demands a strong, accurate memory, a keen power of
discrimination and a sympathetic, open mind.

Another paradoxical characteristic of music on which it is interesting
to reflect is this: Music is the oldest as well as the youngest of the
arts, _i.e._, it has always[7] existed generically, and all human
beings born, as they are, with a musical instrument--the voice--are
_ipso facto_ musicians; and yet in boundless scope of possibilities it
is just in its infancy. For who can limit the combinations of sound
and rhythm, or forecast the range of the human imagination? The
creative fancy of the composer is always in advance of contemporary
taste and criticism. Hence, in listening to new music, we should
beware of reckless assertions of personal preference. The first
question, in the presence of an elaborate work of music, should never
be, "Do I like it or not?" but "Do I understand it?" "Is the music
conveying a logical message to me, or is it merely a sea of sound?"
The first and last article in the music-lover's creed, I repeat,
should be _familiarity_. When we thoroughly know a symphony, symphonic
poem or sonata so that, for example, we can sing the themes to
ourselves, the music will reveal itself. The difference between the
trained listener and the person of merely general musical tendencies
is that the former gains a definite meaning from the music often at a
first hearing; whereas, to the latter, many hearings are necessary
before he can make head or tail of the composition. Since the creative
composer of music is a thinker in tones, our perceptions must be so
trained that, as we listen, we make sense of the fabric of sounds and
rhythms.

[Footnote 7: From earliest times, mothers have doubtless crooned to
their infants in instinctive lullabies.]

It is evident from the foregoing observations that our approach to the
subject is to be on the intellectual side. Music, to be sure, is an
emotional art and so appeals to our emotions, but these will take care
of themselves. We all have a reasonable supply of emotion and
practically no human being is entirely deficient in the capacity for
being moved by music. We can, however, sharpen our wits and strengthen
our musical memories; for it is obvious that if we cannot recognize a
theme or remember it whenever it appears, often in an amplified or
even subtly disguised form, we are in no condition to follow and
appreciate the logical growth and development of the themes themse