Theodore Gracyk

Sound recordings have many functions, but the encoding and playback of music is among the most ubiquitous. Recordings of music have a dual nature. Originally they were artifacts that represented some of the sonic features of a particular music performance. However, they are also artifacts with their own characteristics, which vary as the technology developed. Consequently, recorded music can be approached from dual perspectives: as documentation of music performed in the past, or as an artwork in itself. Walter Benjamin was therefore wrong in his prediction that modern reproduction methods would negate the "aura" of artworks. The essay illustrates the issues with extended discussion of the Grateful Dead’s 1969 album *Aoxomoxoa* as compared to live recordings of the group made at this time.

Opinionated and example-filled, this extremely concise and accessible book provides a survey of some fundamental and longstanding debates about the nature of music. The central arguments and ideas of historical and contemporary philosophers are presented with the goal of making them as accessible as possible to general readers who have no background in philosophy. The emphasis is on instrumental music, but examples are drawn from many cultures as well as from Western classical, jazz, folk, and popular music