Overlistening to music

[indy4 155]

Recently, I've become a little tired with some old favorites. There are classic cues from Star Wars, Indiana Jones, LotR, etc., that I just don't get a huge emotional response from anymore, because I've listened to them way too much. It's gotten to the point where I will stop myself from listening to a cue or a score if I've listened to it in the past few days. I've listened to Family Plot a grand total of two times, because I know I could very easily get tired of it. I don't remember the last time I listened to an entire Indiana Jones score, simply because I listened to them way too much during the Indy mania of 2008. All I can do is hope that one day they regain the power they once held over me.

Anybody else have a similar problem?

[Taikomochi 1,145]

That happens to me all the time. However, I find after a couple of months, I can come back to the score with some degree of renewed interest.

[Charlie Brigden 7]

No. I don't listen to things ad nauseum in general, and the two things I break that rule for (ESB and TMP) are still as great as they were the first time.

[Datameister 2,097]

Certainly. I try to be very careful not to overlisten. There's a sort of heavily skewed bell curve when it comes to emotional response to music, I think. The first few listenings tend to increase your emotional response - as you become more familiar with the music, you start to anticipate what's coming, but there are still surprises. You reach a sort of peak at the top of the bell curve, and that's when the music is familiar enough for you to really connect to it, but not so familiar that it's boring. Subsequent listens start to take you down the long other side of the bell curve...a slow descent into lack of interest.

The bad news is that this seems unavoidable, to some degree. The good news is that the effect can be lessened by listening less frequently. That tends to elevate the right side of the bell curve and stretch out the peak over longer periods of time. So when I get new music that I really, really love, I do put in the effort to not listen to it as often as I'd like. I'll gain more enjoyment later than I'll lose right now.

However, I do think you can regain some of that enjoyment for pieces you've already grown tired of by avoiding them for a long time, like you said. You might never reach that same peak again, but the music gets fresher the longer you spend away from it.

I think there's a way to get an even more dramatic effect, though...don't listen to ANY music for a while. I sometimes do that by choice or by necessity, and whatever I first listen to just knocks my socks off. It may be a steep price to pay during those days, but coming back to it afterward is like rediscovering what made you love music in the first place.

[Ollie 1,069]

I have too many film scores as it is, so it's never a problem.

But even before this deluge of releases over the past 5 years, I kept rotating my music so I wouldn't wear out a particular score's welcome.

[Jay 37,548]

That happens to me all the time. However, I find after a couple of months, I can come back to the score with some degree of renewed interest.

+1, except sometimes I got a year or more between listening to an over-played score

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,496]

This doesn't happen to me. Rather, I find there are some scores that I have to be in the mood for.

1941 is a good example.

[Richard Penna 3,782]

This has happened in a major way to me twice. About a month ago, I just couldn't find anything to match my mood. and couldn't explain why. It was like film music stopped doing anything for me for about a week. Actually, neither did any other genre of music, so I think my brain was just begging me for a break.

But on a smaller scale, I've noticed that if I spend the day listening to music at work, I'm a bit bored of it by the time I get home. But if like this week, I have a few days where I'm too busy to sit at my desk for hours, then I start humming things in the middle of the day and at home I can't decide what to listen to because there's so much good stuff.

[Quintus 5,399]

This has happened to me with practically all film music.

[Bellosh 3,515]

Moderation is always key. I wore myself out from the Indiana Jones scores, but I've learned to moderate them.

But holy smokes, what I must look like in my car when listening to the last minute and a half of 'Fast Streets of Shanghai" after about a month of not listening to that album. People would think I am insane.

[John Crichton 4]

It happens every once in a while with all sorts of stuff. But the beautiful part is when you give a favorite a rest and then go back to it after a while, rediscovery is glorious.

[Faleel 5,455]

depends on what score it is, its easier to overlisten a "bad" score than a "awesome" score

[Quintus 5,399]

It happens every once in a while with all sorts of stuff. But the beautiful part is when you give a favorite a rest and then go back to it after a while, rediscovery is glorious.

It can take me up to six months, but yes... it can feel like a revelation all over again

[Maglorfin 196]

That happens to me all the time. However, I find after a couple of months, I can come back to the score with some degree of renewed interest.

Same here. On the other hand, like Mark pointed out, I also have a pretty big and exhaustive selection of film music so more often, I find it a problem to listen to as many different soundtracks as I'd like to, but simply have no time for it.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,735]

I wouldn't care if I never heard "Star Wars" again (nor "Imagine", nor "Bohemian Rhapsody", for that matter).

[Wojo 2,453]

I wouldn't care if I never heard "Star Wars" again (nor "Imagine", nor "Bohemian Rhapsody", for that matter).

Once I clipped a little old lady trying to cross the street as I scrambled to change the radio dial when the Stones' "Angie" came on.

I just meander through my iPod. I don't use playlists but I don't like turning from an A to S then back to I then back down to W. I try to stay in one area and just gradually go through everything, but it's a challenge. A lot of good stuff still hasn't been loaded and what's on there is corrupt. Sometimes I just get the urge to listen to a score/album and that's what I pick.

[Charlie Brigden 7]

I wouldn't care if I never heard "Star Wars" again (nor "Imagine", nor "Bohemian Rhapsody", for that matter).

Once I clipped a little old lady trying to cross the street as I scrambled to change the radio dial when the Stones' "Angie" came on.

I just meander through my iPod. I don't use playlists but I don't like turning from an A to S then back to I then back down to W. I try to stay in one area and just gradually go through everything, but it's a challenge. A lot of good stuff still hasn't been loaded and what's on there is corrupt. Sometimes I just get the urge to listen to a score/album and that's what I pick.

I could never get sick of "Angie". "Jumping Jack Flash" on the other hand...

