A simple thought: music can be more than diversion and distraction.
There is music for the dance floor, church, concert hall, bar, coffee house and grocery store. There are personal listening devices that plug directly into the ear. At home and at work, there is music.
For some, but not all.
Music has its place, yet the art of sound can be more than this, as an enhancement to contemplative thought and a compliment to aesthetically pleasing surroundings. Rather than demand the listener's focus, the composer would do well to work against the grain of musical excess and creatively evoke atmospheres that liberate thinking and elevate state of mind.
There is music for the dance floor, church, concert hall, bar, coffee house and grocery store. There are personal listening devices that plug directly into the ear. At home and at work, there is music.
But considering its purposes, one must return to entertainment and, at times, escape, usually from the pressures of the day. Music takes hold of the attention, and the listener is absorbed by rhythm, melody, harmony, percussion, and dramatic effects. For some, these are the absolutely essential elements of musical merit, the raison d'être of music itself.
For some, but not all.
Music has its place, yet the art of sound can be more than this, as an enhancement to contemplative thought and a compliment to aesthetically pleasing surroundings. Rather than demand the listener's focus, the composer would do well to work against the grain of musical excess and creatively evoke atmospheres that liberate thinking and elevate state of mind.
