There is indeed just too much music in the world and because we keep listening to it, we are missing great sounds around us. John Cage once said “If you develop an ear for sounds that are musical it is like developing an ego. You begin to refuse sounds that are not musical and that way cut yourself off from a good deal of experience.”

Though his reasons for missing the ability to hear other sounds come from his “vision” for what music should be, it is very important to take his statement at its face value. The problem we face today is that, being too musical, we are forgetting ordinary sounds.

If we define music as “any agreeable -- pleasing and harmonious – sounds,” we see that a lot of what is available to our ears today is not that. However, if we define music “as an artistic form of auditory communication incorporating instrumental or vocal tones in a structured and continuous manner” then yes, we must agree that even “rap” is a form of music.

How many people do you know are constantly listening to music, in whatever form it comes? Perhaps you are one of them? Why need a person inflict upon him/herself some type of incessant rhythmic background sounds, and worse, tasteless, tacky, and aggressive lyrics?

Music has served many purposes to humanity. It helped us express our mood, communicate, work, rest, form community, mate, etc. Not so long ago, the magic of pleasing sounds was enough to calm us or put us into a state of reverie. We felt the beauty. With the advance of technology, we began incorporating more and more music into our daily lives. The present day finds us swarmed by all sorts of noise that are not necessarily beneficial to us.

Why do we listen to music all the time? This is an important question because the answer may tell us that, perhaps, we don’t like to give our souls a moment of rest. Perhaps we are hiding our self-loath from ourselves; perhaps our minds need to be even more accelerated than they already are; perhaps we don’t know what to do when all is quiet.

Silence is golden, though it is rare the moment when we really perceive total silence. However, if you stop the music and pay attention to your ordinary daily sounds, you will be surprised. What are the sounds of your present reality?

Turn off your music and you will hear the barking of the dog, the singing of the birds, the ticking of the cuckoo clock, the crackling of wood burning, the humming of the fridge or the drier or the computer, the giggles of children playing, the snoring of the cat, the splattering of the rain, the whispers of lovers, the rustling of the leaves, the words of people, the sound of silence…

© Maria Moratto 2005 About the author Dr. Maria Moratto holds 5 degrees and is a life and spiritual coach/educator. She promotes seminars and courses in attracting abundance and loving relationships, time management, stress management, diversity, goal setting, career discovery, values clarification, leisure, self-improvement, college life, communication and learning styles, spirituality, natural health and lifestyle. Visit her website at http://www.rx4bliss.com and sign up for a free e-zine that is short, informative, and fun. Visit her fun blogs at: http://www.rx4bliss.blogspot.com and http://www.thedollarbillgame.blogspot.com You may reprint this article in its entirety as long as you add this source box.

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