# What do you do when you listen to music?



## Pieck (Jan 12, 2011)

Do you sit back and completely focus your mind on the music, reed a book,
clean the house, brush the dog, work out, surf on the internet...

Bottom line is how much do you concentrate on the music?


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## ozradio (Oct 23, 2008)

Operas, I follow along with the libretto. Non-vocal works, however, I'll usually do something else, generally on the computer.


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## Rasa (Apr 23, 2009)

I listen to music when I listen to music.


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

I completely focus on the music when I listen, sometimes reading annotations or liner notes between movements. Music can also be playing in the background during an activity, but that is merely hearing.


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)




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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

Mainly surfing the internet.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Listen to opera mainly on my mp3 while walking & on trains & planes. 

If I'm at home I follow the libretto. Wish I could find a device with a heads-up display so I could read the libretto as I walked.


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## MrTortoise (Dec 25, 2008)

Depends on what I am listening to. When I'm intently listening to a work, nothing else, the music is all I pay attention to. However, other times, like right now, I'll do various things, like read TalkClassical and currently I'm undertaking the task of ripping my cd collection and encoding to flac and Couperin harpsichord music accompanies this wonderfully


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## science (Oct 14, 2010)

I believe strongly that at least occasionally you should listen to the music with full and undivided attention. It's a very rewarding thing to do. If you don't do this, I don't mind saying you're not really appreciating the music. 

But I don't mind listening to music while doing other things. Quite often when I've been reading or doing the dishes or whatever, I've suddenly noticed something in the music that I hadn't heard before.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Ideally, I have the score which I've marked up. Practically, I'm usually driving. A lot of the time, I'm listening while I'm working on something that doesn't require a lot of concentration.


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## opus55 (Nov 9, 2010)

When I really want to listen I don't do anything else. This is usually on my train to work or on weekend.

Other times, I surf Internet, reading stuff or shop on Amazon.com while listening.


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

opus55 said:


> When I really want to listen I don't do anything else. This is usually on my train to work or on weekend.
> 
> Other times, I surf Internet, reading stuff or shop on Amazon.com while listening.


How do you overcome the train noise? We have "quiet" car in which people aren't allowed to yell into their cell phones or have loud conversation, but this car is always near the engine! I can read, but I can barely hear music even in headphones.


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## emiellucifuge (May 26, 2009)

I wish I could say I only listened but there simply arent enough hours in the day. Usually i can concentrate during commutes in the car, tram or on the bike, and theres also a quiet hour or two at the end of the day. Otherwise im working or on the internet.


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## MrTortoise (Dec 25, 2008)

emiellucifuge said:


> I wish I could say I only listened but there simply arent enough hours in the day. Usually i can concentrate during commutes in the car, tram or on the bike, and theres also a quiet hour or two at the end of the day. Otherwise im working or on the internet.


I can empathize, I rarely have time during the week to eat much less find some time to exclusively listen to music. That is one of the reasons I cherish my Saturdays when I have time to listen and maybe even watch a movie!


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## MrTortoise (Dec 25, 2008)

Weston said:


> How do you overcome the train noise? We have "quiet" car in which people aren't allowed to yell into their cell phones or have loud conversation, but this car is always near the engine! I can read, but I can barely hear music even in headphones.


I sometimes wish I had 2 things: a longer commute so I could get in some more listening time in the car, and, a quieter car  Unfortunately my vehicle does not provide a good listening chamber for music with a wide range of dynamics.


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

When I'm really listening I knit. It gives me something to do with my hands but is mindless enough to allow me to focus on the music.


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## jhar26 (Jul 6, 2008)

It doesn't matter what it is, orchestral, chamber, piano, operatic, jazz, pop/rock or whatever, I never do anything else while I'm listening to music. I just don't enjoy music when something else is competing for my attention


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## Pieck (Jan 12, 2011)

Rasa said:


> I listen to music when I listen to music.


So I guess you dont have a lot of listening time


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## Ravellian (Aug 17, 2009)

Totally depends on how intensely I want to focus on the music. If I want to put on one of my favorite pieces, like the Tchaikovsky symphony No. 6 or Freischutz Overture, then I'll put on my headphones, sit back and just listen. If I just want lighter background music, like a Haydn symphony or a Verdi opera, then I'll play on my computer while I listen or read something. Occasionally I'll like to follow along with the music, particularly if it's a new piece.

And yes, I consider Verdi 'light,' at least compared to Wagner.


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## Rasa (Apr 23, 2009)

Pieck said:


> So I guess you dont have a lot of listening time


Hearing music is an automatic trigger for me to listen with attention. It's immensely distracting


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## opus55 (Nov 9, 2010)

Weston said:


> How do you overcome the train noise? We have "quiet" car in which people aren't allowed to yell into their cell phones or have loud conversation, but this car is always near the engine! I can read, but I can barely hear music even in headphones.


Earphones! They seem to block out 90% of the noise. Most passengers seem to text these days but as soon as someone near me start a conversation I take out my earphones. 
You have to buy a good set for decent sound, not those ipod earphones. I only spent US$35 for mine but it is significantly better sound than the set that came with iPod.



MrTortoise said:


> I sometimes wish I had 2 things: a longer commute so I could get in some more listening time in the car, and, a quieter car  Unfortunately my vehicle does not provide a good listening chamber for music with a wide range of dynamics.


I hate the sound dynamics of my car too. My train ride is only long enough for Classical period symphonies, not Mahler. :lol: I still don't want my commute any longer.


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## SalieriIsInnocent (Feb 28, 2008)

I do a number of things. For me it isn't always the music that makes a piece special, it is the times I have when I listen to it. 

I also occasionally conduct when I am listening to a piece. And many times I pick up my guitar and try to play along with certain pieces, usually romantic era.


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## Xaltotun (Sep 3, 2010)

Usually I just listen to the music while doing nothing else. I have a lot of free time!

But I put on background music when I'm cooking or playing a computer game (I usually play games that don't have sounds in them), and I put on specific pieces when I'm playing role playing games with my friends.


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