While listening to this piece, I Am Sitting In A Room, by Alvin Lucier, I at first became a bit annoyed as I realized the next 45 minutes of my life would be spent hearing the same phrase repeated over and over. However, I came to the realization that the piece was quite meditative and reflective. As Lucier first recorded his voice, and then allowed it to playback in the room, rerecording each playback, the sound became more and more abstract. As a recollection of spoken words evolves into an environmental soundscape, I believe Lucier is attempting to reveal not only the resonances of the room he is in but also the qualities of the recording equipment.
As the sound became more and more abstract, it held a more ephemeral quality to it. Not only was this piece educational on the qualities of audial resonance, but the decay of the purity of the audio over time also shows an artistic expression of an aesthetic soundscape. As this evolution occurred, I found myself more and more in tune with the audio by finding an appreciation for this work of art.
In lines with considering sound and music art, I believe that art is anything that causes us to feel empathy or causes us to have our perspectives challenged. Music is such a universal language with how it is able to make us all feel, that I believe all music deserves to be considered art. With the example of this piece, the sound of speech was allowed to be distorted over a long period of time in order to show the connection between sound and music and to challenge our view on what we consider sound and what we consider music. I don’t believe that all sound is art, but I believe that when expressed with purpose, it has every right to be considered an artistic medium.