musica

Music, or musica, is the art form and cultural activity whose medium is organized sound and silence over time. It encompasses melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre, as well as dynamics and form. Music can be vocal or instrumental, performed solo or in groups, and exists in traditional, contemporary, and electronic guises across all cultures.

From Latin musica, from Greek mousike techne, the term originally referred to the Muses' arts. In many languages the word for music similarly reflects a broad sense of organized sound, while medieval and modern usage distinguishes music from poetry and speech.

Its primary elements are melody (pitch sequence), harmony (simultaneous pitches), rhythm (timing), timbre (tone color), dynamics (loudness) and form (structure). Notation on staff is common in Western traditions but many cultures rely on oral transmission, improvisation, or alternative systems.

Music has ancient roots; early instruments and voices; notations in ancient civilizations; polyphony in medieval Europe; tonal harmony; industrial era advances; recording and broadcast; digital and networked music transforms distribution.

Music expresses identity, ritual, celebration, and storytelling; it functions in education and entertainment; vast genres and practices worldwide; classical, folk, pop, jazz, electronic, and beyond; music can be local and global simultaneously.

Today, technology shapes creation, reproduction, and dissemination: recording, synthesis, sampling, streaming, and AI-assisted composition. The study of music spans acoustics, cognition, and ethnomusicology, highlighting the universality of music and its diverse expressions.