Music is an art form whose medium is sound. Common elements of music are
pitch (which governs melody and harmony), rhythm (and its associated concepts
tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and
texture. The word derives from Greek μουσική (mousike), "(art) of the Muses".[1]
The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of music vary
according to culture and social context. Music ranges from strictly organized
compositions (and their recreation in performance), through improvisational
music to aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into genres and subgenres,
although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often
subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and occasionally
controversial. Within "the arts", music may be classified as a performing art, a
fine art, and auditory art.
To many people in many cultures music is an important part of their way of life.
Greek philosophers and ancient Indian philosophers defined music as tones
ordered horizontally as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings
such as "the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to the
notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to. However,
20th-century composer John Cage thought that any sound can be music, saying, for
example, "There is no noise, only sound."[2] According to musicologist
Jean-Jacques Nattiez, "the border between music and noise is always culturally
defined—which implies that, even within a single society, this border does not
always pass through the same place; in short, there is rarely a consensus.... By
all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining
what music might be, except that it is 'sound through time'
.