"Perfect" Music

[Tunco]

I was having an argument about this subject the previous day with my father, whether music could perfect or not.

My statement is that music could not be perfect just because music is something between the person who listens it and the song, how s / he understands it and it also depends on the listener's feeling, whether s / he feels the feeling music is trying to give. In my opinion, every music has it's own defect, supppose that music - a song - sounds perfect when you first listen to it, a few years later the very same song won't sound that amazing as you've first listened to it just because your feeling and perspective of life changed. (Those are related to each other because perspective of life is simply everything)

Now there, I get the thought that then humans could be able to make music that would perfectly fit their own perspective of life and everything but that's just not possible. I refuse to give any more explanation about my statement because I want to see what you guys will agree and / or disagree about, I want to see where this will go.

Discuss.

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

Enjoying music is an entirely subjective experience, so it couldn't possibly be "perfect" in any objective sense.
I'm curious to know what his criteria are for perfection in music. I suspect that they are pretty mundane, and that he is saying "perfect" where he means "very, very good, in my opinion."

[Skyling]

Tsukatu is correct in that music can't really be objectively evaluated. I mean, there isn't even a set goal for music to perfectly accomplish: if the sole purpose of music is to make someone feel something, perfection would probably require the person to feel something to an infinite degree. What about technical perfection? Is a piece of music perfect if every individual note is played perfectly in rhythm or something?

Perfection doesn't really exist in anything in the real world. Even for something like a standardized test, if you get all the questions right, could you have done it more perfectly if you finished it faster?

[SlappyMcGee]

Tsukatu is correct in that music can't really be objectively evaluated. I mean, there isn't even a set goal for music to perfectly accomplish: if the sole purpose of music is to make someone feel something, perfection would probably require the person to feel something to an infinite degree. What about technical perfection? Is a piece of music perfect if every individual note is played perfectly in rhythm or something?

Perfection doesn't really exist in anything in the real world. Even for something like a standardized test, if you get all the questions right, could you have done it more perfectly if you finished it faster?

Well, that's just the thing. If you got 100% on a test in a set amount of time, you did the test perfectly. While music can't be perfect from an aural standpoint, there can be technical perfection.

[Skyling]

While music can't be perfect from an aural standpoint, there can be technical perfection.

Yeah.

Which is more ideal? A virtuosic musician performing trite music, or an indecent slob of a musician playing something without technical merit BUT IT BLOWS YOU FUCKING AWAY BECAUSE IT'S SO HUMAN AND REAL AND EMOTIONAL AND

[noops]

"Perfect" is subjective, I believe. What is perfect to me, is not necessarily going to be perfect to someone else. Music, therefore, fundamentally can not be perfect.


Music = art = subjective

:/

[yungerkid]

Obviously there is no objectively "perfect" song in the sense that everyone who hears it will love it perfectly, because we all have nuanced and distinct standards of beauty. But I do believe that there can be songs that for certain individuals are the highest representations that can be created aurally of their highest values, if you know what I mean. Music expresses atmospheres and emotions, and there has to be some music for each person that purely and as completely as is possible for a sound-bite expresses the atmospheres and emotions that that person idealizes most. And some music is better than others (to a given individual), so there's a scale of quality, and that scale must have a practical limit - that limit would be in the perfect song.

[otters~1]

While music can't be perfect from an aural standpoint, there can be technical perfection.

yeah like Steely Dan lol


(Did anyone ever see the Onion article mocking SD a few years back? One of the members is "quoted" as saying, paraphrastically*, "Nine session guitarists couldn't play that riff man, so get the fuck out of my face.")


*Badass non-word.

[t̷s͢uk̕a͡t͜ư]

I do believe that there can be songs that for certain individuals are the highest representations that can be created aurally of their highest values, if you know what I mean. Music expresses atmospheres and emotions, and there has to be some music for each person that purely and as completely as is possible for a sound-bite expresses the atmospheres and emotions that that person idealizes most.

I see what you mean, but that really seems to me to be a "what is the biggest number" situation; if you make a song that punctuates exactly those elements in it that evokes in the chosen person that mixture of thoughts, emotions, etc., which will bring him the most pleasure, then surely you can use that song as a stepping-stone to make one that accomplishes these things to a greater magnitude, or for longer, or in less time, or more efficiently, or does so in a more effective arrangement of those elements, or influences the person's state of mind in a way that enables him to enjoy it or another song to an even greater extent.
And then you'll make a song that will make heads explode. And that's Terrible, and it makes you a Terrible Person.

[乳头的早餐谷物]

There's no objective perfection, but there are some songs that I consider to perfect in some way. I don't even necessarily like them more than any other song. I think it's more to do with the construction and being perfect pop songs than being pefect music per se. Rebellion (Lies) by the Arcade Fire is an example.

[otters~1]

And then you'll make a song that will make heads explode. And that's Terrible, and it makes you a Terrible Person.

Like him!