What Is The Ultimate Melody?

Personal preference (Photo credit: kevin dooley)

        In my previous Battle of the Bands post I presented a song based on a movement of a string quartet by classical composer Alexander Borodin.   I purposely resorted to using a classical piece with two more poppish versions of the same melody.  I was pleasantly surprised to see some preference for the original version, but as expected many voters were not overly excited about classical music.

Ask Arlee:

        A frequent commenter at Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends and sometimes commenter at Tossing It Out, one who goes by the name "Sheboyganboy Six", posed this question to me:

 What do you think, Arlee? Is there a musical style that you can think of that makes you feel noble?

        This is an interesting way to think of how music might affect me. If I think of "noble" in the sense of an upright feeling evoked by  that which is of lofty nature with higher ideals and greater intellectual value, then generally speaking classical would be that music.  Most other forms of music--rock, jazz, country, etc--appeal firstly to our more physical nature and might be more apt to relate to the rootsy aspects of humanness. That is not to say any of these styles cannot touch us on a higher intellectual, emotional, and spiritual plane.  There are rock songs, country songs, works of jazz, and other music that I've heard that elevates me in some special way, but as a rule the more popular music styles would not elicit any feeling within me that I would call "noble".   Keep in mind that I am generalizing not only popular musical forms, but also classical music--I don't consider all "classical" music especially "good" or at least not all of it appeals to me.

"The Ultimate Melody" by Arthur C. Clarke

        In the same comment where Sheboyganboy Six posed the above question, he introduced me to a science fiction short story by Arthur C. Clarke.  You can find this story at The Ultimate Melody if you might like to read it--the story is very short (scroll down to about page 24).  The story is about a scientist who is considering what it is that makes a song become popular and speculates what might happen if the one perfect song were ever to be discovered.

          So much music now seems almost manufactured as though it had been composed by a computer program  I suppose there is some music that actually has been computer generated.  Is this music good?   Has music become better with computer enhancement?   Where might we be headed with music in the future?

How Does Musical Preference Come About?

          The question of why people like the music they like is huge--much bigger than can be fit into one blog post.  Instead of trying to answer this question with my inadequate research, I will offer some basic premises based on what some of you have said and what I have surmised based on my own observations.  For some of you I am probably stating the obvious, but this list is a place to begin:

• Cultural--We will be typically inclined to prefer music of our cultural heritage and ethnicity, or at least have a sentimental attachment to it.
• Regional or Geographical--A good many Americans from the South might prefer country while people from urban areas might prefer urban, club, or jazz.  Or certain areas of South America will have specific musical styles.   This is generally true in many parts of the world.
• Musical upbringing--If music played an important role in our household as we were growing up we might be apt to appreciate the styles of music we grew up with.
• Peer influence--People are likely to gain an affinity for the music their friends are listening to as well as whatever is trending with those of their generation.
• Media and influence of popular culture--This would be related to peer influence.  Whatever begins to trend in certain groups may be pushed further by media, public events, and the entertainment culture.
• Educational influence--Music appreciation classes and music academics introduce styles of music that are embraced by members in those strata of society.
• Conditioning by repetition--We may hear music played repeatedly until it becomes familiar to us and we associate it with various feelings and memories.
• Positive sensory effects produced by music-- When music causes a pleasant sensation then we are apt to like it.  This can be evident in rhythms, tonal progressions, or harmonies.  Is it easy to dance to or sing along with?   If we respond positively to a piece of music then we probably like it.
• The Unknown Factor--This can be a result of a combination of two or more of the previously mentioned concepts or something not mentioned in this list.

What About Music We Say We Don't Like?

      By no means is the previous list definitive.  There are undoubtedly many other reasons we like what we like.  When we hear something and immediately know that we like the music we are hearing, it is most likely rooted in some aspect of the list that I've offered.  But what about those things we don't like?   Here's another similar list that might explain the other side of preference:

• Unfamiliarity--Music that is unfamiliar or unnatural sounding to us because of cultural, regionality, or style that we are not accustomed to hearing might initially be rejected by our ears and mind.
• Musical antagonism--This could be rooted in a sort of prejudice or a discomfort with particular ethnicities or cultures.
• Peer or familial rejection of a style--We may not like something because our friends or family don't like it.
• Not part of musical mainstream--If a particular style of music is not popular in the media or with the public in general we might be apt to reject it as well.
• Lack of understanding or education about a musical style--This is particularly true of classical and jazz.  If we haven't taken time to learn something about the music and haven't tried to understand it then we might decide that we do not like it.  Some music is more difficult than other kinds and requires a certain amount of musical education which in turn requires patience and a willingness to learn.
• Preconceived notions--Sometimes we might reject certain music because we have an unfounded or unreasonable opinion already devised within our minds.
• Stubborn refusal to like a style of music--Many people will just say they don't like such and such style of music because that's what they've always believed and said and they are unwilling to make an honest attempt to learn to enjoy a certain musical style.

  

What's the Conclusion?

   

          Sure, I've generalized greatly on both the like and dislike aspects of music, but this is only a place to start.  There have undoubtedly been a number of studies done and books written on this topic.  In my future Battle of the Bands posts I'm sure to get more negative comments about the songs I choose, but I hope that more often those negatives will be accompanied by some sound reasoning.  

        When you start wondering why you like what you like and don't like what you don't like, you might just start to realize that you are dealing with some illogical reasoning if there is any reasoning to be had at all.   I find it difficult to accept "just because" as an answer.   It may have worked for me when I was a kid, but when you dig down deep you realize that there is never a "just because". 

Coming This Sunday June 15th!

          The next Battle of the Bands entries will be presented this coming Sunday June 15th.   My song selection and versions chosen will be unlikely to create as much controversy as my previous Battle.  Instead I will be sticking with an appropriate Sunday song that is more rooted to the Earth in musical style, but looking into the furthest reaches of the universe and the infinite span of time.  The song is by one of my favorite singer/songwriters.   He is an artist classified as folk/rock who has been recording for about 40 years and continues to maintain an almost cult-like following.   It is not Bruce Springsteen.

          With the clues I've provided does anyone care to guess the artist and song?   I think Larry Cavanaugh might have a good idea who it is since he is so knowledgeable about modern music and has a sense about my musical taste.  Anyone else?

          Do you have any other like/don't like reasons to add to my lists above?   What song do you think comes closest to being an "Ultimate Melody"?   Other than to appease the questions of a child, do you think that "Just Because" is ever a reasonable answer or is it just an easy way of not having to think more deeply about a question?

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