Music is an
art form whose
medium is
sound.
Common elements of music are
pitch
(which governs
melody and
harmony),
rhythm (and its
associated concepts
tempo,
meter, and
articulation),
dynamics, and the sonic qualities of
timbre and
texture. The word derives from
Greek μουσική (
mousike),
"(art) of the
Muses".
The creation,
performance, significance,
and even the
definition of music
vary according to culture and social context. Music ranges from
strictly organized compositions (and their recreation in
performance), through improvisational music to
aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into
genres and
subgenres,
although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres
are often subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and
occasionally controversial. Within "
the
arts", music may be classified as a
performing art, a
fine
art, and auditory art.
To many people in many cultures music is an important part of their
way of life.
Greek philosophers and
ancient
Indian philosophers defined music as tones ordered horizontally
as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as
"the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to
the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to.
However, 20th-century composer
John Cage
thought that any sound can be music, saying, for example, "There is
no
noise, only sound." According to
musicologist
Jean-Jacques
Nattiez, "the border between music and noise is always
culturally defined—which implies that, even within a single
society, this border does not always pass through the same place;
in short, there is rarely a consensus.... By all accounts there is
no
single and
intercultural universal concept
defining what music might be, except that it is 'sound through
time'."
History
Prehistoric eras
Ancient music can only be imagined by
scholars, based on findings from a range of
paleolithic sites, such as bones in which
lateral holes have been pierced: these are usually identified as
flutes, blown at one end like the Japanese
shakuhachi. Instruments, such as the
seven-holed flute and various types of
stringed instruments have been recovered
from the
Indus Valley
Civilization archaeological sites.
India has one of the oldest musical traditions in the
world—references to
Indian
classical music (
marga) can be found in the ancient
scriptures of the
Hindu tradition, the
Vedas.
The earliest and largest collection of
prehistoric musical instruments was found in China
and dates
back to between 7000 and 6600 BC.
References in the Bible
Main article: History of music in the
biblical period
Music and theatre scholars studying the history and anthropology of
Semitic and early
Judeo-Christian culture, have also
discovered common links between theatrical and musical activity in
the classical cultures of the
Hebrews with
those of the later cultures of the
Greeks and
Romans. The common area of performance
is found in a "social phenomenon called
litany," a form of prayer consisting of a series of
invocations or
supplications.
The Journal of Religion and
Theatre notes that among the earliest forms of litany, "Hebrew
litany was accompanied by a rich musical tradition:"
- "While
Genesis 4.21 identifies Jubal as the “father of all such as handle
the harp and pipe,” the Pentateuch is
nearly silent about the practice and instruction of music in the
early life of Israel
.
Then, in I Samuel 10 and the texts which follow, a curious thing
happens. “One finds in the biblical text,” writes Alfred Sendrey,
“a sudden and unexplained upsurge of large choirs and orchestras,
consisting of thoroughly organized and trained musical groups,
which would be virtually inconceivable without lengthy, methodical
preparation.” This has led some scholars to believe that the
prophet Samuel was the patriarch of a school which taught not only
prophets and holy men, but also sacred-rite musicians. This public
music school, perhaps the earliest in recorded history, was not
restricted to a priestly class--which is how the shepherd boy
David appears on the scene as a minstrel to
King Saul."
Antiquity
Music was an important part of cultural and social life in
Ancient Greece: mixed-gender
choruses performed for entertainment, celebration and
spiritual ceremonies; musicians and
singers
had a prominent role in
ancient Greek theater. In the 9th
century, the Arab scholar
al-Farabi wrote
a book on music titled
Kitab al-Musiqi al-Kabir
("Great Book of Music"). He played and invented a variety of
musical instruments and devised
the
Arab tone system of pitch
organisation, which is still used in
Arabic
music.
Western cultures
During the
Medieval music era
(500-1400), the only European repertory which has survived from
before about 800 is the
monophonic
liturgical plainsong of the
Roman Catholic Church, the central
tradition of which was called
Gregorian
chant. Alongside these traditions of
sacred and
church
music there existed a vibrant tradition of
secular song. Examples of composers from this
period are
Léonin,
Pérotin and
Guillaume de Machaut. From the
Renaissance music era (1400-1600), much of
the surviving music of 14th century Europe is secular. By the
middle of the 15th century,
composers and
singers used a smooth polyphony for sacred
musical compositions. The introduction
of commercial
printing helped to
disseminate musical styles more quickly and across a larger area.
Prominent composers from this era are
Giovanni Pierluigi da
Palestrina,
Thomas Morley and
Orlande de Lassus.
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150 px
The era of
Baroque music (1600-1750)
began when the first
operas were written and
when
contrapuntal music became
prevalent. German Baroque composers wrote for small
ensembles including strings,
brass, and
woodwinds, as well as
choirs,
pipe organ,
harpsichord, and
clavichord. During the Baroque period, several
major music forms were defined that lasted into later periods when
they were expanded and evolved further, including the
fugue, the
invention, the
sonata, and the
concerto.
