Listening

An ethical, social, and cultural practice. As opposed to simply hearing, listening requires one’s full attention. The event of listening and its meaning are equally informed by the performer and listener [how each is trained and expected to listen] and to the medium and location of the performance [concert hall, album or other recording]. Listening, as a practice, draws our attention to relations of power [Adorno, Nancy], direct experience of voice and other sonic phenomena [Ihde], and to the potential for alternative interpretations and analyses [Kun, Vazquez]. It has been a central concept and intellectual concern for the fields of philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and popular music studies. See also: Theodor Adorno, Jean Luc-Nancy, Don Ihde, Josh Kun, Alexandra Vazquez.

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