Then and Now – Music

Music has always been…but it too has changed over the years. The differences between the 1960s and now are significant.

 I remember live performances in the 1960s…and records…and AM radio. There are still live performances now although most of my listening to music is done in my home office or when I am driving…more like the AM radio use in the 1960s. Now I choose what I want to listen to (from Apple Play primarily) rather than being at the mercy of a DJ picking tunes. The app does have a mode where it picks tunes for me by genre or ‘like’ what I have listened to previously which offers the benefit, like radio, of learning about new music.

In the 1960s we bought records and had a player. There was only one room of the house which had the player and speakers. My mother leaned toward classical (Dvorak, Strauss, etc.) and soundtracks from musicals (like Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, Oklahoma)…a few country western and rock albums. And once a record got a scratch, it was not pleasant to listen to anymore. Now all the music I listen to is digital and via subscription.

 In the 1960s, my friends and I sang with records or sang a capella or with guitar (rarely with piano too). Now I rarely sing except sometimes when I am tired and driving. I start Simon and Garfunkel’s greatest hits and sing along to keep myself alert!

 Right now, I listen mostly to instrumentals: piano and cello (like Brooklyn Duo), harp guitar (like Jamie Dupuis), cellos (like Low Strung), and Celtic (like The Boys of County Nashville).

 The other improvement over the years is Bluetooth – to connect phones/tablets/PC to speakers in my office/car (I’m asking for Bluetooth speakers in my office for Christmas)!

 There is such a rich environment for music now…so much easier to listen to whatever I choose!

Previous Then and Now posts