Essay/Term paper: How to listen to music, not just hear it

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Music

How to Listen to Music, Not Just Hear it

To learn to listen to music, not just hear itYou need the right room, the right equipment, the perfect volume, the perfect spot, and (of course), the embracing of the music. After you have all the proper tools, you can sit and enjoy the music.
The first consideration is to listen to music in a comfortable chair. I would highly recommend a good quality Lazy Boy recliner. Now, you need to find the best room to put that chair in, so you can listen to you music. The room can be any normal room with four walls but, the room can¹t be wide open. For example, it can¹t be an unfinished basement with concrete walls and a cement floor. The sound will not be able to bounce off the walls and give the effect as if the sound is coming from behind you, as well as in front of you (the surround effect). A good room to listen in, is a typical family room with sheet rock walls and four ninety degree corners.
The second consideration is placement of speakers. The corners of a room are the perfect spot for your speakers. You shouldn¹t position them flush against the wall, but put the back of the speaker into the corner, so each side of the speaker is against each wall. For this reason, the bass is extended (louder), and the tweeters, mid-range, and woofers give you their undivided attention.
Where to sit is simple, but it takes some easy calculations to find the perfect spot. There is a common rule for a person to experience the full effect of the music. In order to do this, measure the distance between the two speaker cabinets. If the speaker¹s cabinets are placed twelve feet apart from each other, divide twelve feet in half, which gives us six feet. That¹s the middle, so mark that location. From that mark, measure twelve feet back, and mark that spot on the floor. You have found the perfect spot for you to achieve the best sound from your music.
Next, you need a receiver. The receiver is a power source and a switchboard for your additional stereo components. Any receiver will do, as long as it has one-hundred watts per speaker out-put. Then, you need a compact disc player, a single or a five disc is fine. Some speaker wire is a must.
Speakers on the other hand, are a tough choice because there are so many of them. You want to spend at least four-hundred dollars when buying speakers. Anything lower than four-hundred dollars is usually low quality, which can increase the risk of destroying your speakers.
When you decide on three sets of speakers (one set equals two speakers) at you local speaker shop, have a salesman play some of your cd¹s that you brought with you. Make sure you listen to the same song per set of speakers. Also, bring different types; classical, jazz, blues, rap, and 80¹s; whatever. Forget what the salesman says. Just remember, your ears won¹t deceive you. Figure out what sounds the best to you, then slap your credit card down and lets¹ go home and listen to some music.
After you¹ve placed your speakers, hooked up your receiver, connected your compact disc player, and put your couch or music chair in the ³full effect² spot in your family room, now you can turn on the receiver and compact disc player, and put in one of your favorite compact disc's. One problem; do not hit the play button yet. Sorry! You first need to make sure the volume is at its lowest point. Make sure the CD button on the receiver has been pushed.
Now here¹s a little advice from a male. We males are supposed to know our remote controls, according to woman. So, if you¹re a woman who is reading this, you need to get to know your remote control(s). You need to memorize where the mute button is, and where the CD skip, advance, and play are located. The two most important buttons on a remote control are volume. The remote control has to be an extension of your hand. You need to love the remote control, and the remote control needs to love you. Play with it until you can move your thumb and index finger over it with grace and precision.
Here comes the part when you need to test your babies (speakers). You¹ve been anticipating this moment from the time you got bit by the quality sound bug. Press play on the compact disc player and sit back and listen to your favorite song. Turn the volume up; don¹t be afraid. Now, turn it up to the ten o¹clock position. If there¹s no distortion, only clean sound, then turn it up a little more. Try the twelve o¹clock position. If there's some or no distortion, you¹ve found the maximum sound out-put. I would recommend that you don¹t go over the twelve o¹clock position, because you could damage your speakers. Now fiddle with the volume until you can hear and feel every instrument clearly. Also, it¹s best if you can close your eyes and visualize the music. Picture all the sound surrounding you, working it¹s way into your ears. The music will start to sound like its coming from behind you as well as in front of you.
Listening to music takes a little practice. All you have to do is listen to the notes of the music. You will feel the beat of the music in your chest. I know it can be intimidating, but if you give it time, the music will flow through you.
When the music is flowing through you, I hope you have a big smile on your face. That happiness may turn into tear in the eye. It did for me the first time I listened to music. I hope you successfully understood how to listen to music, not just hear it.