Hearing and listening
In this chapter, the book moves from discussing the concept of ‘making music’ to ‘using music’ and the intentions or purposes of the receiver of the music for using or consuming it. The previous chapters have established the idea that music creates both an aural domain which imposes seclusion and an instrument which creates social bond and cooperation. This chapter defines and explores the common approaches to listening to music and discusses how music can be used for ‘structural listening’ and for ‘art for art's sake’. Sociological and psychological perspectives on listening to music suggest that music performs a range of psychological and sociological functions for those who consume it. Far from being autonomous or functionless, the chapter argues that studies have shown clear-cut pieces of evidence showing that music affords important uses to individual and groups of listeners.
Keywords: standard music theory, musical analysis, Ferdinand de Saussure, hearing meanings
Oxford Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .