Responding to Music - Topics for Discussion

Responding to Music - Topics for Discussion

1. Do you feel a piece of music or a painting is more effective in conveying an emotion? Why? What do you feel are the strengths of each medium?
2. How could an individual use music as a tool to improve their home, work, school, or social life?
3. How do individuals choose music to experience?
4. How do the elements of music communicate specific emotions and feelings?
5. How do we discern the expressive intent of musical creators and performers?
6. How do we judge the quality of musical works and performances?
7. How does a rock concert relate to a religious concert? In what ways are they similar? In what ways are they different?
8. How does a title of a piece influence your musical understanding?
9. How does making and refining musical instruments respond to the needs of composers and performers?
10. How does understanding the structure and context of music inform a response?
11. How is music demonstrated in everyday contemporary society? How much music are you exposed to in a single day?
12. In what ways does background music stimulate the senses?
13. Pick an object near where you are sitting. What type of music would you use to represent the object? Why?
14. Think of the last musical theater performance you attended. What kinds of stimuli were used in the production, and how did you react to them? What drew your attention?
15. What draws your attention to the music in a film? What is your emotional response to film music, and what causes that reaction?
16. What experiences have you had with music and the performing arts?
17. What is the value of studying the visual and performing arts?
18. What parts of a musical work appeal to you first? Why?
19. What types of music do you listen to? Why?
20. What was the last musical performance you attended? What was the experience like? What style of music was performed? What was the setting?
21. What would we have left in our society if all art forms, including music, were eliminated?
22. Which is more important to a dance performance, the music or the dance?
23. Which style of music is most appealing to you? Why?
24. Why is the study and understanding of music and aesthetics important for any society?