Composers from the Baroque era include
Johann Sebastian Bach,
George Frideric Handel and
Georg Philipp Telemann.The music of
the
Classical period
(1750-1800) is characterized by
homophonic
texture, often featuring a prominent melody with
accompaniment. These new melodies tended to be
almost voice-like and singable. The now popular
instrumental music was dominated by further
evolution of musical forms initially defined in the Baroque period:
the sonata, and the concerto, with the addition of the new form,
the
symphony.
Joseph Haydn and
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart are among
the central figures of the Classical period.
In 1800, the Romantic era (1800-1890s) in music developed, with
Ludwig van Beethoven and
Franz Schubert as transitional
composers who introduced a more dramatic, expressive style. During
this era, existing genres, forms, and functions of music were
developed, and the emotional and expressive qualities of music came
to take precedence over technique and tradition. In Beethoven's
case, motifs (developed organically) came to replace melody as the
most significant compositional unit. The late 19th century saw a
dramatic expansion in the size of the
orchestra, and in the role of
concerts as part of
urban society. Later Romantic composers such
as
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
and
Gustav Mahler created complex and
often much longer musical works. They used more complex
chords and used more
dissonance to create dramatic
tension.
Non-Western Classical traditions
Indian classical music is one
of the oldest musical traditions in the world. The
Indus Valley civilization has
sculptures which show dance and old musical instruments, like the
seven holed flute.
Various types of stringed instruments and
drums have been recovered from Harrappa
and Mohenjo Daro
by excavations carried out by Sir Mortimer Wheeler. The
Rigveda has elements of present Indian music, with a
musical notation to denote the metre and the mode of chanting.
Indian classical music (marga) is monophonic, and based around a
single melody line or
raga rhythmically
organized through
talas. Carnatic music
is largely devotional; the majority of the songs are addressed to
the Hindu deities. There are a lot of songs emphasising love and
other social issues. Hindustani music was also influenced by the
Persian performance practices of the Afghan Mughals.
Asian music covers the music cultures of
Arabia,
Central Asia,
East Asia,
South Asia, and
Southeast Asia.
Chinese classical music, the
traditional art or court music of China, has a history stretching
over around three thousand years. It has its own unique systems of
musical notation, as well as musical tuning and pitch, musical
instruments and styles or musical genres. Chinese music is
pentatonic-diatonic, having a scale of twelve notes to an octave
(5+7 = 12) as does European-influenced music.
Persian music is the music of Persia
and Persian
language countries: musiqi, the science and art of music,
and muzik, the sound and performance of music (Sakata
1983). See also:
Music of Iran,
Music of Afghanistan,
Music of Tajikistan,
Music of Uzbekistan).
The
music of Greece was a major part
of ancient
Greek theater. In
Ancient Greece, mixed-gender choruses
performed for entertainment, celebration and spiritual reasons.
Instruments included the double-reed
aulos and
the plucked
string instrument, the
lyre, especially the special kind called a
kithara. Music was an important part of
education in ancient Greece, and boys were taught music starting at
age six. Greek musical literacy created a flowering of development;
Greek
music theory included the Greek
musical modes, eventually became the
basis for Western
religious music
and
classical music. Later,
influences from the
Roman Empire,
Eastern Europe and the
Byzantine Empire changed Greek music.
20th century music
With
20th century music, there
was a vast increase in music listening as the
radio gained popularity and
phonographs were used to replay and distribute
music. The focus of
art music was
characterized by exploration of new rhythms, styles, and sounds.
Igor Stravinsky,
Arnold Schoenberg, and
John Cage were all influential composers in 20th
century art music.
Jazz evolved and became a significant genre of
music over the course of the 20th century, and during the second
half of that century,
rock music did the
same. Jazz is an American musical art form which originated in the
beginning of the 20th century in
African American communities in the
Southern United States from a
confluence of
African and
European music traditions. The style's
West African pedigree is evident in its use of
blue notes,
improvisation,
polyrhythms,
syncopation, and the
swung
note. From its early development until the present, jazz has
also incorporated music from 19th and 20th century
American popular music.
Jazz has, from its
early 20th century inception, spawned a variety of subgenres,
ranging from New
Orleans
Dixieland (1910s) to 1970s
and 1980s-era jazz-rock
fusion.
Rock music is a genre of
popular music
that developed in the 1960s from 1950s
rock and roll,
rockabilly,
blues, and
country music. The sound of rock often
revolves around the
electric guitar
or acoustic guitar, and it uses a strong
back
beat laid down by a
rhythm
section of electric
bass guitar,
drums, and keyboard instruments such as
organ,
piano, or,
since the 1970s, digital
synthesizers.
Along with the guitar or keyboards,
saxophone and blues-style
harmonica are used as soloing instruments. In its
"purest form", it "has three chords, a strong, insistent back beat,
and a catchy melody." In the late 1960s and early 1970s, rock music
branched out into different subgenres, ranging from
blues rock and
jazz-rock
fusion to
heavy metal and
punk rock, as well as the more classical
influenced genre of
progressive
rock.
