What is music anyways? Is it simply sound that is arranged into a song? The phrase “that’s music to my ears” implies that music is more than sounds, more than a song, it’s refreshing, pleasant, soul-stirring if you will.
Yet, we live in a world where music is almost always in the background. It’s in coffeeshops. It’s in grocery stores. It’s the soundtrack of our lives, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. We finally take out the ear buds to an iPhone only to find music piping through the speakers at Jewel-Osco.
This backround music is often called “muzac” especially when it’s instrumentals. This music is meant to be in the background, it’s often well-known songs done in an expressive manner with some soothing saxophone.
With so much music everywhere, it begs the question, is it really music? Or is it a form of muzac, or is muzac to you music to me? Millions of songs available on Spotify and iTunes, yet, few things I hear are “music” to my ears.
You know what I mean?