“Where the old meets the new” In the following essay I will show a technical comparison and an emotional comparison of two very different songs, the first being “Dietrich Fischer Dieskau Der Lindenbaum Die Winterreise” by Franz Schubert and “Not Today” by Twenty One Pilots. Next, I will discuss some similarities between past and modern music. These songs, more than a century apart, have very contrasting applications, but surprisingly share certain common themes. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Listening closely to these two pieces, I discovered some technical subtleties that each artist/composer used skillfully. The first was the use of dynamics. Both songs had obvious, happy harmonies as well as increasingly intense harmonies. The use of crescendo and decrescendo, piano and forte, and major and minor were very important elements for each of these songs. One similarity I noticed concerns the most dramatic section of the plays. The underlying theme of misery was represented by an internal struggle to escape bad memories/experiences. I found it quite interesting that even though years have passed since Franz's piece was composed, we are still writing poetry that revolves around similar ideas and has a parallel meaning. Another technicality was the use of instruments. Franz, being a novel composer himself, fell into the stereotypical solo piano genre, while Twenty One Pilots, newly graduated, is a whole new story. Placing this band in a classic genre is like trying to get a toddler to stay, it's not going to happen. That said though, it has elements of indie, rock, pop and even spurts of rap. Twenty One Pilots uses instruments such as organ, piano, electric guitar, trumpet, drums and even has background singers. It might seem like a mess, but they put it all together to make some pretty awesome music in my opinion. Finally, I would like to discuss the rhythm, texture and structure of the lyrics. Franz seemed to have a homophonic texture while Twenty One Pilots had a polyrhythmic texture. Additionally, the use of polyharmony was present in "Not Today" due to the different instrumental backing melodies as well as the background singers in harmony with the leader. The pace was quite slow in Franz's piece, which is a relative term, I know, but in comparison to Twenty One Pilot, whose pace practically jumped off the walls, it lacked sparkle. As for lyrical structure, Twenty One Pilots had apparent rhymes, but they were not consistent throughout the song. Franz's article didn't seem to rhyme coherently either, but in my defense I don't speak German. I just tried to listen to it carefully and take the meter, but the rhyme scheme seemed pretty scattered. Once the technical details are completed, the musical and emotional comparison ensues. After listening to Franz's “Dietrich Fischer Dieskau Der Lindenbaum Die Winterreise” several times and studying the translated lyrics, I personally interpreted this piece as a nostalgic look back into the past. As he passes the Linden Tree, he remembers all the most wonderful memories he has captured. But as the song progresses, his precious memories turn from sweet to sour. The internal struggle continues for a while, until it strangely dissipates. It ends in.