Performance
Performance is the physical expression of music. Often, a musical
work is performed once its structure and instrumentation are
satisfactory to its creators; however, as it gets performed, it can
evolve and change. A performance can either be rehearsed or
improvised. Improvisation is a
musical idea created without premeditation, while rehearsal is
vigorous repetition of an idea until it has achieved cohesion.
Musicians will sometimes add improvisation
to a well-rehearsed idea to create a unique performance.
Many cultures include strong traditions of
solo and performance, such as in Indian
classical music, and in the Western Art music tradition.
Other
cultures, such as in Bali
, include
strong traditions of group performance. All cultures include
a mixture of both, and performance may range from improvised solo
playing for one's enjoyment to highly planned and organised
performance rituals such as the modern classical concert, religious
processions,
music festivals or
music competitions.
Chamber music, which is music for a small
ensemble with only a few of each type of instrument, is often seen
as more intimate than symphonic works.
Aural tradition
Many types of music, such as traditional
blues
and
folk music were originally preserved
in the memory of performers, and the songs were handed down
orally, or aurally (by ear). When the
composer of music is no longer known, this music is often
classified as "traditional". Different musical traditions have
different attitudes towards how and where to make changes to the
original source material, from quite strict, to those which demand
improvisation or modification to the music. A culture's history may
also be passed by ear through song.
Ornamentation
The detail included explicitly in the
music notation varies between genres and
historical periods. In general, art music notation from the 17th
through the 19th century required performers to have a great deal
of contextual knowledge about performing styles. For example, in
the 17th and 18th century, music notated for solo performers
typically indicated a simple, unornamented melody. However, it was
expected that performers would know how to add
stylistically-appropriate ornaments such as
trills and turns. In the 19th century, art
music for solo performers may give a general instruction such as to
perform the music expressively, without describing in detail how
the performer should do this. It was expected that the performer
would know how to use tempo changes,
accentuation, and
pauses (among other devices) to obtain this
"expressive" performance style. In the 20th century, art music
notation often became more explicit and used a range of markings
and annotations to indicate to performers how they should play or
sing the piece.
In
popular music and jazz, music
notation almost always indicates only the basic framework of the
melody, harmony, or performance approach; musicians and singers are
expected to know the performance conventions and styles associated
with specific genres and pieces. For example, the "
lead sheet" for a jazz tune may only indicate the
melody and the chord changes. The performers in the
jazz ensemble are expected to know how to "flesh
out" this basic structure by adding ornaments, improvised music,
and chordal accompaniment.
Production
Music is composed and performed for many purposes, ranging from
aesthetic pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes, or as an
entertainment product for the
marketplace. Amateur musicians compose and perform music for their
own pleasure, and they do not derive their income from music.
Professional musicians are employed by a range of institutions and
organisations, including armed forces, churches and synagogues,
symphony orchestras,
broadcasting or
film production companies, and
music schools.
Professional musicians sometimes work as freelancers, seeking
contracts and engagements in a variety of settings.
There are often many links between amateur and professional
musicians. Beginning amateur musicians take
lessons with professional musicians. In
community settings, advanced amateur musicians perform with
professional musicians in a variety of ensembles and orchestras. In
some cases, amateur musicians attain a professional level of
competence, and they are able to perform in professional
performance settings. A distinction is often made between music
performed for the benefit of a live audience and music that is
performed for the purpose of being recorded and distributed through
the music retail system or the broadcasting system. However, there
are also many cases where a live performance in front of an
audience is recorded and distributed (or broadcast).
Composition
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An old songbook showing a
composition
"Composition" is often classed as the creation and recording of
music via a medium by which others can interpret it (i.e. paper or
sound). Many cultures use at least part of the concept of
preconceiving musical material, or composition, as held in western
classical music. Even when music is
notated precisely, there are still many decisions that a performer
has to make. The process of a performer deciding how to perform
music that has been previously composed and notated is termed
interpretation. Different performers' interpretations of the same
music can vary widely. Composers and song writers who present their
own music are interpreting, just as much as those who perform the
music of others or folk music. The standard body of choices and
techniques present at a given time and a given place is referred to
as
performance
practice, whereas interpretation is generally used to mean
either individual choices of a performer, or an aspect of music
which is not clear, and therefore has a "standard"
interpretation.
In some musical genres, such as jazz and blues, even more freedom
is given to the performer to engage in improvisation on a basic
melodic, harmonic, or rhythmic framework. The greatest latitude is
given to the performer in a style of performing called
free improvisation, which is material
that is spontaneously "thought of" (imagined) while being
performed,
not preconceived. Improvised music usually
follows stylistic or genre conventions and even "fully composed"
includes some
freely chosen
material. Composition does not always mean the use of notation,
or the known sole authorship of one individual. Music can also be
determined by describing a "process" which may create musical
sounds; examples of this range from wind chimes, through computer
programs which select sounds. Music which contains elements
selected by chance is called
Aleatoric
music, and is associated with such composers as John Cage,
Morton Feldman, and
Witold Lutosławski.