[Wojo 2,453]

I could never get sick of "Angie". "Jumping Jack Flash" on the other hand...

I was listening to Sirius satellite radio over the weekend in a rental car, and they actually played Peter Frampton's cover of JJF from the expanded "Frampton Comes Alive!" Talk about a deep cut.

[Sandor 799]

That happens to me all the time. However, I find after a couple of months, I can come back to the score with some degree of renewed interest.

Agreed.

[stewdog1 50]

This has happened to me with practically all film music.

Same here. I haven't been into film music as much this past year or two.

I would actually rather listen to Yanni, Ray Lynch, David Arkenstone type music instead.

I wonder if it is because I don't watch as many movies as I used to. Back before I had kids we would watch more movies, but very few nowadays.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I have too many film scores as it is, so it's never a problem.

What Mark said.

An average score will get 1-3 plays from me.

A good score will get 4-7.

A great score will get 8-10+

[Jay 37,548]

Koray what one score do you think you've listened to more than any others?

[OneBuckFilms 325]

I find myself getting into a "kick" with a score, or even a cue or moment, and listen to that over and over, and never really tire of it.

After that, I usually either play back a new score release, or go back to one of my favorites.

I have at least 200 scores to choose from, and if I hvaven't heard a score for a long time, I'll play it on a whim, and notice things about it, and a combination of memory and a different perspective may generate the next kick.

I also tend to find certain cues or moments in scores that just blow me away, and it's often not the big moments (such as end credits), but sometimes those smaller, incidental cues.

[Trent B 337]

I'm pretty sure that this has happened to most of us at least once or twice. I know it's happened to me recently. I listened to the Deluxe Edition for Star Trek but since I listened to it so much I've burned out on it. I only listen to a few cues every now and then.

[OneBuckFilms 325]

I know I switch between Star Trek: DE, Star Trek V (LLL), Batman (LLL) and The Edge (LLL) these days.

Batman Returns (LLL) is awesome, but I am not as familiar with it yet as I should be.

This year has really been an embarrasment of riches.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,496]

It happens every once in a while with all sorts of stuff. But the beautiful part is when you give a favorite a rest and then go back to it after a while, rediscovery is glorious.

You can stop listening to expanded/complete CDs for a while and go back to a purer, rawer album presentation. Thor would approve at least.

I haven't listened to the two-disc Star Wars trilogy in some time.

It's kind of like sex when you're tired but you still want it. Same end result when you finish quicker instead of going for extended amount of time.

[indy4 155]

I'm glad most people here have been able to reconnect with old favorites. There is still hope.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Koray what one score do you think you've listened to more than any others?

Scores that I've listened to 10+ times (off the top of my head):

Signs

Michael Clayton

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

How To Train Your Dragon

The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

LOST: Season 1

Medal Of Honor

...maybe The Fountain

*Goes to check iTunes*

The #1 score that I've listened to is Chris Tilton's La Lune. 37 times, albeit that's only one 7-minute suite.

#2 is "Bean's Secret Cider Cellar" from Fantastic Mr. Fox. 25 times. I'm sure the rest of the score is around that much.

#3 is "Roar!" from Cloverfield.

However, those 3 cues are spread out within roughly the Top 100 tracks in my Library. Song albums get waaaay more plays than any score I've listened to.

[Wojo 2,453]

That's only over a finite amount of time, say, as long as you've had that particular iPod or that certain installation of iTunes on your computer. Format or get a new computer, you get a fresh slate.

Now what soundtracks have we listened to the most from The Beginning Of Our Obsessive Hobby or will we listen to the most until the day we don't hear anything anymore? Impossible to say.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Exactly. LastFM isn't even accurate when it comes to my listening habits. Doesn't include the music I listen to on the radio, or on CD in the car, or anywhere else I may hear music. But I think for an average idea of how much I listen to a particular artist, it's fairly accurate.

[Ollie 1,069]

That's only over a finite amount of time, say, as long as you've had that particular iPod or that certain installation of iTunes on your computer. Format or get a new computer, you get a fresh slate.

Now what soundtracks have we listened to the most from The Beginning Of Our Obsessive Hobby or will we listen to the most until the day we don't hear anything anymore? Impossible to say.

That's easy,

Star Wars, TESB, Jaws, Superman, Raiders,E.T. and CE3K.

Next up would be Star Trek TMP, Star Trek II, Gojira, King Kong 1976 & 1933, Alien, Patton, 7th Voyage Of Sinbad and The Omen.

[Jay 37,548]

Patton is that good? I'll have to check it out sometime

[jacksparrow900 35]

I can listen to a score for maybe two our three times before I have to switch usually when I'm putting together a complete score together I sometimes listen to it as many times as I have to to make sure it sounded right and was not to jarring. I never get sick of any score by john williams

[Ollie 1,069]

Patton is that good? I'll have to check it out sometime

Plus it's something we had when the LP was originally issued. So it's a personal favorite of mine. Most of the ones I listed I had the LP of.

[Thor 7,679]

As others have pointed out, this is pretty much a non-issue for me too.

Of course there are some scores I've listened to so much that I know them "by heart", always being one note ahead of the music in my head. JURASSIC PARK, for example. Still, that's the degree of familiarity I AIM for. That's one of the reasons why I've almost stopped buying soundtracks altogether. I want to familiarize myself with the stuff I already have, to the degree of hopefully knowing them as well as I do JURASSIC PARK, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, BLADE RUNNER, NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, THE ABYSS and so on. With more than 900 CD's, that will have me going for a while.

On the other hand, I do agree about the "moderation" bit. I don't play JURASSIC PARK that often anymore. I want the theme to have that oomph and power it inherently has, and I don't want to water that out by playing it too often.