Learn More About Music
I recall when I first started studying the history of music, I did not know what I was getting into. I had a notion that music history was somewhat of a trivial pursuit. In fact, I only took my history of classical music class because I wanted the credits. I did not know how completely interesting music history could be. You see, in our culture many of us do not actually study to comprehend music. For much of the world, music is a language, but for our civilization it is a thing that we consumed passively. When I started to study about the history of Western music, however, it changed all that for me. I have had some experience playing musical instruments, but I have not mastered one enough to really appreciate what music is all about. This class taughed me.
When most of us think about the music history, we think of the history of rock music. We assume that the history is simple because the music is simple. Actually, neither is the case. The history of music, whether you’re talking about classical music, rock music, jazz music, or any other kind, is always complicated. New chord structures are introduced carrying with them new ways of comprehending the world. New rhythmic patterns are introduced, carrying with them new methods of understanding time. And music reflects all of it.
Even when the class was ended, I could not stop learning about the history of music. It had whetted my appetite, and I wanted more. I got all the music history volumes that I could discover.
