ABSTRACT
In this chapter lies the answer to the diffi cult question posed in the Preface, ‘How do we know what is good?’. Critical engagement arises from a study of the cultural context for music and from a personal desire to engage with it in an informed and intelligent way. In order to achieve successful critical engagement, the digital musician, therefore, needs to be culturally aware and keen to develop. He or she will need to deploy some of the analytical techniques and ideas that emerge from the fi elds of musicology, critical theory and cultural studies.
