The tumult of the first scene works to capture the audience’s attention –as was necessary in Jacobean theatres. This is achieved through the sounds, the ‘tempestuous noise of thunder. ‘ In this instance, the sound of thunder reflects the manifestations of Prospero’s personality. The thunder displays Prospero’s anger towards his usurping brother, Antonio.
In Act 1 Scene 2, Prospero again uses music and sounds to portray his feelings about his brother. He uses musical imagery –‘set all hearts I’ th’ state to what tune pleased his ear’- to indicate the disharmony of the relationship he has with Antonio.
Sounds are significant to the play in this circumstance because they reflect the mood and feelings of the characters. It helps the audience to gain an insight into the minds of the characters and to empathise with the emotions that they are experiencing.
Whilst Prospero is the composer of the play, Ariel is his main performer. He/she is the main musical contributor to the play, and this is much of what his role involves. He uses music subliminally to create the mood and affect the activities of the characters. For example, in Act 1 Scene 2, Ariel lures Ferdinand to Miranda with the song, ‘Come unto these yellow sands.’ In this same scene Ariel attempts to console Ferdinand (who thinks that his father has been killed by the shipwreck) with a soothing song: ‘Full fathom five thy father lies…’
In Act 3 Scene 3, he torments Antonio, Sebastian and Alonso with a banquet. At the beginning of the scene he produces a banquet, accompanied by ‘solemn and strange music.’ This affects the characters in a positive way, their language becomes much more harmonious and poetic e.g. ‘marvellous,’ ‘sweet,’ ‘heavens.’ However, ‘Ariel …claps his wings upon the table, and…the banquet vanishes.’ Sounds of ‘thunder’ can be heard at this point, contrasting with the ‘solemn’ music at the beginning of the scene. Ariel has used music and sound in a way that inflicts strongly upon the emotions of the characters.
As well as music and sound affecting the emotions of the characters, Shakespeare also uses Ariel to comment upon the plot and move events forward in times of crisis. This can be seen in Act 2 Scene 1 wherein Ariel reveals the ‘open-eyed conspiracy’ of Sebastian and Antonio. This reaffirms to the audience that Sebastian and Antonio were indeed conspiring to commit treason; and it also allows Gonzalo to prevent the murder from occurring.
Music and sounds play a significant role in the character of Caliban. Caliban is portrayed as a monster, a ‘tortoise’ in the opinion of Prospero. However, his appreciation of the ‘sounds and sweet airs’ may modify the opinion that people hold of him. His comments may cause an air of ambiguity, but perhaps the moral here is that beauty is not just on the outside. The thoughts that Caliban has about music reveal that he cannot be as unintelligent as Prospero suggests him to be.
Music and sounds are also significant in themes, in particular the important theme of the supernatural. In Act 2 Scene 2, Caliban describes the island sounds to be ‘like apes that mow and chatter at me.’ These sounds are produced by Ariel, a supernatural spirit.
The music and sounds in ‘The Tempest’ are also quite unpredictable. The recurrent sound of ‘thunder’ throughout causes confusion amongst the characters, as well as the audience. Unpredictability and confusion add an element of mystery to the play. And the supernatural theme cannot exist without mystery. Finally, the music and sounds have a subversive effect; it changes the behaviour of the characters. This also contributes towards the supernatural.
Music and sounds have dramatic significance in the play. They are not just for decorative effect –although they do provide entertainment-, they serve a structural purpose. This is illustrated in the way that music is a continual cycle throughout the play. It is not just used in expected scenes, such as Act 3 Scene 3 with the banquet, it appears in the majority of scenes. The music helps to establish the emotional climate of a scene.
In conclusion, music and sounds are a powerful instrument in this play. In addition to revealing the emotions of characters; supporting themes; and progressing the plot of the play, it also shows the multiplicity of Shakespeare. A number of critics believe that Shakespeare used such a high degree of sounds for the same reason that he adhered to the three classical unities (time, place and action). He believed that this was to be his last play so he wanted to conclude his writing career with evidence of his remarkable talent.
