The Music Portal
Music is the art of arranging sound. It is one of the universal cultural aspects of all human societies. Music may be defined with styles that emphasize, de-emphasize, or omit common elements of organized sound, such as rhythm, volume and pitch. Rhythm may be specified with tempos, sometimes organized using meters, and often coordinating the variation and juxtaposition of pitch. Individual sounds possess timbres or texture, which heavily contribute to the music's overall character.
The relationships and divisions between genres are inexact and sometimes hotly contested, as in taxonomy. The mere existence or legitimacy of a genre may be a topic of controversy. It is sometimes more valuable to categorize music by era, scene, intent, or artistic inspiration. Individual periods of music are separated into pieces, which can be categorized into numerous traditions, such as songs, tracks, symphonies, or so forth. Pieces may be composed and performed using a vast range of instruments, including the human voice. There are solely instrumental pieces, solely vocal pieces, pieces that combine singing and instruments, pieces with no sound, randomly generated pieces, and even pieces merely specifying an environment with no further sonic organization.
In some musical contexts, a performance or composition may be to some extent improvised. For instance, in Hindustani classical music, the performer plays spontaneously while following a partially defined structure and using characteristic motifs. In modal jazz the performers may take turns leading and responding, while sharing a changing set of notes. In a free jazz context, there may be no structure whatsoever, with each performer acting at their discretion. Music may be deliberately composed to be unperformable, or agglomerated electronically from many performances. Music is played in public and private areas, highlighted at events such as festivals, rock concerts, and orchestra performance, and heard incidentally as part of a score or soundtrack to a film, TV show, opera, or video game. Musical playback is the primary function of an MP3 player or CD player and a universal feature of radios and smartphones. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that Artem Datsyshyn, the National Opera of Ukraine's principal dancer in ballets such as Swan Lake and La Bayadère, is said to have danced with "romantic sublimity" and "psychological depth"?
- ... that New York's Wieting Opera House burnt down and was rebuilt on three separate occasions by its proprietors, John Wieting and Mary Elizabeth Wieting?
- ... that during a German charity concert for Ukraine, Slovakian singer Judita Nagyová performed a solo in the finale of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony?
- ... that Luigi Gaggero conducted the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra in Germany in April 2022, restoring Lyatoshynsky's Symphony No. 3 to its 1951 version, with the last movement themed "Peace will conquer war"?
- ... that after George Alexander Albrecht collapsed when conducting Beethoven's Ninth Symphony during a New Year's concert, he returned to composing and began hospice work?
- ... that South African anti-apartheid activist Ebrahim Ismail Ebrahim confused warders at the Robben Island maximum security prison by playing Bollywood music?
Today's Birthdays
- Birthdays in Music: June 17
- Chuck Rainey, (born Charles Walter Rainey III) American bassist of Steely Dan, turns 82.
- Barry Manilow, American singer and songwriter, turns 76.
- Tom Varner, American french horn player, turns 65.
- Kendrick Lamar, (born Kendrick Lamar Duckworth) American rapper, turns 35.
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WikiProjects connected with music: WikiProject Music – Songs – Albums – Alternative music - Classical music – Composers – Contemporary Christian music – Contemporary music – Electronic music – Emo music – Hip hop – Instruments – Led Zeppelin - Metal music – Jazz – Musicians – Opera – Panic at the Disco – Powderfinger (band) – Punk music – Record Labels – Record Production – Rock music – R&B and Soul Music – Terminology – The Beatles
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Improve an article: See the Music Noticeboard for a list of tasks.
Start a music course: School of Music at Wikiversity
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