Summary:
Chapter 2 provides a brief orientation on the exploration to unfold in the subsequent five chapters of the book (Chapters 3-7): on the musicological basis of our musical taste—meaning the details of the musical discourse that can be identified through trained analysis and careful listening—whether or not the listener can “hear” them in action. It begins with an etymological review of “music” and continues with an introduction to the musicological tool to be utilized in unfolding the principal musical parameters: Melody, Harmony, Rhythm, Form, and Sound. The chapter also provides the author’s rationale for unwinding the potentially thorny elements of music theory, with guidelines to the reader on how to navigate them in the course of reading the book.
Supplement:
( More detail on the many cognates of “music” )
To wit: musique in French; musica or música in Latin, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese; Musik in German; muzyka in Polish; muzïka in Russian; muziek in Dutch; musiqi in Arabic; musika in Hebrew, etc.
Principal Bibliography:
Jan LaRue, Guidelines for Style Analysis (Sterling Heights, MI: Harmonie Park Press, 1992)
J. Peter Burkholder, “Music Theory and Musicology,” Journal of Musicology 11, no. 1 (1993)
External Links:
Online Music Theory Course (Berklee College of Music)
Online Music Theory Course (University of Edinburgh)