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How Shakespeare used music to tell stories
Today we fully expect film, television and theatre to use music to shape meaning.
- Simon Smith
- The Conversation
The screeching violins of Psycho and the menacing Jaws theme, for instance, both depend upon a shared 20th-century dramatic language in which music indicates mood.
Rewind 400 years and it may not seem like the same is true.
Take Shakespearean drama.
Many modern productions choose to avoid historical music altogether, preferring new compositions or pre-recorded popular songs that more obviously indicate mood to modern…