Olivia Jordan

Music, Art, and Mood

I have always been fascinated by how music and art can quietly change the way I feel. Sometimes the shift happens before I even notice it. A few notes begin to play, or I pause in front of a painting, and my mood rearranges itself.

One of my favorite pieces is Winter from The Four Seasons by Antonio Vivaldi. The opening violin lines are sharp and insistent. The repeated notes feel like shivering. The rhythm is restless, and there is tension in the sound. Even the quieter sections feel fragile. When I listen to it, I feel alert and awake.

In contrast, I Wanted to Leave, a 2023 piano piece by SYML, creates a completely different atmosphere. The melody is simple and soft. Notes linger and fade gently into silence. The music feels private, almost like a quiet conversation with yourself.

The same contrast appears in visual art. When I look at The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh, I feel motion everywhere. The sky swirls with energy and feels turbulent. The brushstrokes are bold and alive. The painting carries emotional intensity, as if the night itself is alive with feeling.

But when I look at Girl at a Window, painted in 1645 by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, the mood shifts entirely. The girl leans gently forward, her face illuminated by soft light. The background is dark, but not chaotic. It feels calm and controlled. The emotion is quiet and contained.

What fascinates me is that both pairs of works create powerful moods, but in opposite ways. Vivaldi uses speed, repetition, and sharp contrast to generate tension. The piano piece uses space and restraint to create calm. Van Gogh uses bold color and movement to stir emotion. Rembrandt uses light and shadow to create depth and quiet reflection.

None of these works physically change the space around me, yet each one changes something within me. My breathing adjusts. My focus shifts. My thoughts follow the structure of what I am hearing or seeing. It reminds me how deeply music and art are connected to the way we experience the world.