Music can be composed for repeated performance or it can be
improvised: composed on the spot. The music can be performed
entirely from memory, from a written system of musical notation, or
some combination of both. Study of composition has traditionally
been dominated by examination of methods and practice of Western
classical music, but the definition of composition is broad enough
to include spontaneously improvised works like those of
free jazz performers and African drummers such as
the
Ewe drummers.
What is important in understanding the composition of a piece is
singling out its elements. An understanding of music's formal
elements can be helpful in deciphering exactly how a piece is
constructed. A universal element of music is how sounds occur in
time, which is referred to as the rhythm of a piece of music. When
a piece appears to have a changing time-feel, it is considered to
be in
rubato time, an
Italian expression that indicates that the
tempo of the piece changes to suit the expressive intent of the
performer. Even random placement of random sounds, which occurs in
musical montage, occurs within some
kind of time, and thus employs time as a musical element.
Notation
Notation is the written expression of music notes and rhythms on
paper using symbols. When music is written down, the pitches and
rhythm of the music is notated, along with instructions on how to
perform the music. The study of how to read notation involves music
theory, harmony, the study of performance practice, and in some
cases an understanding of historical performance methods. Written
notation varies with style and period of music. In Western Art
music, the most common types of written notation are scores, which
include all the music parts of an ensemble piece, and parts, which
are the music notation for the individual performers or singers. In
popular music, jazz, and blues, the standard musical notation is
the lead sheet, which notates the melody, chords,
lyrics (if it is a vocal piece), and structure of the
music. Scores and parts are also used in popular music and jazz,
particularly in large ensembles such as jazz "big bands."
In popular music,
guitarists and electric
bass players often read music notated in
tablature (often abbreviated as "tab"), which indicates the
location of the notes to be played on the instrument using a
diagram of the guitar or bass fingerboard. Tabulature was also used
in the Baroque era to notate music for the
lute, a stringed, fretted instrument. Notated music is
produced as
sheet music. To perform
music from notation requires an understanding of both the rhythmic
and pitch elements embodied in the symbols and the performance
practice that is associated with a piece of music or a genre.
Improvisation
Musical improvisation is the
creation of spontaneous music. Improvisation is often considered an
act of instantaneous composition by performers, where compositional
techniques are employed with or without preparation. Improvisation
is a major part of some types of music, such as
blues,
jazz, and
jazz fusion, in which instrumental performers
improvise solos and melody lines. In the Western art music
tradition, improvisation was an important skill during the Baroque
era and during the Classical era; solo performers and singers would
improvise virtuoso cadenzas during concerts. However, in the 20th
and 21st century, improvisation played a smaller role in
Western Art music.
Theory
Music theory encompasses the nature and mechanics of music. It
often involves identifying patterns that govern composers'
techniques. In a more detailed sense, music theory (in the western
system) also distills and analyzes the elements of music—rhythm,
harmony (harmonic function), melody, structure, and texture. People
who study these properties are known as music theorists.
Cognition
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A chamber music group consisting of
stringed instrument players, a flautist, and a harpsichordist
perform in Salzburg
The field of
music cognition
involves the study of many aspects of music including how it is
processed by listeners. Rather than accepting the standard
practices of analyzing, composing, and performing music as a given,
much research in music cognition seeks instead to uncover the
mental processes that underlie these practices. Also, research in
the field seeks to uncover commonalities between the musical
traditions of disparate cultures and possible cognitive
"constraints" that limit these musical systems. Questions regarding
musical innateness, and emotional responses to music are also major
areas of research in the field.
Deaf people can experience music
by feeling the vibrations in their body, a process which can be
enhanced if the individual holds a resonant, hollow object. A
well-known deaf musician is the composer Ludwig van Beethoven, who
composed many famous works even after he had completely lost his
hearing. Recent examples of deaf musicians include
Evelyn Glennie, a highly acclaimed
percussionist who has been deaf since
age twelve, and
Chris Buck, a
virtuoso
violinist who has lost his hearing.
This is relevant because it indicates that music is a deeper
cognitive process than unexamined phrases such as, "pleasing to the
ear" would suggest. Much research in music cognition seeks to
uncover these complex mental processes involved in listening to
music, which may seem intuitively simple, yet are vastly intricate
and complex.
Sociology
Music is experienced by individuals in a range of social settings
ranging from being alone to attending a large concert. Musical
performances take different forms in different cultures and
socioeconomic milieus. In Europe and North America, there is often
a divide between what types of music are viewed as a "
high culture" and "
low
culture." "High culture" types of music typically include
Western art music such as Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and
modern-era symphonies, concertos, and solo works, and are typically
heard in formal concerts in concert halls and churches, with the
audience sitting quietly in seats.
