A Simple question that involves Science, Math, and Philosophy

[Non_Comformist]

Zeno,

obviously the simple answer is because it is enjoyable but when I asked the next question why is it enjoyable it was not so obvious.

For me it seems that I associate certain feelings and memories to music. And listening to music allows me a relaitively stress free and safe way to trigger those thoughts and feelings. Also it the desire to listen to music goes beyond enjoyable because some of the feelings or memories are not pleasant at all, some are quite unpleasant. There must be some type of release that comes with being able to experience thigns without actually having to go through the real thing that humans want. Perhaps music serves as part drug (pleasing) part trainer allowing us to self teach on how to deal with feelings and part councilor helping us deal with past events.

music what a wonderful thing when you think about it.

[Cyrus]

[ QUOTE ]
Why do you listen to music?

[/ QUOTE ]

I listen to music because I get a big kick out of it. Or I'm in a mood to, whatever that mood may be. Or I'm forced to, every time I go shop for something.

We listen to music because it elaborates our feelings and our thoughts about ourselves and about the world without the intrusion of specificity, rational thinking or organised expression of ideas.

(Please note that poetry, including music lyrics, in general, does not fall under those categories.)

[Zeno]

[ QUOTE ]
How does this involve science, math, and philosophy.

[/ QUOTE ]

The prelude title to the question is off key. In fact the question is poorly done for what I was initially intending to ask, but perhaps I was predestined to make this mistake.

-Zeno

[Zeno]

I am listening to the 'Best of Neil Young" at this late hour while I am typing out this response. Perhaps there is some scientific explaination for this. Or not, nor need be.

-Zeno

[Zeno]

Thanks for the responses.

-Zeno

Gives me pleasure. Pleasure is pleasurable.

Because record company executives realize that they can stimulate our brains by incessantly repeating the same orchestration of audible frequencies until it becomes pleasurably familiar. This creates a temporary "addiction" to the particular set of sounds, which subsequently makes us throw our hard-earned dollars at their feet. Thank god for p2p.

....and soon it does not matter, soon the why and the reason are gone, and all that matters is the feeling itself.

-The Merovingian

[Myrtle]

I listen to music because, to me, it seems to be an alternate mode of communication between us which gives me great pleasure.

Music touches me in places that words rarely do.

How do you describe your 'experience' when you listen to Prokofiev's 5th Symphony.....or Mahler's 3rd........or "Abbey Road'......or...well, the list can go on forever?

For me, and I don't believe I'm alone in this, there is some sort of an unique evocative experience that music gives to me that I rarely experience in any other fashion, with perhaps the exception of some forms of poetry.

Does a certain series of notes or chords send shivers up and down your spine?

If so, did you ever wonder why?

Is is possible that each of us has an unique set of receptors that are tuned to respond to sympathetic resonances?

I wonder about such things, but I really don't know.

[Cooker]

[ QUOTE ]


How do you describe your 'experience' when you listen to Prokofiev's 5th Symphony.....or Mahler's 3rd........or "Abbey Road'......or...well, the list can go on forever?



[/ QUOTE ]

I think you have good taste in music.

I have no answer to the OP. I also find comedy unusually human and pointless, but I like it as well.

[spaminator101]

Hum, perhaps you were. [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]