Music is a living, breathing entity. The listener of any given piece experiences, in that brief time, the birth, life, and death of a being. A good piece of music should tell a story or take you on a journey. It doesn’t matter whether the music is a symphony, a pop tune, or a piece of experimental sound. If a piece starts and ends in the same way without changing in between, it is difficult to classify it as music.

Music should tell a story or take you on a journey.

Beyond Musical Instruments

Music is much more than the organization of tones made by “musical instruments” into an aesthetically pleasing order. Music can be found in everyday life through the practice of musique concrète. When creating a piece intended to take the listener on a journey, you can incorporate sounds such as a busy city street on a rainy day or heavy machinery to establish the mood for what is to come.

The true craftspeople of this work include soundtrack composers and Foley artists in television and film. Foley artists are sound-effects wizards who blend sounds from life with music to create artificial realities for us to inhabit. If you doubt how powerful this can be, watch a thriller or action film with the sound turned down and see how long it holds your attention.

Listening Beyond Taste

Each person invariably develops a definition of music based largely on personal taste. I have trouble listening to a great deal of modern jazz, but by forcing myself to understand its mechanics, I developed an appreciation for its complexity and the artistry inherent in the form.

Whether I “like” it becomes irrelevant. My interest is in recognizing it as music and appreciating what went into its creation. With a greater understanding of the techniques and subtleties of different forms, you broaden the pool of experience from which you can draw. To become a well-rounded musician or listener, you should experience as many kinds of music as possible.

Expand Your Musical Horizons

These are a few experiments you can try on your own:

1. Choose several pieces that cover a broad range of the musical spectrum. If your own collection is limited, use a streaming service, online radio station, library, or public archive to explore music you would not ordinarily select.
2. Sit in a darkened room and close your eyes while listening. Does the music transport you somewhere else? Does it conjure images? What do you feel? Are you noticing details that might normally pass unheard?
3. Repeat the experiment using headphones. Notice whether the intimacy, stereo placement, physical detail, or separation of sounds changes your perception of the music.

Create a Sound World

You don’t have to be a musician in the traditional sense to create a moving piece. Take a cue from Foley artists and imagine a scene or feeling you want to convey. What sounds would communicate that imagery?

You can record sounds from nature, streets, rooms, machinery, or daily life using a phone or digital recorder. Feed those sounds into a computer and layer, splice, and interweave them using any of the available audio programs.

When your piece is finished, let other people hear it. They may not share your excitement, but they should experience at least a taste of what you were trying to capture. That transmission—from imagination, through sound, into another person—is where music becomes alive.