Aesthetic properties
Document Type
Book chapter
Source Publication
Routledge Companion to Philosophy and Music
Publication Date
1-1-2011
First Page
144
Last Page
154
Publisher
Routledge
Abstract
Obviously, an aesthetic property can be ascribed to a musical work as a whole, to a more or less distinct part of it (for example, a passage, movement, or theme), or to a performance of the work. In the philosophical literature, many questions have been raised regarding the nature, reality, and attribution of aesthetic properties. To mention but a few: What distinguishes aesthetic properties from other kinds of properties? Do such properties exist? Are there objective grounds for attributing them to a work? In what follows, however, the focus will be on questions that concern specifically the aesthetic properties of music. In particular: What determines whether a musical piece has a certain aesthetic property? Is music capable of having emotional properties such as sadness? Are there aesthetic properties that music is incapable of having? These questions will be taken in turn in the following three sections.
Additional Information
ISBN of the source publication: 9780415858397
Language
English
Recommended Citation
De Clercq, R. (2011). Aesthetic properties. In T. Gracyk & A. Kania (Eds.), Routledge companion to philosophy and music (pp.144-154). New York: Routledge.