The Sound of Culture

Culture is something that provides meaning to thoughts, feelings, and actions. As humans, we are always trying to find meaning to our thoughts, and this can be understood through a cultural context. Music is one thing that I can think of that exemplifies the vast variety of cultures and how culture can create meaning. What it means for humans to have culture is to be able to share ideas, beliefs, and mental states and this can be done through music. Music is a symbol system, that is, it is a complex system of sharing meaning. When we think of music we think of many different aspects, such as the rhythm, the instruments, the lyrics, the tone, and the emotion that is evoked. Different cultures have certain ways of expressing their music, such as the different instruments that are used. For example, Western cultures may make use of guitars, while different tribal cultures may use drums throughout their song. Some cultures express music through rap, or chanting, or soft melodies, hard metal, or gospel music, etc. There are many varieties of music, each that are derived from a certain culture, and passed down from generation to generation through social transmission. The lyrics, and meaning behind the words are also being passed on,providing insight to those who listen to it. People often look to meaning for their actions and thoughts and music is an excellent way to express this. Songs are ways to express views on politics, romance, family dynamics, religion, etc. Music not only provides an example for the variety of cultures through the means of different styles of music, but it also can provide an example of how cultures have different degrees of beliefs/values/thoughts. What I am trying to get at is that one culture may highly value music, such as the aboriginal First Nations and the use of music throughout Powows, while to other cultures music is not of great significance. This example shows evidence for cultural variability among us. For many of us it is part of our daily routines, and we can often relate to the songs that we hear. In summary, and in my own opinion, I believe that music can be an extremely important factor for creating and sharing culture among humans.