Select one listening example from the text that you don’t know particularly well. You can select any piece at all, however there would be some advantage in picking something that is 5 mins or under. You may also select a smaller excerpt of a much longer piece.

Block off a minimum of 30-40 minutes, ideally more, and exclusively listen to your chosen selection, specifically “repeated listening.” Over and over, listen to your selection. Put the phone away. Submit to the music. Don’t do anything else in this time you create for yourself except listen. In approximately 200 words, describe your experience. What changed for you over repeated listenings? What new perspectives did you attain?

This task was one I wouldn’t have thought to do on my own, though the idea of it does sound eye-opening. At first even picking a song seemed like I was picking out how I wanted to drive myself insane. After a bit of deliberation I chose to listen to Vivaldi’s Spring from the 4 seasons. Upon first listening I felt a little overwhelmed. I wasn’t sure what I needed to be listening to and as I got my bearings during a specific section of the music it would quickly pass me by. Once I began the second listening I had adopted a sense of dread for what I had gotten myself into. After that brief stint of self loathing I got back to actively listening and got a better sense of form for the piece of music. Upon the next 3 or 4 listenings my focus was more and more drawn to the function of the lower voices in the piece. The bass drove a lot of the movement in the composition and in the key moments when it was taken away was when the listener was challenged to listen harder and more intently. A perfect example is in the beginning of the piece when the main theme falls away to the, “chirping of birds,” on the violin. It was upon the following listening that my mind began to wander and I could not help but let the music fade into the background. Even with my mind elsewhere I found myself physically reacting to the music absentmindedly. Swaying during the main theme or remaining still during a particularly delicate part of the music. Strictly after letting the music pass me by in the previous listening I decided to focus in. It was on this listening that I found beauty and drama in the dynamics of the piece. The swells and dips in volume drew me back into the piece after nearly half an hour of listening. I was especially drawn in by the section before the final theme that held you in quiet suspense with a sustained bass note as a wandering trill was placed overtop. This dramatic moment, though not lost on me during my first listen, was only amplified by the knowledge that it was approaching. Knowledge I had gained due to my newfound familiarity with the composition. During my final listen of the piece I found myself humming along without even noticing and even moving my body to the music, even more so than when I had lost focus earlier. I made motions with my hands as if I was a conductor trying to get the most emotion possible out of my performers. I found this experiment to be an interesting experience and I will definitely be trying this with pieces I am more familiar with in the future.