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Sound and the Aesthetics of Play pp 1–38Cite as

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The Aesthetics of Play

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Abstract

In this chapter, I present an introduction to Gadamer’s aesthetics, a leading approach to aesthetics in the phenomenological tradition. Influenced by Heidegger, Gadamer is interested in how art impacts our experiences in the world, through mutually dependent disclosures and hiddennesses. These disclosures not only disclose themselves but also reveal the presence of the hidden or unfathomable, which draw us into the game of the aesthetic experience. This awareness of the hidden requests an active participation from us as listeners, and asks that we submit to the proposed rules of the game. It also further asks for an immersion into the game of the aesthetic experience that our consciousness does not control nor fully anticipate, allowing us to be potentially changed by the game.

Keywords

  • Phenomenology
  • Gadamer
  • Hermeneutics
  • Primacy of play
  • Aesthetic experience

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  1. Music & Sound Knowledge Group, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    Justin Christensen

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Christensen, J. (2018). The Aesthetics of Play . In: Sound and the Aesthetics of Play. Palgrave Studies in Sound. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66899-4_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66899-4_1

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