In this article, Huizenga brings about an interesting point, who says classical music can’t be sexy?  He says that throughout history, sex has been found in literature, opera, movies, sculptures, and paintings alike, but not as frequently in music.  When it comes to music, it’s difficult to depict something as simple as a kiss because music as an art is so amorphous, says Huizenga.  However, just because it’s not blatantly obvious doesn’t mean it’s not there.  He goes on to give us examples of pieces in which the composers seem to be hinting at a rather strong sexual encounter.

One example he gives is Maria Joao Pires’ performance of Chopin’s first Nocturne.  It is a performance that he finds “totally steamy.”  Initially, I disagreed.  After the first listen, it didn’t sound as “steamy” as I had anticipated.  The performance actually sounded like someone playing the piano during the evening after a long days work.  But when I listened the second time around, I listened closely and found what he was talking about.  The Nocturne begins slowly and the notes make their way up and down the scales as if they were venturing and testing everything out; you can almost say Chopin was getting “comfortable.”  It then seems to reach small climaxes surround by a few trills.  Next the piece gets slightly louder as it works its way into the main theme.  This stays around for a while and is a pretty obvious presence.  That theme then varies slightly and is undeniably intriguing.  After a return to the main theme, the climactic melody slowly crescendos back down and into the same simpler melodies as were heard in the beginning of the piece.  The song then slowly fades away into the air.  It takes a good listen and a music appreciators ear to really grasp what Chopin is doing with this beautiful Nocturne.

A second example that Huizenga gives is Le Poeme de l’extase by Scriabin.  The title itself should be a dead giveaway (Poem of Ecstasy).  Just in case it isn’t, Huizenga lets us know that in the early 1900s, the Russian composer composed this piece based off of a poem that he had written himself.  He goes on to say “It’s long been thought that the music represents the very act of lovemaking, cresting in a blazing climax of eight horns, pipe organ, bells, harp and trills high up in the winds.”  After the first listen it’s not hard to tell that Huizenga was correct.  You couldn’t miss that climax if you tried.  The composition is so full and so obvious that it could only represent one thing, sex.  However, this piece differs from Chopin’s first Nocturne, as in where Chopin’s is sensual, Scriabin’s seems to delve much deeper.  There seems to be pensiveness in the beginning as if he is unsure about what is about to happen.  The brass and the strings bring about a certain mystery and intrigue, but lead to an underlying fear or uncertainty.  As the piece moves closer to the big climax, the violins phase in and out, giving the listeners a whirling sensation as if he were being swept up by something that he wishes he could control, but try as he might, cannot.  This all leads to the extravagant climax where all the horns, pipe organs, bells, and harps blare out brilliantly and give off a sense of good vs. evil, or right vs. wrong.  The culmination of it all feels almost as if two extremely different souls were colliding at speeds beyond our imagination and exploding like a supernova.  This composition is certainly a job well done by Scriabin.

After listening to and examining these two examples, it is clear to me that sex can be portrayed in music just as it is in other arts.  Maybe not as blatantly as people would like, but is it definitely there.  Looks like classical music can really be sexy after all!