This post will focus on a question that I think seems very basic when you first hear it, but will really make you think about it in the process of coming up with an answer. Not to be confused with one of my previous blogs named "What is Sound?"... That just focuses on the physics of sound itself. This question is a bit different:
What is "Music"?
Now in my opinion, there is no "definite" answer to that one, because everyone defines music differently, based on upbringing, culture, etc. The tricky thing about this question is the counter question: "What is not 'music'?" What one person may consider music, someone else may not refer to it as music at all. So, is it no longer considered "Music"? Interesting stuff.
Once again, this is a post of my opinion. You may put the butcher knives away now. Below, I pasted the part of my essay where I explained my "definition" of music, in efforts to support my thesis. I highly encourage everyone to comment and give their definitions and opinion on what you believe music is. Enjoy!
"For the sake of this paper, we will define “music” as the general art of
creating and manipulating sounds as a form of communication, enjoyment, and
culture. This definition challenges one of the five propositions of music in
the book “World Music: Traditions and Transformations”: “Music…is a form of organized sound. This is plainly evident
when we listen to a well-known Western classical music work such as Ludwig van
Beethoven’s Symphony #9… but the organizational element is no less significant
in music that seems, at least to many Western listeners, to defy recognizable
principles of organization. This latter category may include music from a
foreign culture that is based on unfamiliar organizational schemes…” (Bakan, Michael B, pg 4). The definition used
in this paper eliminates the idea that music is something that’s “organized”
because in some cultures, there is no sense (at least to American ears) of
melodic direction or rhythm, but it’s still music."
"Melodic direction" and "rhythm" are just two possible ways of organising sound - music can lack both those things and still be organised (for example, the organisation may be based on timbre). The inability of (some) American ears to perceive the system of organisation in an unfamiliar music certainly doesn't imply that there is no organisation there - that is rather like claiming that foreign languages lack grammar merely because I can only speak English!
ReplyDeleteIt's funny because that was one of the arguments mentioned when the proposition above was brought into light in the book. Most people get so "fixed" in their own cultures, that they believe their own culture is the only "valid" one, because it's the only one they're used to. That even goes beyond music, but even in other aspects of culture, such as food, clothing, religion, social structure, etc.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post. If you haven't heard of him and his books, I'd like to recommend author Daniel Levitin to you. Two of his books are "This is Your Brain on Music" & "The World in Six Songs." I have enjoyed reading both books, and from time to time I read some parts of both. Also, please check out my music blog. Here is a link to one that I posted not too long ago that has gotten quite a lot of attention http://movetothemusicjp.blogspot.com/2013/01/no-music-no-life.html
ReplyDeleteHey Julia, I actually used the first book you mentioned as a reference in this paper!
ReplyDelete