Extended Definition Paper: Music

Picture walking into the fanciest restaurant in town for the first time. As you walk in through the huge doors, you feel the heat rush through the opening. The restaurant smells of hundreds of different types of foods being prepared. All that is heard is the sound of forks and knives clinking on their plates, people talking, and orders being taken. What's missing? Music! Without music in the background setting the mood and harmony of the restaurant, the tone is bold and boring. Music plays a much larger role in today's society than many people would really like to believe. People listen to the radio, watch T.V., and even listen to music in restaurants! Overall, music has many more positive effects on the world than negative.

Music does, in fact, have a more positive effect on the world than negative, but most people aren't aware of it because they have a difficult time defining such an abstract concept. When the common person is asked to define music, they wouldn't even have a clue! The vast majority of the population thinks that music is only the songs that are heard on the radio, and seen on T.V. The dictionary says that music is "An art of sound in time that expresses ideas and emotions in significant forms through the elements of rhythm, melody, harmony, and color." Many sounds that occur throughout the day could be known as music, and the general person wouldn't even realize it. Music has many different ways of playing its role.

Not only does music come in many forms, but the way it gets to us is very important. For instance, picture going completely without music for one week. This would mean to be without all music on T.V., music at work, music in stores, etc. Eventually, life would get extremely boring and repetitive! Music does many different things for us, and satisfies different people in different ways, but most everyone can agree that the effects of music are almost entirely positive. In the abstinence of music, people would all realize how important music is to everyone.

Along with the great importance of music, are the many different types of music present in today's media. There are a countless number of "genres" or general types of music. Some of these are: Rap, Rock, Hip-Hop, Rhythm and Blues (R&B), Hard Rock, Alternative Rock, Blues, Pop, Jazz, etc. Each genre has a different style, and effects people in different ways. Some genres tend to be faster and more lyrical, while some tend to effect people with the overall non-lyrical tones in the music. For example, Rock is a very broad category, and is expressed in many different ways. Some groups enjoy screaming at the top of their lungs, while some prefer to speak in a softer tone. Jazz, on the other hand, is much less lyrical. Most of the mood in jazz is set through the tones of instruments in the background. Listeners have different preferences in the way the artists express their music.

Along with the many different types of music comes the fact that music can often determine one's mood and tone. Music can influence different people in many different ways. A song that makes someone happy or enlightened may often make another person saddened and depressed. People who are able to let their emotions out through listening to and interpreting music instead of on other people tend to be a lot happier with life. This is because people really need to get their emotions out, but don't like talking about them with other people, and music is their way of venting their emotions out.

Now think back to the restaurant. Walking into a business, after knowing the true definition of music and its effects on people, would you truly hear the music in the background? Once everyone realizes how important music is, everyone will have a better understanding of its positive effects. Music comes in many different forms, and is expressed in many different types of ways. People are in turn affected many different ways by the music they listen to. Overall, music has many more positive effects on people than it does negative. Next time while listening to music, stop to think about how much of a positive effect the music has on the public, and how many different ways music can effect people's emotions.