Popular Music, Affective Space and Meaning

In the article Popular Music, Affective Space and Meaning (2012) Partridge explores how music creates identity, meaning and emotion beyond the lyrics and the authorial intent of the song. A large portion of the article discusses the different meanings of the bass guitar; how in some cultures it signifies a masculine, warlike element in the song and other times it can be a feminine sound, feeling as though it comes from the earth itself. This works for many other instruments and sounds: a Gregorian choir instantly conjures image of monks in a cathedral while a sitar signifies ethnicity. Another example is the snake charmer; the sound is very distinctive but in reality the snakes actually follow the movement of the charmer himself, regardless of whether the music plays or not. However, the image of a snake charmer would not be complete without the musical element.

Sources:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gScBzmKXTE

Partidge C. 2012. Popular Music, Affective Space and Meaning. In Lynch G. and J Mitchell with A Strhan. Eds., Religion, Media and Culture: A Reader. 182-193. London and New York: Routledge.