ABSTRACT
Music is the least expensive and most easily available form of electronic entertainment. Because of its “packaging” in small 3- to 4-minute units, popular music in particular lends itself to being consumed in numerous situations without great time investment or effort. The combination with video has created the opportunity for music to carry additional levels of meaning. Due to the radio, record player, audio tape, CD, and current digital technologies such as MP3, Napster, and its successors, thousands, even millions of listeners can enjoy to the same song by the same performer at the same or different time in widely dispersed locations. The media create a musical culture that is at the same time highly individualized, and also tremendously standardized.
