ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the role of peak music experiences in interpersonal relationships, including between family, friends and romantic partners. This builds on previous theorisations of music as a resource for the identification and articulation of emotions, but replaces their focus on lyrics and textual meaning with the experiential approach developed in this book. It is shown that music can heighten and define the experience of certain micro-social events and situations, for individuals but also at an intersubjective level. Music can create a common affective space in which extraordinary kinds of expression and interaction are possible. People may consciously plan or seize upon shared experiences of music as a way to acknowledge, explore and celebrate aspects of their relationships. The resulting musical experiences can be imbued with highly personal significance and emotional resonance, creating peak music experiences through which people and relationships are remembered. These are significant ways of accounting for music’s long-standing associations with social intimacy while considering how these evolve with technological and cultural change.
