Music is a form of expression in the medium of time using the structures of tones and silence. It is the creation of complex forms in time through construction of patterns and combinations of natural stimuli, principally sound. As a human activity, music may be used for artistic or aesthetic, as a means of communication, entertainment, or ceremonial purposes. The definition of what constitutes music varies according to culture and social context.

Definition of music

The definition of music as sound with particular characteristics is taken as a given by psychoacoustics, and is a common one in musicology and performance. There are observable patterns to what is broadly labeled music, and while there are understandable cultural variations, the properties of music are the properties of sound as perceived and processed by humans.