I believe that music is important in our lives. In modern day life we are surrounded by music at various times of the day. At times we may hear no human-made music, but still hear the music of nature.Some may argue that the "songs" of birds, insects and frogs are not music at all but just communication. To that I respond, What is music if not communication? It can be the communication of excitement or sadness. It can be communication of joy, longing, or a religious message. Regardless of the content, I contend that music is a form of communication, not just with animals in the wild, but with humans too.Who has not heard a mother singing softly to her baby? Haven't we all heard a person walking alone as they hum to themselves some comforting tune. I have my own opinions as to why music is important to people, but I really want to know what others think about this. It is present in every culture, no matter how remote and "untouched by civilization".Do you think music is a form of communication for people? If not, what do you think it really is? Do you believe it is important for most if not all people?What makes good music and what makes some music not very good? I am sure you have an opinion if you think about this question.Can music help you learn a language if you learn to sing the words of songs? I have been told that most people remember things that are in the form of songs or chants more readily than words not in such forms. For me that does seem to work well.I would really and truly love to hear your opinions. I know you all have some opinions on music and this is a good chance for you to practice your English by commenting here. There is no need to be shy if you are still a learning to write in English. All learners make mistakes and that is how they improve their language skills. Maybe you can use some words that are new to you and expand your vocabulary.I also ask that you consider posting a link to some favorite music of yours in your comment and telling all of us why it is a favorite. Why do you think music is important or not?
I agree Nazie. Music really is a way to make our selves feel better. No need to apologize about reading this after it was written. That is why our blogs are kept available so everyone can get a chance to read them. It is good to see things from before you joined or you could miss some interesting posts.
Thank you for your comment. :)
Hello Bob! I can so you name.Your theme is very interesting for me. Music is very important to me And I 've always spent a lot of my time listening to music. As a teenager, i had a very good hi-fi system and a lot of tapes, I think of many different types of music: 60's and 70's music, some modern music which i liked and classical music. In the classical field I appreciated and still appreciate very much today, the baroque composers, such as Bach, Vivaldi, So as I am from Russia and I like the music of many composers from the late romantic period Mussorgsky, where listeningto music to pick up ideas and melodies, techniques and playing styles.
I've tried to enjoy whatever music I' ve been presented with, in different situations, and I think that this has widened my musical taste, and also made me more open- minded to music which I wouldn't otherwise have listened to.
Hi Manuela,
I agree about the stimulative as well as calming influence of music. The mother does not start singing a Heavy Metal or loud Rap song to help the baby to calm down and sleep. Likewise, these forms of music may not be appropriate for the mental patients in a ward where they all tend toward some very excitable manic or delusional symptoms.
But, if you are wanting to get up quickly and prepare for some strenuous event like a marathon; go into battle, or to mentally strenuous debate or argument to defend your client in a court of law; the soft soothing song for the baby is not the thing you need.
Thank you also for your comments Expector Smith. I don't know if you saw my comment to mohammed a few hours ago about lyrics being difficult to understand. If I want to sing a song I am learning I sometimes want to sing a word that does not make sense. That used to be a big problem before the internet. Now you can find the lyrics for any song (at least all that I've tried). There are sites in many languages for this but you may have to check ore than one to find your lyrics. I now do a web search with a string of lyrics form a song and then make a copy of them. Many times they have a few small mistakes, but that can be because there is another version of the song. Check those links below if you have something you want to know the words to. Thanks again for your insightful comments.
Yes Karenina, you are right. I asked several questions in hopes that at least one of them would get a thoughtful response from people. You have chosen the main question of the topic and given me a wonderful answer. Thank you for commenting and if you have any others you would like to answer please do comment some more.
1.I just wonder how important it's to our daily lives. My son loves music. I saw him listening to it even when he was busy doing his homework.
2. When do you feel like listening to music most? You may want to listen to it when you just completed a hard task, are suffering an emotional frustration, or just want to relax or entertain.
3. Do you love a song from another culture? You may probably not understand the lyric written in a foreign language.
4. Do you think listening to English songs is a good way to improve your English? I know understanding the lyric can be a real challenge for learners - some singers just murmur the words.
@ Mohammed. Here are some of the multitude of sites where you can look up song lyrics. You can type in some of the words and search, or use the title or the artist. On some you must select the category for the search box and others you just type in and search. This is how I try to deal with a song when I am unsure of a word.
That is true Mohammed, we do see a lot of slang in music and that is not as easy to understand since it may not be in an English grammar book. Also in songs the pronunciation of a word may be difficult to translate into spelling so you can look up the word.
I think that liking the music is not as important as understanding the wording when you are using it to help you learn a language. So you may find that some music you like is not as easy to understand as other music you do not care so much for.
Let me offer you two suggestions:
1. Look for some songs you can understand better (maybe a little slower and more like a ballad [I know...boring] where the words are enunciated a little better).
2. Use a search engine to find lyrics for songs you may want to learn. Use "name of song , lyrics" or the "performer, lyrics" and the search should take you to one of the sites which lists lyrics. If you understand a line of the song and don't know the name, that line can be typed in and will often be enough for your search.
If you have trouble finding something just ask me or one of the others here on the site. That is what your friends are for and researching words helps them as much as you.
I will comment and say that the favorite instrumental piece of music for my wife is the same as mine. It is called Rhapsody in Blue, by George Gershwin. We had a really good version of it by some unknown orchestra on cassette tape and it seemed important to us to play it at the birth of our children. So we had a small tape player and so the first sounds each of our children heard was that one version of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. Did it help the children in any way to hear this as their first sounds of the outside world? I can't answer that, but here is a link to an original performance by Gershwin (in 1927 I think) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U40xBSz6Dc
Comments
Thank you for your comment. :)
I've tried to enjoy whatever music I' ve been presented with, in different situations, and I think that this has widened my musical taste, and also made me more open- minded to music which I wouldn't otherwise have listened to.
Thanks.
I agree about the stimulative as well as calming influence of music. The mother does not start singing a Heavy Metal or loud Rap song to help the baby to calm down and sleep. Likewise, these forms of music may not be appropriate for the mental patients in a ward where they all tend toward some very excitable manic or delusional symptoms.
But, if you are wanting to get up quickly and prepare for some strenuous event like a marathon; go into battle, or to mentally strenuous debate or argument to defend your client in a court of law; the soft soothing song for the baby is not the thing you need.
-Nadiyah-
1.I just wonder how important it's to our daily lives. My son loves music. I saw him listening to it even when he was busy doing his homework.
2. When do you feel like listening to music most? You may want to listen to it when you just completed a hard task, are suffering an emotional frustration, or just want to relax or entertain.
3. Do you love a song from another culture? You may probably not understand the lyric written in a foreign language.
4. Do you think listening to English songs is a good way to improve your English? I know understanding the lyric can be a real challenge for learners - some singers just murmur the words.
http://www.songlyrics.com/
http://lyrics.siamtrack.com/
http://www.songmeanings.net/
I think that liking the music is not as important as understanding the wording when you are using it to help you learn a language. So you may find that some music you like is not as easy to understand as other music you do not care so much for.
Let me offer you two suggestions:
1. Look for some songs you can understand better (maybe a little slower and more like a ballad [I know...boring] where the words are enunciated a little better).
2. Use a search engine to find lyrics for songs you may want to learn. Use "name of song , lyrics" or the "performer, lyrics" and the search should take you to one of the sites which lists lyrics. If you understand a line of the song and don't know the name, that line can be typed in and will often be enough for your search.
If you have trouble finding something just ask me or one of the others here on the site. That is what your friends are for and researching words helps them as much as you.