Zygomorphic
Squishy
- Local time
- Today 10:17 AM
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2009
- Messages
- 24
Some may say music promotes creativity and deep thought (possibly through melody or lyrics), others prefer it for its entertainment value or as a method of interpretation, physical or mental. Still, others might say it is nothing but sheer escapism.
Given that the appreciation for music is virtually universal, I think it would be false to say any definition is applicable to everyone. Music is then, of course, what it is to the individual listener/artist. So what is it to you? How do you choose to listen to your music? What attracts you to it? Is there good and bad music? What do you listen to? One can answer these questions, and so much more - but ultimately I ask, "Why music?"
For me:
Most of my adolescent peers listen to such music as rap, R&B, rock, country, and overall commercialized stuff. Not to say that commercialization directly implies it (and I'm just using this as an example), but I find that this music tends to fundamentally lack in "something more." It seems that, even if I can find that one-in-a-thousand, likable song, it gets boring and derivative in only a few listens. My current idea is that people who tend to like this music probably have a predominantly Sensing function as opposed to an iNtuition function. Whether poppy, melodic, or head-bobbing, this music caters to dancing, singing, and/or emotionalism. Not content to listen to a song without quickly becoming bored of it, these people prefer their songs to be within a range of 3-5 minutes and potentially even shorter in duration when mixed at dances.
Although any normal song can sound good to me, I find that I will get bored of the song quickly if it caters more to a Sensing function. What I mean by this is that the song is focused on the here and the now - that is, there is no sense of progression, nuance and depth, and the song just "gives itself" to you in all its "epic glory" (one need only look at today's rave scene to know what I mean by this). In another words, it seems as if this music requires no attention span, and to me, once I've heard it once, I've heard all that it has to offer. Lyrics, to some, provide deep meaning to a song. I, on the other hand, pay little attention to them other than to know what they say.
I won't be so naïve as to say that the music described above is inherently bad; it is not my place to pass judgment on this music when I do not truly understand it. However, the fact that I cannot even pretend to appreciate it should certainly mean that it is just not meant for me.
iNtuiting individuals think of the abstract, the possibilities, and the future. I find that I apply this concept much to my music. I meticulously listen to music when it allows it - a subtle change in tone or volume, that carefully placed sound, the flow of the music. Despite this scrutiny, I also look at the song holistically; what has changed between the time period?; what do I think/feel as the song progresses? Do not think that I overanalyze music! Instead, I would say it is an intense synchronization that I seek in music, and within that synchronization I am free to explore both the song and, ultimately, my mind. Within every sonic journey should lie infinite possibilities.
However, it truly is too hard to successfully communicate this musical experience given our barrier of limited language and linguistics. I can say that music transcends thoughts and emotions for me, often reaching a physical and then metaphysical sort of plane. I can explain the physicality by asserting that humans are capable of unconciously interacting with physical sound waves. An interesting idea my friend's father postulated was that songs with ~130BPM are so universally appealing because they mimic the heartbeat we experienced in our mothers' wombs, and thus we unconciously associate it with security and warmth. Music's abstract effects on me tend to be profound. How is it that a song can evoke a simultaneous sense of childhood nostalgia, a deep longing for childhood memories which never occured (but are so strongly felt), and with that a strangely emotionally-dull atmosphere of tragedy? This is where music, for me, seems to go beyond any definity - the only way I can ever describe these experiences is a deep longing to not only synchronize with but to become the song and to have it be interpreted in every breadth of reality.
When I say I pay little attention to lyrics, it is because they have a sort of definitive interpretation; what was said is what was meant. Vague and abstract (but not too esoteric and exasperating) lyrics can really catalyze a different sort of thinking, but those tend to be rare. Generally, if an individual feels that lyrics provide depth and meaning to his/her life, that's great - but I want my change to come from myself and with a totally independent interpretation of my music.
That's about all I have to say for myself. What about you?
Given that the appreciation for music is virtually universal, I think it would be false to say any definition is applicable to everyone. Music is then, of course, what it is to the individual listener/artist. So what is it to you? How do you choose to listen to your music? What attracts you to it? Is there good and bad music? What do you listen to? One can answer these questions, and so much more - but ultimately I ask, "Why music?"
For me:
Most of my adolescent peers listen to such music as rap, R&B, rock, country, and overall commercialized stuff. Not to say that commercialization directly implies it (and I'm just using this as an example), but I find that this music tends to fundamentally lack in "something more." It seems that, even if I can find that one-in-a-thousand, likable song, it gets boring and derivative in only a few listens. My current idea is that people who tend to like this music probably have a predominantly Sensing function as opposed to an iNtuition function. Whether poppy, melodic, or head-bobbing, this music caters to dancing, singing, and/or emotionalism. Not content to listen to a song without quickly becoming bored of it, these people prefer their songs to be within a range of 3-5 minutes and potentially even shorter in duration when mixed at dances.
Although any normal song can sound good to me, I find that I will get bored of the song quickly if it caters more to a Sensing function. What I mean by this is that the song is focused on the here and the now - that is, there is no sense of progression, nuance and depth, and the song just "gives itself" to you in all its "epic glory" (one need only look at today's rave scene to know what I mean by this). In another words, it seems as if this music requires no attention span, and to me, once I've heard it once, I've heard all that it has to offer. Lyrics, to some, provide deep meaning to a song. I, on the other hand, pay little attention to them other than to know what they say.
I won't be so naïve as to say that the music described above is inherently bad; it is not my place to pass judgment on this music when I do not truly understand it. However, the fact that I cannot even pretend to appreciate it should certainly mean that it is just not meant for me.
iNtuiting individuals think of the abstract, the possibilities, and the future. I find that I apply this concept much to my music. I meticulously listen to music when it allows it - a subtle change in tone or volume, that carefully placed sound, the flow of the music. Despite this scrutiny, I also look at the song holistically; what has changed between the time period?; what do I think/feel as the song progresses? Do not think that I overanalyze music! Instead, I would say it is an intense synchronization that I seek in music, and within that synchronization I am free to explore both the song and, ultimately, my mind. Within every sonic journey should lie infinite possibilities.
However, it truly is too hard to successfully communicate this musical experience given our barrier of limited language and linguistics. I can say that music transcends thoughts and emotions for me, often reaching a physical and then metaphysical sort of plane. I can explain the physicality by asserting that humans are capable of unconciously interacting with physical sound waves. An interesting idea my friend's father postulated was that songs with ~130BPM are so universally appealing because they mimic the heartbeat we experienced in our mothers' wombs, and thus we unconciously associate it with security and warmth. Music's abstract effects on me tend to be profound. How is it that a song can evoke a simultaneous sense of childhood nostalgia, a deep longing for childhood memories which never occured (but are so strongly felt), and with that a strangely emotionally-dull atmosphere of tragedy? This is where music, for me, seems to go beyond any definity - the only way I can ever describe these experiences is a deep longing to not only synchronize with but to become the song and to have it be interpreted in every breadth of reality.
When I say I pay little attention to lyrics, it is because they have a sort of definitive interpretation; what was said is what was meant. Vague and abstract (but not too esoteric and exasperating) lyrics can really catalyze a different sort of thinking, but those tend to be rare. Generally, if an individual feels that lyrics provide depth and meaning to his/her life, that's great - but I want my change to come from myself and with a totally independent interpretation of my music.
That's about all I have to say for myself. What about you?
)