Other types of music—including, but not limited to, jazz, blues,
soul, and
country—are often performed in bars,
nightclubs, and theatres, where the audience may be able to drink,
dance, and express themselves by cheering. Until the later 20th
century, the division between "high" and "low" musical forms was
widely accepted as a valid distinction that separated out better
quality, more advanced "art music" from the popular styles of music
heard in bars and dance halls.
However, in the 1980s and 1990s, musicologists studying this
perceived divide between "high" and "low" musical genres argued
that this distinction is not based on the musical value or quality
of the different types of music. Rather, they argued that this
distinction was based largely on the
socioeconomics standing or
social class of the performers or audience of
the different types of music. For example, whereas the audience for
Classical symphony concerts typically have above-average incomes,
the audience for a rap concert in an inner-city area may have
below-average incomes. Even though the performers, audience, or
venue where non-"art" music is performed may have a lower
socioeconomic status, the music that is performed, such as blues,
rap,
punk,
funk, or
ska may be very complex and sophisticated.
When composers introduce styles of music which break with
convention, there can be a strong resistance from academic music
experts and popular culture. Late-period Beethoven string quartets,
Stravinsky
ballet scores,
serialism,
bebop-era jazz,
hip hop, punk rock, and
electronica have
all been considered non-music by some critics when they were first
introduced. Such themes are examined in the
sociology of music. The sociological study of
music, sometimes called
sociomusicology, is often pursued in
departments of sociology, media studies, or music, and is closely
related to the field of
ethnomusicology.
Media and technology
The music that composers make can be heard through several
media; the most traditional way is to hear it
live, in the presence, or as one of the musicians. Live music can
also be broadcast over the
radio,
television or the
Internet. Some musical styles focus on producing a
sound for a performance, while others focus on producing a
recording which mixes together sounds which were never played
"live". Recording, even of styles which are essentially live, often
uses the ability to edit and splice to produce recordings which are
considered better than the actual performance.
As
talking pictures emerged in the early
20th century, with their prerecorded musical tracks, an increasing
number of moviehouse orchestra musicians found themselves out of
work. During the 1920s live musical performances by orchestras,
pianists, and
theater organists were common at first-run
theaters. With the coming of the talking motion pictures, those
featured performances were largely eliminated. The
American Federation of
Musicians (AFM) took out newspaper advertisements protesting
the replacement of live musicians with mechanical playing devices.
One 1929 ad that appeared in the
Pittsburgh Press features an image of
a can labeled "Canned Music / Big Noise Brand / Guaranteed to
Produce No Intellectual or Emotional Reaction Whatever"
Since legislation introduced to help protect performers, composers,
publishers and producers, including the
Audio Home Recording Act of 1992 in
the United States, and the 1979 revised
Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic
Works in the United Kingdom, recordings and live performances
have also become more accessible through computers, devices and
Internet in a form that is commonly known as
Music-On-Demand.
In many cultures, there is less distinction between performing and
listening to music, since virtually everyone is involved in some
sort of musical activity, often communal. In industrialized
countries, listening to music through a recorded form, such as
sound recording or
watching a
music video, became more
common than experiencing live performance, roughly in the middle of
the 20th century.
Sometimes, live performances incorporate prerecorded sounds. For
example, a
disc jockey uses
disc records for
scratching, and some 20th century works have a
solo for an instrument or voice that is performed along with music
that is prerecorded onto a tape.
Computers
and many
keyboards can be
programmed to produce and play
Musical Instrument Digital
Interface (MIDI) music. Audiences can also
become
performers by participating in
karaoke, an
activity of Japanese origin which centres around a device that
plays voice-eliminated versions of well-known songs. Most karaoke
machines also have video screens that show lyrics to songs being
performed; performers can follow the lyrics as they sing over the
instrumental tracks.
Internet
The advent of the
Internet has transformed
the experience of music, partly through the increased ease of
access to music and the increased choice.
Chris Anderson, in his book
The
Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More,
suggests that while the economic model of
supply and demand describes scarcity, the
Internet retail model is based on abundance.
Digital storage costs are low, so a
company can afford to make its whole inventory available online,
giving customers as much choice as possible. It has thus become
economically viable to offer products that very few people are
interested in. Consumers' growing awareness of their increased
choice results in a closer association between listening tastes and
social identity, and the creation of thousands of
niche markets.
Another effect of the Internet arises with
online communities like
YouTube and
MySpace. MySpace
has made
social networking with other
musicians easier, and greatly facilitates the distribution of one's
music. YouTube also has a large community of both amateur and
professional musicians who post videos and comments. Professional
musicians also use YouTube as a free publisher of promotional
material. YouTube users, for example, no longer only download and
listen to
MP3s, but also actively create their
own. According to
Don Tapscott and
Anthony D. Williams, in their book
Wikinomics, there has been a shift from a
traditional consumer role to what they call a "
prosumer" role, a consumer who both creates and
consumes. Manifestations of this in music include the production of
mashes,
remixes,
and music videos by fans.
