> -----Original Message----- > From: skkatter [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: 04 November 2005 09:53 > > But what *is* the difference between sound and music? Maybe > the difference is just your interpretation of it. Somebody > mentioned Autechre a while ago, I'll use that as one example. > Anybody ever hear the Gantz_Graf track they did? I think > that's music, but I'd never in a million year be able to > convince my parents that it was. (have a listen to it, it's > pretty much all timestretched drills and delay > effects) > > Now take some whale noises recorded by a mic in the sea, does > that sound musical to us? I bet to the whales it just sounds > like whale talk. Could this be with same with bird "song"? > > I remember reading an interview with My Bloody Valentine's > front man Kevin Sheilds many years ago (before he become a > complete recluse) where he said that he kept hearing music > around London, in the subways, on the streets, trains passing > him in certain ways sounded musical. This was before I'd ever > heard of musique concrete or John Cage or any eletronic music > and I was thinking "What the hell is he on about!? Music > without playing a guitar or a keyboard? That's nuts!" > > I'd be of the opinion that a persons interpretation of the > sound is what makes it music, to them.
Hear, hear! BOOM BOOM! Jason started the humour in this thread - what a good thing, surely this is proof that after discussing things for a long time we don't have to end up mentioning whatever-that-law-says-we-will but I think here end up coming to a bit of a consensus and having a laugh. Maybe not everyone agrees with me saying there's a consensus but I bet a fair few have ended up like me thinking "yeah I guess I knew all along where you draw the line is in your head based on your basic make up + experience = mood which gives your taste". Maybe more simple and obvious music (a simple melody played on a simple but strong instrument) leaves less room for manoeuvre - ie. we always hear what the composer intended but once things start getting more complex there's an initial composer and another one in our head - and maybe (sometimes I'm telling myself this is what is going on) the one in our heads fills in the gaps as the initial composer intended but other times maybe something else happens. Ie. in this discussion I'd generally fall in the camp that said I don't find normal city sounds to be music. But I know I could go and take a load of LSD and wander round hearing music (containing shed loads of "emotion" - even if no one "put it there"!) where I only heard noise before. The difference is what's happening in my head and since all of our heads are different and even within then work differently over our lives / moods / environment / experiences we're never going to agree on this one are we?
