MUSIC

Musicis anartform andculturalactivity whose medium issoundandsilence. The

common elements of music arepitch(which governsmelodyandharmony),rhythm
(and its associated conceptstempo,meter, andarticulation),dynamics(loudness and
softness), and the sonic qualities oftimbreandtexture(which are sometimes termed
the "color" of a musical sound). Differentstyles or typesof music may emphasize, deemphasize or omit some of these elements. Music is performed with a vast range of
instrumentsand with vocal techniques ranging fromsingingtorapping, and there are
solelyinstrumental pieces,solely vocal pieces(such assongswithout instrumental
accompaniment) and pieces that combine singing and instruments. The word derives
fromGreek(mousike; "art of theMuses").[1]In its most general form, the
activities describing music as an art form include the production of works of music
(songs, tunes,symphonies, and so on), thecriticism of music, the
study of the history of music, and theaesthetic examination of music.Ancient Greek
andIndian philosophersdefined music as tones ordered horizontally as melodies and
vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as "theharmony of the spheres" and
"it is music to my ears" point to the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to
listen to. However, 20th-century composerJohn Cagethought that any sound can be
music, saying, for example, "There is nonoise, only sound."[2]

 The creation,performance, significance, and even thedefinition of musicvary according to

culture and social context. Indeed, throughout history, some new forms or styles of music
have been criticized as "not being music", includingBeethoven'sGrosse Fugestring quartet
in 1825,[3]earlyjazzin the beginning of the 1900s[4]andhardcore punkin the 1980s.[5]
There are many types of music, includingpopular music,traditional music,art music,
music written for religious ceremonies andwork songssuch aschanteys. Music ranges from
strictly organized compositionssuch asClassical musicsymphonies from the 1700s and
1800s, through to spontaneously playedimprovisational musicsuch asjazz, and
avant-gardestyles ofchance-basedcontemporary musicfrom the 20th and 21st centuries.
Music can be divided intogenres(e.g.,country music) and genres can be further divided
intosubgenres(e.g.,country bluesandpop countryare two of the many country
subgenres), although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often
subtle, sometimes open to personal interpretation, and occasionally controversial. For
example, it can be hard to draw the line between some early 1980shard rockand
heavy metal. Withinthe arts, music may be classified as aperforming art, afine artor as
an auditory art. Music may be played or sung and heard live at arock concertororchestra
performance, heard live as part of adramatic work(amusic theatershow oropera), or it
may be recorded and listened to on aradio,MP3 player,CD player,Smartphoneor as
film scoreorTV show.