Business
The music industry refers to the business industry connected with
the creation and sale of music. It consists of record companies,
labels and
publishers that distribute
recorded music products internationally and that often control the
rights to those products. Some music labels are "
independent," while others are
subsidiaries of larger corporate entities or international
media groups. In the 2000s, the
increasing popularity of listening to music as digital music files
on MP3 players, iPods, or computers, and of trading music on file
sharing sites or buying it online in the form of digital files had
a major impact on the traditional music business. Many smaller
independent CD stores went out of business as music buyers
decreased their purchases of CDs, and many labels had lower CD
sales. Some companies did well with the change to a digital format,
though, such as Apple's
iTunes, an online
store which sells digital files of songs over the Internet.
Education
Non-professional
The incorporation of music training from
preschool to
post secondary education is common in North
America and Europe. Involvement in music is thought to teach basic
skills such as concentration,
counting,
listening, and
cooperation while also
promoting understanding of
language,
improving the ability to
recall information,
and creating an environment more conducive to learning in other
areas. In
elementary schools,
children often learn to play instruments such as the
recorder, sing in small choirs, and learn about the
history of Western art music. In secondary schools students may
have the opportunity to perform some type of musical ensembles,
such as choirs,
marching bands,
concert bands, jazz bands, or
orchestras, and in some school systems, music classes may be
available. Some students also take private
music lessons with a teacher. Amateur musicians
typically take lessons to learn musical rudiments and beginner- to
intermediate-level musical techniques.
At the
university level, students in most
arts and
humanities programs can receive
credit for taking music courses,
which typically take the form of an overview course on the
history of music, or a
music appreciation course that focuses on
listening to music and learning about different musical styles. In
addition, most North American and European universities have some
type of musical ensembles that non-music students are able to
participate in, such as choirs, marching bands, or orchestras.
The study
of Western art music is increasingly common outside of North
America and Europe, such as the Indonesian
Institute of the Arts in Yogyakarta
, Indonesia
, or the classical music programs that are available
in Asian countries such as South Korea, Japan, and China. At
the same time, Western universities and colleges are widening their
curriculum to include music of non-Western cultures, such as the
music of Africa or Bali (e.g.
Gamelan music).
Academia
Musicology is the study of the subject of
music. The earliest definitions defined three sub-disciplines:
systematic musicology,
historical musicology, and comparative
musicology or
ethnomusicology. In
contemporary scholarship, one is more likely to encounter a
division of the discipline into music theory, music history, and
ethnomusicology. Research in musicology has often been enriched by
cross-disciplinary work, for example in the field of
psychoacoustics. The study of music of
non-western cultures, and the cultural study of music, is called
ethnomusicology.
Graduates of undergraduate music programs can go on to further
study in music graduate programs. Graduate degrees include the
Master of Music, the
Master of Arts, the
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) (e.g., in
musicology or music theory), and more recently, the
Doctor of Musical Arts, or DMA. The
Master of Music degree, which takes one to two years to complete,
is typically awarded to students studying the performance of an
instrument, education, voice or composition. The Master of Arts
degree, which takes one to two years to complete and often requires
a
thesis, is typically awarded to
students studying musicology, music history, or music theory.
Undergraduate university degrees in music, including the
Bachelor of Music, the Bachelor of
Music Education, and the
Bachelor of
Arts (with a major in music) typically take three to five years
to complete. These degrees provide students with a grounding in
music theory and music history, and many students also study an
instrument or learn singing technique as part of their
program.
The PhD, which is required for students who want to work as
university professors in musicology, music history, or music
theory, takes three to five years of study after the Master's
degree, during which time the student will complete advanced
courses and undertake research for a dissertation. The DMAis a
relatively new degree that was created to provide a credential for
professional performers or composers that want to work as
university professors in musical performance or composition. The
DMA takes three to five years after a Master's degree, and includes
advanced courses, projects, and performances. In Medieval times,
the study of music was one of the
Quadrivium of the seven
Liberal Arts and considered vital to higher
learning. Within the quantitative Quadrivium, music, or more
accurately
harmonics, was the study of
rational proportions.
Zoomusicology is the study of the
music of non-human animals, or the musical aspects of sounds
produced by non-human animals. As
George
Herzog (1941) asked, "do animals have music?"
François-Bernard Mâche's
Musique, mythe, nature, ou les Dauphins d'Arion (1983), a
study of "ornitho-musicology" using a technique of
Nicolas Ruwet's
Language, musique,
poésie (1972)
paradigmatic
segmentation analysis, shows that
bird songs are organised according to a
repetition-transformation principle. Jean-Jacques Nattiez (1990),
argues that "in the last analysis, it is a human being who decides
what is and is not musical, even when the sound is not of human
origin. If we acknowledge that sound is not organised and
conceptualised (that is, made to form music) merely by its
producer, but by the mind that perceives it, then music is uniquely
human."
