Muzyka jako hałas

Abstrakt

Music as noise

We are living in an era of omnipresent music, which is caused by the fact that the media enable us to use music any time and anywhere. Whether we like it or not, we encounter music everywhere, which leads to fatigue caused by sound excess resulting from the fact that music is treated functionally, mainly by the so-called muzaks, playing pieces selected in order to achieve some specific benefits. Consequently, music often seems to be noise, as, according to psychologists, all acoustic stimuli that disturb people who have to bear them are, in fact, noise. Today, music functions in our homes as a background to everyday life that does not require listening, as a result of which people become used to turning a deaf ear to it and, consequently, become indifferent to it and lose any musical sensitivity. The omnipresence of music is also enhanced by earphones that transmit it wherever we want, which has its good and bad sides. The advantage is that the listener does not impose his or her music on others; the disadvantage — according to otolaryngologists, the listener is at risk of gradually becoming deaf. The abuse of music is denounced mainly by musicians, who want to have some sensible, binding regulations in this respect. Unfortunately, they have had little success until now, so music keeps making a noise.