By Lizzy Mulderrig
If you’re anything like me, you have an internal playlist that fits the ideal soundtrack to the mood you’re experiencing. If you’re bored – maybe some classic elevator music will come on, or possibly the jeopardy theme song. If you’re nervous, suddenly an eerie tune with a bunch of flat and sharp notes will fill your head, or the jaws theme song.And there’s no denying that everyone has that one pump up, I-can’t-possibly-be-upset-listening-to-this, song that pops into your brain when you’re really feelin’ yourself.
My point is that, without even realizing it sometimes, music is associated with different moods. Steven Davies’ explains music, in his article On Defining Music, as “sounds temporally organized by a person for the purpose of enriching or intensifying experience through active engagement.” This may be the reason why music has flawlessly integrated with other forms of media.
This integration with other media is called the transformative effect. Music has been associated with dance and theater for thousands of years, from tribal dance ritual to Ancient Grecian plays.
It is easy to recognize that music enhances such experiences, but it wasn’t until silent films that music began to incorporate into new technologies and media.After silent films came “talkies,” in which “a piano player seated near the theater’s orchestra accompanied the films to provide dramatic, comic, or special effects,” (Vivian, 124).
Now, music is so tightly integrated into our media. Every movie and show has background music.
Television, radio, and online commercials have jingles that significantly help establish many brand names. The jingles for Kars for Kids and Nationwide are no production of a lyrical genius, but they are affective when trying to make a memorable advertisement. Music enhances the commercial, movie, or show, which makes a better product for its audience.
Likewise, if lyricists’ and musicians’ music is featured in one of these media, they can “derive significant income,” (Vivian, 124). It’s really a win-win
kind of situation.
Sources:
Davies, Stephen. “On Defining Music.” The Monist, vol. 95, no. 4, 2012, pp. 535–555. JSTOR, JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42751232.
Vivian, John. The Media of Mass Communication. 12th ed., Pearson, 2017
Media and Entertainment 
I appreciate the fact that you took the time to elaborate on why music is so important to us. We often overlook its meaning and take it for granted as part of our daily lives. Posts like this make us reflect on our own views and create expectations for future musical interactions. Good job overall. I enjoyed reading it and I would love to hear some more about it!
LikeLike
Great post! I LOVE music and definitely have different songs that play in my head when I’m in certain moods, but I’ve never thought much about it before. I’ve also never considered how I could use my love for music in the field of communications, so I really enjoyed reading the part about how music plays a role in commercials and such. It is a lot more pervasive than I realize. Thanks for discussing it!
LikeLike
Great post! I really enjoyed reading about music and how integrated it is into society today. I appreciate all of the pictures you used and how relevant they are to your post. It makes reading much more enjoyable!
LikeLike