Four Fields of Music Making

1. Participatory

Participatory music making is when there is no distinction between the artist and the audience because everyone in the room is taking part in the process.  The emphasis in participatory music making is on social bonding and the action of making music instead of on the quality of sound.  This sort of music making is good for forming relationships between players.  In addition, the format of such music making encourages participation by many people because there is no stress on musical ability, so people will be more willing to participate.  However, some might argue that participatory music making can stifle creativity because each individual must incorporate their music with that of the other group members, and therefore cannot showcase their own virtuosity. One example of participatory music is a drum circle, as represented in the video below.



2. Presentational

Presentational music making is when one person or one group of people perform music for the enjoyment of a group of others (the audience).  In this type of music, there is a distinct separation between the artist and their audience.  The artist is given more freedom in such a performance because they are not responsible for getting all of the audience members to participate in the music.  On the other hand, they are responsible for keeping the audience interested throughout the duration of the performance, which some may consider a limit.  Below is a video of the band Arctic Monkeys performing their song "Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High" at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.



3. High Fidelity

High fidelity music is music recorded by artists in a studio, but is made with the expectation that it could potentially be performed live in a concert setting.  One positive characteristic of high fidelity music is that it accurately represents something that the listeners might experience if they were to see the artist live.  One downside to this, however, is that the artist no longer has the additional help of visuals to keep fans interested and therefore must make up for this in their music.  One example of this is the Dirty Heads' recent single "Sound of Change," from their new album of the same name.



4. Studio-Audio Art

Studio-Audio art is music that listeners know cannot be performed in a live setting, usually due to the use of technical effects.  The artist and the editors have complete control over the finished product.  One obvious limit to such music is that it could never be performed in a live setting, unless it were recorded and then played at a concert.  The Axwell remix of Ivan Gough's "In My Mind" is one example of studio-audio art that is usually referred to as electronic dance music.