The Challenge of "Culture"

[innerSpaceman]

[This may be the first of many double posts, as I am just having time now to respond to this fantastic thread ... which I'm glad is seeing a bit of a resurgence (since I missed it the first time around).]



I think one of the reasons I prefer music over visual arts is that music can be heard everywhere and anywhere. I do not need to go to a gallery or a museum to experience music.

And while it is true that live music is appreciably better than recorded music, I do not feel anyone is missing the essence of a musical piece if they are listening to a reproduced version that's been recorded. The same cannot be said of art. Most artworks I have seen are far, far different in person ... with say a photographic or print representation being a mere 2-D image of a three-dimensional work (even "flat" paintings owe so much to the texture of the work).


Photography may be one of the world's great achievements for its ability to provide images of things that people might not otherwise see. But recorded music is, imo, a far greater miracle of human endeavor. Think of how much less music would be in each of our lives if our experiences of live music were our only experiences of music. How much richer are our lives than those of our ancestors now that music is transferable, portable, everywhere, and at our fingertips!?!