- published: 11 Dec 2014
- views: 2865
The Moon has been the subject of many works of art and literature and the inspiration for countless others. It is a motif in the visual arts, the performing arts, poetry, prose and music.
Many jazz standards have been inspired by the moon, some of the most notable examples are:
The Moon takes on several roles in the lyrics of these songs. In songs such as "Blue Moon", "No Moon at All", "Moonlight Serenade" and "Moonlight in Vermont", the Moon 'frames' or creates the atmosphere of romance that the protagonist finds themselves in.
The Moon is also viewed as an unobtainable object in songs such as "Reaching for the Moon", "I Wished on the Moon" and "Oh, You Crazy Moon", once again mirroring the situation of the protagonist.
Frank Sinatra recorded an entire album of songs written about the moon called Moonlight Sinatra, recalling the name of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. Six years earlier, Mel Tormé recorded Swingin' On the Moon, in a similar concept.
Lucian's Icaromenippus and True History, written in the 2nd century AD, deal with imaginary voyages to the moon such as on a fountain after going past the Pillars of Hercules. The theme did not become popular until the 17th century, however, when the invention of the telescope hastened the popular acceptance of the concept of "a world in the Moon", that is, that the Moon was an inhabitable planet, which might be reached via some sort of aërial carriage. The concept of another world, close to our own and capable of looking down at it from a distance, provided ample scope for satirical comments on the manners of the Earthly world. Among the early stories dealing with this concept are: