| Music |
A painting on an Ancient Greek vase depicts a music lesson (c. 510 BC).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Music is an
art form whose
medium is
sound and silence. Its common elements 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").
[1]
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 personal interpretation, and occasionally controversial. Within
the arts, music may be classified as a
performing art, a
fine art, and auditory art. It may also be divided among
art music and
folk music. There is also a strong connection between
music and mathematics.
[2] Music may be played and heard live, may be part of a
dramatic work or
film, or may be recorded.
To many people in many cultures, music is an important part of their way of life.
Ancient Greek and
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."
[3] Musicologist
Jean-Jacques Nattiez summarizes the relativist, post-modern viewpoint: "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."
[4]
No comments
No comments
PHOTOS: Train's Artist Jukebox Session
