How do you listen to your music?

[gryphon]

How do you listen to your Music………?

In the fifty plus years I have been a music fan , I have been interested in how different people listen to their music …….in particular…..I am interested in the process they go through and the way they pick put what is important to them.  Of course we all do have our own way of listening………
I have come across many different focus points which people apply .

·         The lyrics first approach……here the listener focuses on the words and what they mean to them and how they identify with what is being said .

·         The impressionist …………..here the overall “sound and feel” of the music is central to the listening experience.  The whole song creates an atmosphere and neither the music or the lyric completely dominates….at times the listener might be unaware of more than the sound of the lyric …it becomes an instrument and the lyrics are less the focus …the music drives the reaction and emotional response .

·         The recall of a piece of personal history…here the song is associated with a particular time or feel from a certain time in one’s life .

·         The analytical listener….here the individual instruments are noticed and attention is given to how the instrument is played ….the same can apply to the vocal .

·         The interactions …….how the bass complements the drum pattern say …or how the vocal are fitted to the pace and rhythm of the percussion or bass line…..

·         The emotional approach….here the music can trigger or is associated with particular emotions .

·         The music first approach …putting the lyrics into the background and concentrating on the music.

·         The musicianship approach…..looking at how well the performers play their instruments and demonstrate their abilities and range.

·         The feel and texture approach…..often talked about by classical lovers…they look for the texture of a passage and the way they players interpret the score…

·         The HI-Fi approach….looking at how well the music is recorded, how pure it sounds and how well the frequency range is used, the dynamics , the pitch accuracy, how good pressing or digitisation it is….. etc

·         The Record Producer …how well the musical aspects are blended…how the producer uses the studio to shape and form the production.  
 
 
So, how do you listen? Do you use one of the above approaches or several? Do you have another approach? Does you approach vary with the piece of music?
 
Use this thread to enlighten us and share your approach…….over to you …..