View source for Musicality

{{Short description|Musical term}}
'''Musicality''' (''music[[wikt:-al|-al]][[wikt:-ity|-ity]]'') is "sensitivity to, knowledge of, or talent for [[music]]" or "the quality or state of being musical", and is used to refer to specific if vaguely defined qualities in pieces and/or genres of music, such as [[melody|melodiousness]]<!--example given by Merriam-Webster--> and [[harmony|harmoniousness]].<ref name="M-W">"[http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/musicality Musicality]", ''Merriam-Webster.com''.</ref> These definitions are somewhat hampered by the difficulty of [[definition of music|defining music]], but, colloquially, "music" is often contrasted with [[noise]] and [[randomness]]. Judges of contest music may describe a performance as bringing the [[Musical notation|music on the page]] to life; of expressing more than the mere faithful reproduction of pitches, rhythms, and composer dynamic markings. In the company of two or more musicians, there is the added experience of the ensemble effect in which the players express something greater than the sum of their individual parts. A person considered musical has the ability to perceive and reproduce differences in [[aspects of music]] including pitch, rhythm, and harmony (see: [[ear training]]). Two types of musicality may be differentiated: to be able to perceive music (musical receptivity)<!--"sensitivity/knowledge"--> and to be able to reproduce music in addition to creating music (musical creativity)<!--knowledge/talent-->.<ref name="M-W"/><ref>{{Cite web|title=Musicality.|url=https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2007-01022-005|access-date=2 January 2021}}</ref>

==Music vs. musicality==
Many studies on the cognitive and [[Evolutionary musicology|biological origins of music]] are centered on the question of what defines music. Can birdsong, the song structure of [[humpback whale]]s, a [[Thai Elephant Orchestra|Thai elephant orchestra]], or the interlocking duets of [[Gibbon]]s be considered music?<ref>Wallin, N.J., Merker, B., & Brown, S. (2000). ''The Origins of Music'', {{page needed|date=August 2014}}. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. {{ISBN|9780262731430}}.{{verification-inline|date=August 2014|reason=No mention of "elephant". Quote needed.}}</ref> This is now generally seen as a pitfall.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Honing|first1=H.|last2=Ploeger|first2=A.|year=2012|title=Cognition and the Evolution of Music: Pitfalls and Prospects|journal=Topics in Cognitive Science|volume=4|issue=4|pages=513–24|doi=10.1111/j.1756-8765.2012.01210.x|pmid=22760967|doi-access=free}}<!--Honing, H., & Ploeger, A. (2012). "[http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1756-8765.2012.01210.x/abstract Cognition and the Evolution of Music: Pitfalls and Prospects]", ''Topics in Cognitive Science'' (TopiCS).-->{{page needed|date=August 2014}}</ref> In trying to answer this question, it is important to separate between the notions of "music" and "musicality". Musicality – in all its complexity – can be defined as a natural, spontaneously developing set of traits based on and constrained by our biological and cognitive system, and music – in all its variety – as a social and cultural construct based on musicality. Or simply put: without musicality, there is no music.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Honing|first1=H.|year=2012|title=Without it no music: Beat induction as a fundamental musical trait|journal=Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences|volume=1252|issue=1 |pages=85–91|doi=10.1111/j.1749-6632.2011.06402.x|pmid=22524344|bibcode=2012NYASA1252...85H |s2cid=41013599}}<!--Honing, H. (2012). Without it no music: beat induction as a fundamental musical trait. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1252: The Neurosciences and Music IV — Learning and Memory, 85–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.2011.06402.x--></ref><ref>Honing, H. (ed.) (2018). The Origins of Musicality. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.</ref>

However, it is still a challenge to demarcate precisely what makes up this complex trait we call musicality. What are the cognitive and biological mechanisms that are essential to perceive, make, and appreciate music? Only when we have identified these fundamental mechanisms are we in a position to see how these might have evolved. In other words: the study of the evolution of music cognition is dependent on a characterization of the basic mechanisms that make up musicality.<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1098/rstb.2014.0088| title = Without it no music: Cognition, biology and evolution of musicality| journal = Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences| volume = 370| issue = 1664| pages = 20140088| year = 2015| last1 = Honing | first1 = H.| last2 = Ten Cate | first2 = C.| last3 = Peretz | first3 = I.| last4 = Trehub | first4 = S. E.| pmc = 4321129 | pmid=25646511}}</ref>

[[Colwyn Trevarthen]] has researched the musicality of babies, including its use in communication.<ref>"[http://www.iriss.org.uk/resources/why-attachment-matters-sharing-meaning-colwyn-trevarthen Why attachment matters in sharing meaning - Colwyn Trevarthen]", ''IRISS.org''.</ref><ref>Schogler, Ben and Trevarthen, Colwyn. "[https://books.google.com/books?id=o2cyg2ESltkC&dq=Colwyn+Trevarthen&pg=PA281 To Sing and Dance Together]", ''On Being Moved: From Mirror Neurons to Empathy''.</ref><ref>"[http://vimeo.com/17855175 Colwyn Trevarthen - Human Nature and Early Experience]", ''Vimeo.com''.</ref>{{relevance inline|date=August 2014|reason=He researched a topic...and? Is this just a plug for him or a stretch for content?}}

=== Notes ===
{{Unreferenced section|date=August 2014}}
*''Resources of a musician'': a notable musician draws from several essential resources: ''musicality'', ''material'' (voice, dexterity), ''practice'', ''education''
*''Relation to dancing:'' Musicality is also related to dancing, since musicality is essential for becoming a good dancer.
*''Relation to structure:'' Certain types of music have a regular inner structure, which a musical person is able to pick up intuitively. A viable musical structure is supportive of musicality.

==See also==
*[[Lead and follow (dance)]]
*[[Connection (dance)]] 
*[[Dance theory]]
*[[Evolutionary musicology]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://swingshiftontap.com/aaba.html AABA: The Map to Swing Music] ([[Rusty Frank]])
* [http://understandingmusicality.blogspot.no/ Understanding Musicality], academic symposium 2012.
* [http://www.mcg.uva.nl/musicality2019/ Musicality and Genomics], academic symposium 2019.

{{dance}}
{{Musical technique}}

[[Category:Musical terminology]]
[[Category:Choreography]]