3: Unit 1- Instrumental Music and "Absolute" Music

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Unit 1: Instrumental Music

What is "Absolute" Music?

In modern society and popular culture, we often associate music with "songs." Songs are what we hear on the radio, at the supermarket or mall, and many of us listen to our favorite songs on our iPods/iPhones/mp3 player/cassette player (if you're into retro technology).

But songs are only a certain type of music. Songs are sung by a person's voice, and include text. The text is often written in a verse form, and often times, tells a story.

Our society has the tendency to attach a story to all music because we're so inundated with songs in our everyday life.

But what about instrumental music? There's no words --- so is there a story to the music?

As we listen to the music in Unit 1, you may find yourself attaching a "story" to the music you're listening to. TRY NOT TO ATTACH A STORY TO THE MUSIC AS YOU LISTEN!

While some music is written in such a way that it "tells a story" (this is called "program music," and is discussed in Unit 2) the music we're studying here is purely abstract. There is no story to the music we're listening to, unless the composer provides it! Some scholars call this "absolute music." This term refers to music that is purely non-representational, and non-narratively based. The beauty and the art of the music that we're listening to is purely rooted in the sounds and their organization.

This of course does not mean that there's no emotion behind this music. Music can make us happy, sad, nostalgic, excited, angry, or may induce other emotions. We may attach our own memories, thoughts, personal experiences, and events as we listen to music, but the music itself is not telling a story.