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I know that there's a concept of acquired taste, where a child may find certain tastes, like peppers and beer unappealing until certain age or frequency of exposure.

  • Is there something similar to acquired taste in music?
  • How does perception of the "beauty" of the same musical track vary for the same individual over a lifetime?

There has been an episode of the popular TV show "South Park" that deals with taste in music, although in a satirical way.

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I can tell you from personal experience the answer is a definitive yes. But that's not a scientific answer. – Josh Gitlin♦ Nov 9 '12 at 19:32
I've also heard that the appreciation changes for new genres - people may "grow into" classical music. But I hope to learn more about the appreciation of the same track by the same person at different times. – Alex Stone Nov 10 '12 at 19:01
@AlexStone: yeah of course....do you still like the Barney and Reading Rainbow singalongs or the theme song to Power Rangers? Now when you hear it, it sounds like a "little kids song". back then, it was the only song you really enjoyed. then you get to highschool and like blink 182, after college you get a real job and blink 182 sounds like little children making a lot of noise, etc etc – Greg McNulty Nov 10 '12 at 22:06
I think this is one of those questions where introspection is a legitimate way to answer. As Josh said, "yes". If there is something more you would like to know, please edit your question. Otherwise, I think closing this question might be appropriate. – Jeff Nov 11 '12 at 8:07
I've tweaked the question just a little bit. It's obvious from personal experience that the experience of music can change over time. I think the psychological question is "how" does such experience tend to change over time. I.e., what regularities has empirical research shown exist regarding the experience of music over time. – Jeromy Anglim♦ Nov 14 '12 at 2:13

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