The Art of Music

Music is the art of arranging sounds in periodic time so
as to produce a continuous, unified, and evocative
composition, as through melody, harmony, rhythm, and
timbre.

It is also the vocal or instrumental sounds possessing a
degree of melody, harmony, or rhythm. Music can also
be when an aesthetically pleasing or harmonious sound
or combination of sounds are produced example the
music of the water falling from a tap in a vessel.

Most of the time music is kept in memory and
performance only. If handed down orally, this music
may be considered "traditional" or not considered
composed by individuals. Different musical traditions
have different attitudes towards how and where to
make changes to the original source. If the music is
written down, it is generally in some manner which
attempts to capture both what should be heard by
listeners, and what the musician should do to perform
the music.

In most of the parts of the world music is a part of
everyday life. Chanting and singing during religious
rites and festivals are very common. Music as a
performing art is very usual among Indians. It was also
among the seventeenth-century New England settlers
who used music during their religious observances by
chanting psalms in the meeting house as an important
communal activity.

By the end of the century psalm singing had become
dissonant since worshipers could no longer read the
musical patterns in the religious book. The right
rendering of tunes was of lesser importance than
religious passion so many ministers and musical
refreshers, observed the teaching of musical notation to
restore order in the community. Regular singing soon
gave rise to the development of singing schools and the
creation of music for secular entertainment.

The revolutionary war saw a flowering of musical
creativity. Supporters of the American cause quite often
changed the words of British songs, such as "Yankee
Doodle," to taunt their adversaries. The immediate post
revolutionary cultural climate was one of optimism that
Americans could create their own culture free of English
influence.

In the 1850s, the call for an independent American
music was heard again, this time from a composer
whose New York lectures in the early fifties inspired an
interest in the development of an American musical
language. But the drive for cultural independence fell
short.

With the wars came the marches and sentimental
songs that spoke of home, wives, mothers and children
became popular. Composers and entrepreneurs printed
many of these. In the second half of the century, many
successful American composers had studied in Europe
and adopted the romantic style despite the ongoing
arguments for an American music. Many men who
earned their livelihoods as professors achieved
respectability with works that bore considerable
resemblance to similar pieces being composed in
Europe at the time.

In the end of the century, major orchestras came up in
New York. Smaller communities observed
performances by local bands, which reflected the
popular taste for dances, marches, and synchronizing
excerpts. The troupes moving throughout the country,
performed combined comedic episodes, scenes from
Shakespeare's plays, dancing, and minstrel songs
performed in black face.

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