”
No more disappointment or sadness. No more fear.
The theme enters with the most invisible fragility that one could possibly observe. Then it rises up with tears, confidence, and strength until everyone is paying attention to its resilience and brilliance.
The G-C-B-C theme in the finale of Brahms’ Symphony 1, as I have written in the past, shares a similar source of powerfulness. If someone asks for the meaning of humanities, the G-C-B-C theme will give the best answer. Plus, unlike Tchaikovsky 6, Brahms’ brightening theme doesn’t surface until the very end of the symphony. Brahms likes to struggle, I guess. Beethoven also likes that. Maybe that’s why neither of them are ever possible candidates of gay. Tchaikovsky, on the other hand, doesn’t easily shy away from a legendary theme. Tchaikovsky brings it in at the very first movement just to remind everyone of the holistic tone of this symphony. No mystery is needed. And he marches with the momentum of this theme right toward the end — before it turns into the lowest and then ends.