How is music used in society?

Zoe, Ella and Josh

Where is music used?
Music is used to inform the masses. Music can influence the way people dance, dress, talk and it
also will set tones for culture.
Music of particular time seems to reflect the opposite of whats going on it society. For example
Mozarts music and Beethoven's are some of the most beautiful music made but these two
composers did not have the easiest life. They both struggled with money problems or social
acceptation. Bands like Black Sabbath and Cradle of Filth wrote music about bad violent things or
sadness. Music is a form of art, it is one of those things that is incapable of sustaining life. Music
affects society by the type of music people listen to which tells them which emotion they will be
feeling. Nowadays the music we listen to is more about violence and aggressive actions.
Music has long been an expression of people from different cultures around the world. The oldest
artefacts that show people playing musical instruments are found in Asia and are around four
thousand years old. Other archaeological findings suggest that different cultures around the world
have always focused on their own special instruments and unique methods of playing them.
No matter how much music ma have differed in different parts of the world, its seems that music is
served as a general purpose which is to bring people together.
How and why has the sound and use of music
changed over years?
In the century where recorded music has been available, music has transformed into a hugely powerful force in society and culture while also branching out into an increasingly kaleidoscopic array
of styles and genres. There have been changes that have been common knowledge for decades, such as the mid-century transition from jazz to rock 'n' roll as the most popular recorded music,
and the later fading of rock's hegemony to genres like hip-hop and pop. There have also been changes in the way music is purchased, consumed and enjoyed.

Although music has existed longer than recorded history, the past few decades have seen a more rapid evolution and transformation of the art form and what it means than all of the previous
centuries of music history combined. In the 1940s and 1950s, music began reflecting the emerging youth culture of the time, and popular music continues to reflect generational changes.
Technological advances like portable music players and smart phones have vastly increased consumer choices and changed the way in which people consume their music. According to Nielsen
SoundScan, digital album sales increased exponentially during the first few years of the 21st century, with 20 times as many digital sales in 2011 as there were in 2004. Recently, scientists have
also begun to analyze the finer points of the recent developments in popular music. The scientific studies performed at The Echo Nest have found that during the period from 1950 to 2013 music in
general has become less organic in terms of instrumentation as well as much louder overall.

What technological advancements have
occurred that have directly affected music?
In the early years of music, musicians performed on stage with live bands and orchestras to the
locals in the community. Their music consisted of many harmonies and rhythms that would relax
the mind and ease stress. Their classical style of music had more of a string type sound, in
comparison to the rough and rugged sounds of todays music.
Back in the day people had no means of carrying around music as portable devices. If you had
missed the regular performance of a composer, you missed out on your chance of hearing any
music. Today Americans thrive on music, and each year they are finding more and more ways to
listen to their music. In the 1980s, the boom box was born. These large music machines could be
seen on the shoulders of teenagers and young adults; it was the emblem of urban culture. As time
progressed, the bigger and flashier these musical devices were, the better. All of the latest rappers
had one, The Fat Boys, LL Cool J, and even Biz Markie.
With the 90s came portable CD players, also known as disc men. The CD player was a more
practical and convenient way to listen to music on the go. It was by far more portable than the 80s
boom box. This personal stereo device came equipped with muff-style headphones, which
covered the listeners entire ear.

How have big companies changed the way we
listen and consume music?

We listen to music in the 21st century in a profoundly different way than we did in the 20th century.
Although Apple didn't invent the portable music player, the vision of Steve Jobs and his company
of designers and engineers changed our listening landscape dramatically in 2001 with iTunes and
the iPod. These ways of listening to music is great; The Portability of huge libraries, shuffling,
quick access to millions of songs, and custom playlists are a few of the upsides.

Steve Jobs and Apple didn't invent the MP3 player, but they sure made it work. The creation of
iTunes in January 2001, and later that year the release of the iPod, made organizing music,
making playlists, and randomising songs a great way to interact with music. You are able to
stream your music wirelessly from your computer to your stereo. You can drive around and listen
to music on an iPod or iPhone. You can rate the songs you hear using Apple's software, which
changes how often a tune comes up in shuffle, an almost magical feature on the iPod. Musical
juxtapositions happen in ways that might have happened with a good radio DJ, only these are the
songs and your library, so you can continually discover things about your own tastes and how
disparate artists and songs in your library connect to one another.

Why are there fewer record shops now and
what affect is this having on music?
In the first decade of the 21st century, the rise of computers as the primary means to record,
distribute, store, and play music caused widespread economic changes in the music industry,
fundamentally changing the relationships between artists, record companies, promoters, retail
music stores, the technology industry, and consumers. The rise of digital music consumption
options contributed to a few fundamental changes in consumption. First the decline of album
sales,