Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!mcsun!ukc!tcdcs!swift.cs.tcd.ie!vax1.tcd.ie!rdempsey
From: rdempsey@vax1.tcd.ie
Newsgroups: comp.music
Subject: Re: Do you have to be a Musician to enjoy Music ?
Message-ID: <6499.269b20c6@vax1.tcd.ie>
Date: 11 Jul 90 12:51:18 GMT
References: <522@quad.sialis.mn.org> <4307@milton.u.washington.edu> <889@artsnet.UUCP> <4860@milton.u.washington.edu>
Organization: Computer Laboratory, Trinity College Dublin
Lines: 22

> 2a)  Does knowledge distract from enjoyment of music?
> 2b)  Does knowledge add to the enjoyment of music?

My view is that knowledge of music can distract from the specific
enjoyment of music but adds to the general enjoyment. The knowledge
can lead one to say that a given performance is *bad* which will lessen
the enjoyment experienced, but only for that particular performance.
In the broader case, a greater appreciation is felt if one has an 
understanding of what is happening.

An interesting related question is about how music affects us
emotionally. Usually, dark or sad music is linked with minor keys
and happy, bright music with major keys. Do our emotions sense this
because the keys inherently have this feeling linked to them or is
it due to programming - we have (since birth) heard those keys
linked to those emotions? Does our mind tell us if this is in a
minor key it should therefore sum up a given set of emotions or is
the music bypassing that logical, reasoning stage? It is known that
listening to music can easily induce a trance-like state where the
concious mind has, so to speak, switched off.

Jeffrey.