There is a lot that could be said about music; over the ages volumes have been written and spoken about it. A dictionary definition of music might read as: "beautiful, pleasing, or interesting arrangements of sounds, especially as produced by the voice or instruments." Besides being pleasurable and enjoyable to one of our primary senses, what is it about music that is often so captivating, thought provoking, emotionally transporting and at times inspiring?
The Music Experience Certainly the enjoyment of listening to music or participating in music can be a shared experience with family and friends, or even a cultural experience such as attending a live concert. Yet the way music communicates to us individually is profoundly personal. Music by nature is both expressive and creative, having its expression in arrangements of sounds, simple or complex. Even without the accompaniment of words, music communicates something that can touch our souls in a unique way. Music invokes a wide variety of emotions, from intensely happy to intensely sad. Music is a universal medium of communication that can cut across language and cultural barriers to convey the intention of the composer. Music is and always has been an important part of our human experience.
Personally speaking, my earliest recollection of music was with my parents and grandparents at a very early age. My parents had a song or two they would pull out at bedtime that were very comforting. My grandmother was quite the ukulele player, singing Hawaiian songs often followed by a hula performance! It was great fun.
Beginnings I remember as a child in 1956 or 1957 singing the Walt Disney theme song to Davy Crocket, my childhood hero. I could hardly wait for each Sunday nights episode of the adventures of Davy Crocket to unfold. All week long I'd be humming and singing that theme song. I sang that song and others to my kids from time to time and will no doubt spring it on my grandkids at some point. I can still make my adult children smile or laugh (depending on how respectful they're willing to be) when I sing the song today.
In the late 1950's I started spinning my own 45's on a little portable GE stereo, listening to Dion, Bobby Rydel, Del Cannon and a host of others whose names I don't remember. Yet, I haven't forgotten the words nor the tunes. In the early 60's I graduated to listening on my parent's eight-foot-long Curtis Mathis console stereo which had a fuller more satisfying sound. My stepfather introduced me to the jazz music of Dave Brubeck, Jerry Mulligan, the ballads and love songs of Johnny Hartman, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, June Christie and various others.