The “cry” of a nightingale. Expression, emotion, meaning

Birdsong is among the most beautiful and complex sounds produced in the natural world. Modern ornithological research into the vocal communication of birds continues to open up new fields of research in neurobiology, ethology and evolutionary biology. Birdsong also fascinates musicographers and musicologists interested in, on the one hand, the presence of birds in music, and, on the other — theoretical questions concerning the ontology, aesthetic qualities and semiotics of birdsong resembling music in some respects. Reflection on this direct, easily accessible and natural sound experience of human beings is the subject of the present article. It is an attempt to answer the question about the source of expression and aesthetic meaning of bird-song for humans, about how bird “music” resonates with the human world. In particular — about whether the expressive meaning of birdsong is embedded and contained in it or whether its source is the listener’s subjective projection.