Music theory is the study of music, generally in a highly technical
manner outside of other disciplines. More broadly it refers to any
study of music, usually related in some form with compositional
concerns, and may include
mathematics,
physics, and
anthropology. What is most commonly taught in
beginning music theory classes are guidelines to write in the style
of the
common practice
period, or
tonal music. Theory, even
that which studies music of the common practice period, may take
many other forms.
Musical set
theory is the application of mathematical
set theory to music, first applied to
atonal music.
Speculative music theory,
contrasted with
analytic music theory, is devoted to the
analysis and synthesis of music materials, for example
tuning systems, generally as preparation for
composition.
Ethnomusicology
In the West, much of the history of music that is taught deals with
the Western civilization's art music. The history of music in other
cultures ("
world music" or the field of
"ethnomusicology") is also taught in Western universities. This
includes the documented classical traditions of Asian countries
outside the influence of Western Europe, as well as the folk or
indigenous music of various other cultures. Popular styles of music
varied widely from culture to culture, and from period to period.
Different cultures emphasised different
instruments, or techniques, or uses for
music. Music has been used not only for entertainment, for
ceremonies, and for practical and artistic communication, but also
for
propaganda.
There is a host of music classifications, many of which are caught
up in the argument over the definition of music. Among the largest
of these is the division between classical music (or "art" music),
and popular music (or
commercial music - including
rock music,
country music, and
pop
music). Some genres do not fit neatly into one of these "big
two" classifications, (such as folk music, world music, or jazz
music).
As world cultures have come into
greater
contact, their indigenous musical styles have often merged into
new styles. For example, the United States
bluegrass style contains elements from
Anglo-
Irish,
Scottish, Irish,
German and African instrumental and vocal
traditions, which were able to fuse in the United States'
multi-ethnic society. Genres of music are determined as much by
tradition and presentation as by the actual music.
Some works, like
George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, are claimed by both
jazz and classical music, while Gershwin's Porgy and Bess and Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story are claimed by both
opera and the Broadway
musical
tradition. Many current music festivals
celebrate a particular musical genre.
Indian music, for example, is one of
the oldest and longest living types of music, and is still widely
heard and performed in South Asia, as well as internationally
(especially since the 1960s). Indian music has mainly three forms
of classical music,
Hindustani,
Carnatic, and
Dhrupad
styles. It has also a large repertoire of styles, which involve
only percussion music such as the talavadya performances famous in
South India.
Music therapy
Music therapy is an interpersonal
process in which the therapist uses music and all of its
facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and
spiritual—to help clients to improve or maintain their health. In
some instances, the client's needs are addressed directly through
music; in others they are addressed through the relationships that
develop between the client and therapist. Music therapy is used
with individuals of all ages and with a variety of conditions,
including: psychiatric disorders, medical problems, physical
handicaps, sensory impairments, developmental disabilities,
substance abuse, communication disorders, interpersonal problems,
and aging. It is also used to: improve learning, build self-esteem,
reduce stress, support physical exercise, and facilitate a host of
other health-related activities.
One of the earliest mentions of Music Therapy was in
Al-Farabi's (c. 872 - 950) treatise
Meanings
of the Intellect which described the
therapeutic effects of music on the
soul. Music has long been used to help people deal with
their emotions. In the 17th century, the scholar
Robert Burton's
The Anatomy of Melancholy
argued that music and dance were critical in treating
mental illness, especially
melancholia. He noted that music has an
"excellent power ...to expel many other diseases" and he called it
"a sovereign remedy against despair and melancholy". He pointed out
that in Antiquity, Canus, a Rhodian fiddler, used music to "make a
melancholy man merry, ...a lover more enamoured, a religious man
more devout." In November 2006, Dr. Michael J. Crawford and his
colleagues also found that music therapy helped
schizophrenic patients. In the
Ottoman Empire, mental illnesses were treated
with music.
See also
References
- Mousike, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A
Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus
- John Cage, 79, a Minimalist Enchanted With Sound,
Dies
- Nattiez 1990: 47-8, 55
- Son et musique au paléolithique", Pour La Science,. 253, 52-58
(1998)
- The Music of India By Reginald MASSEY,
Jamila MASSEY. Google Books
- "A Theatre Before the World: Performance History at
the Intersection of Hebrew, Greek, and Roman Religious
Processional" The Journal of Religion and Theatre,
Vol. 5, No. 1, Summer 2006.
- Touma (1996), p.170
- Baroque Music by Elaine Thornburgh and
Jack Logan, Ph. D.
- World Music: The Basics By Nidel Nidel, Richard O. Nidel (page
219)
- World History: Societies of the Past By Charles Kahn (page
98)
- World History: Societies of the Past By Charles Kahn (page
11)
- World Music: The Basics By Nidel Nidel, Richard O. Nidel (page
10)
- Alyn Shipton, A New History of Jazz, 2nd. ed.,
Continuum, 2007, pp. 4–5
- Bill Kirchner, The Oxford Companion to Jazz, Oxford
University Press, 2005, Chapter Two.
