How to Broaden Your Musical Horizons

Have you hidden behind the boundaries of a single music genre all your life? Is your CD collection boring and scarce? Have you started to notice that all the music that’s commercially successful seems like variations on a single theme–a theme that you’re getting tired of? Here’s how to offer your ears a new and ever-changing menu of music.

Steps

Listen to internet radio stations. Forget standard radio. Browse all kinds of stations–international, trip hop, electronica, alternative, death metal, soundtracks, etc. Let them play in the background while you browse the Web, answer emails. If you hear a song you like write down the title, album, and artist.

Browse music stores online. Type in the name of a band or song that struck you and listen to samples of all their albums and songs. Check out related artists (often mentioned in editorial reviews and the recommendation section) too. Find out what music genre the song or musician(s) you’re interested in fall into, and shop by genre.

Ask interesting people what they listen to. You know that guy on the bus who wears a trenchcoat, eyeliner, and fingerless gloves? Next time you see him bobbing his head to his DiscMan, ask him what he’s listening to. Either he’ll think you’re rude, or, more likely, he’ll be delighted at the chance to share his musical taste with someone who’s actually curious. Instead of asking people how they’re enjoying (or not) the weather, ask them questions like:

• What’s the first CD you bought?
• What’s the last CD you bought?
• If you had to choose one song to summarise your life what would it be?
• Has a song ever made you cry?
• If you were to make a soundtrack to your life what would be on it?

Listen to whole albums. Oftentimes an artist or group puts out one or two singles that engage popular appeal but are uncharacteristic of their work. And quite commonly the jewels of music are buried in albums, far away from radio play. So if a catchy single drew you in don’t be surprised and throw the CD away if the rest of the songs aren’t just like it.

Listen to an album more than once before deciding whether you like it or not. It’s best to listen to an album three times before you make your judgment especially if it’s a genre you don’t normally listen to. For example, if you’re listening to your first heavy metal CD you’ll probably spend the first run furrowing your eyebrows as your ears adjust. By the second run, you might start to feel your toes tap, and a little bit of headbanging coming on. And by the third time around you could very well be singing along and listening carefully to the lyrics. You don’t necessarily have to listen to an album three times in a row–just make sure you’ve given it the full benefit of the doubt before you toss it.

Go underground. Find out who the local bands are and where they play. Visit venues that feature independent artists. If you live near a major city find out where you can listen to great music live and go there. Even if it’s a group or performer you’ve never heard of, and/or a type of music you don’t normally like, sometimes listening to music live can make a believer out of you and change your listening perspective.

Take a class in music theory. You can better appreciate music by understanding how it works. Music has many layers that are difficult to recognise and enjoy without knowing what the difference is between music and noise. In other words, listening to music without understanding music theory is like being into cars without having any idea what’s under the hood.

Learn to play an instrument. What better way to further your appreciation for musical artists and the work they create than by learning to create it yourself? Cover your favourite songs. If you’re drawn to certain songs and genres because of the emotion it stirs in you chances are that emotion will be amplified if you genuinely try to play that music yourself. And who knows? You might discover your inner musician and start creating music of your own.

Go to the library. The library is a wonderful repository of wealth. Think of it like this: what’s theirs is yours! Besides all the books their libraries also stock music too. All kinds of music: rap, country and western (both the modern and the old), blues, classical, opera, world music, reggae, techno, trance disco, etc. Whatever your library doesn’t have, they can order from other libraries.
Connect the dots. Or, in this case, the artists. Identify a few artists you consistently enjoy then find their collaborations. Next, find compilations that include them and listen to the other artists on that album. On that same note identify soundtracks that have featured their music and you’re likely to find similar musical stylings.

Tips

• Consider trading mixtapes with friends and eventually you might like to make some for them to share your new music.
• Support diversity and creativity by buying CDs and merchandise directly from struggling musicians who have done your ears a favour by presenting something unique.
• Be willing to put your money where your mouth is or at least where your ears are. For, say, every ten CDs that waste your time and money you’ll find one that changes your life. That’s just the way it goes.

Warnings

People will probably look at you funny as you explore music that spans beyond the kind of music someone like you is “supposed” to listen to. Have fun shattering your stereotype and put the volume up when someone raises an eyebrow.