We can engage ourselves with music as a composer, performer, or listener. As

We can engage ourselves with music as a composer, performer, or listener. As a listener, we respond to music with different levels of receptivity. We may be very casual about the way we hear music, paying almost no attention to it. Elevator or telephone music, for example, is not meant to be listened to intently. We have all used music as background sound to create a pleasant atmosphere for our own quiet thought. On the other hand, especially when we are on the road, an "easy" listening station can create a dreamlike haze, and we may deliberately turn off the music, so as to concentrate on the driving.
    There are other times when music is the center of our focus, and we give it our full attention. This could be in a church, at a special event, or at an orchestra concert. Rut how are we supposed to listen to a piece of music? There are different ways to experience the melody. Some people let the sounds wash over them like a sonic bath, an emotional flood. This is the sensuous level. Other listeners respond on a perceptive or analytical level, listening to the sounds and absorbing various aspects of the music as they unfold. They listen for musical events and how they accumulate to form an expressive composition. The first level of attending to music is purely emotive: the second, analytical. The perceptive level raises our awareness . Ideally, we learn to listen more perceptively in order to increase the emotional impact. Perceptive listening allows us to enjoy the music more fully by revealing the expressive power of the composition .
    Listening to classical music can often be lighthearted and easygoing. This is especially true when a symphony orchestra is performing out-of-doors. At other times, listening to concert music, or even folk music can be serious and intense. This is particularly the case if we want to comprehend and appreciate all the events in the music as they occur. The ultimate experience is being so caught up in the music that we lose ourselves in it. Time may appear to stop, and our spirit is transformed.