- allmusic - Rock and Roll
- American Federation of Musicians/History
- Hubbard (1985), p. 429.
- "Canned Music on Trial" part of Duke University's
Ad*Access project.
- Anderson, Chris (2006). The Long Tail: Why the Future of
Business is Selling Less of More. Hyperion. ISBN
1-4013-0237-8.
- Woodall and Ziembroski, 2002
- Amber Haque (2004), "Psychology from Islamic Perspective:
Contributions of Early Muslim Scholars and Challenges to
Contemporary Muslim Psychologists", Journal of Religion and Health
43 (4): 357-377 [363]
- cf. The Anatomy of Melancholy, Robert Burton, subsection 3, on
and after line 3,480, "Music a Remedy"
- Ismenias the Theban, Chiron the centaur, is said to have cured
this and many other diseases by music alone: as now thy do those,
saith Bodine, that are troubled with St. Vitus's Bedlam dance.
Project Gutenberg's The Anatomy of Melancholy, by
Democritus Junior
- "Humanities are the Hormones: A Tarantella Comes to
Newfoundland. What should we do about it?" by Dr. John Crellin,
MUNMED, newsletter of the Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University
of Newfoundland, 1996.
- Aung, Steven K.H., Lee, Mathew H.M., "Music, Sounds, Medicine, and Meditation: An
Integrative Approach to the Healing Arts", Alternative &
Complementary Therapies, Oct 2004, Vol. 10, No. 5:
266-270.
- Dr. Michael J. Crawford page at Imperial
College London, Faculty of Medicine, Department of
Psychological Medicine.
- Treatment of Mental Illnesses With Music Therapy - A
different approach from history
Further reading
- Colles, Henry Cope (1978). The Growth of Music : A Study in
Musical History, 4th ed., London ; New York : Oxford
University Press. ISBN 0-19-316116-8 ( 1913 edition online at Google Books)
- Harwood, Dane (1976). "Universals in Music: A Perspective from
Cognitive Psychology", Ethnomusicology 20, no.
3:521-33.
- Johnson, Julian (2002). Who Needs Classical Music?:
Cultural Choice and Musical Value. Oxford University Press.
ISBN 0-19-514681-6.
- Kertz-Welzel, Alexandra. "Piano Improvisation Develops
Musicianship." Orff-Echo XXXVII No. 1 (2004): 11-14.
- Kertz-Welzel, Alexandra. "The Singing Muse: Three Centuries of
Music Education in Germany." Journal of Historical Research in
Music Education XXVI no. 1 (2004): 8-27.
- Kertz-Welzel, Alexandra. "Didaktik of Music: A German Concept
and its Comparison to American Music Pedagogy." International
Journal of Music Education (Practice) 22 No. 3 (2004):
277-286.
- Kertz-Welzel, Alexandra. "General Music Education in Germany
Today: A Look at How Popular Music is Engaging Students." General
Music Today 18 no. 2 (Winter 2005): 14-16.
- Molino, Jean (1975). "Fait musical
et sémiologue de la musique", Musique en Jeu, no.
17:37-62.
- Nattiez, Jean-Jacques
(1987). Music and Discourse: Toward a Semiology of Music
(Musicologie générale et sémiologue, 1987). Translated by
Carolyn Abbate (1979). ISBN 0-691-02714-5.
- Owen, Harold (2000). Music Theory Resource Book.
Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-511539-2.
- Small, Christopher (1977). Music, Society, Education.
John Calder Publishers, London. ISBN 0-7145-3614-8
- Habib Hassan Touma (1996).
The Music of the Arabs, trans. Laurie Schwartz. Portland,
Oregon: Amadeus Press. ISBN 0-931340-88-8
- Woodall, Laura and Brenda Ziembroski, (2002). Promoting Literacy Through Music.
External links
- BBC
Blast Music For 13-19 year olds interested in learning about,
making, performing and talking about music.
- The Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary, with
definitions, pronunciations, examples, quizzes and simulations
- The
Music-Web Music Encyclopedia, for musicians, composers and
music lovers
- Dolmetsch free online music dictionary, complete, with
references to a list of specialised music dictionaries (by
continent, by instrument, by genre, etc.)
- Musical Terms - Glossary of music terms from
Naxos
- "On Hermeneutical Ethics and Education: Bach als
Erzieher", a paper by Prof. Miguel Ángel Quintana Paz in which
he explains the history of the different views hold about music in
Western societies, since the Ancient Greece to our days.
- Monthly
Online Features From Bloomingdale School of Music, addressing a
variety of musical topics for a wide audience
- Arts and Music Uplifting Society towards
Transformation and Tolerance Articles meant to stimulate
people’s awareness about the peace enhancing, transforming,
communicative, educational and healing powers of music.
- http://www.wikimusicguide.com/