He acknowledges that we have developed an extensive musical vocabulary to describe things that happen within musical works, but he contends that these exist in a vacuum to some degree. This is so inasmuch as the musical terms we use cannot be related to other forms of artistic expression or other parts of the world.
Music is by nature an elusive art form because it only exists in time.
One can read a score or lyrics to a song, but one can never truly capture the music itself. Even though we can play it over and over again using CDs, the music moves through the air and into our ears, but as quickly as we perceive it, it is gone because music is constantly moving. It is my view that Eisler is correct for this reason. Music is a dynamic art form, quite unlike painting or sculpture, where the artist s product stands still to be viewed. Because music is constantly moving and perceived by the ear, we have a difficult time relating it to the rest of our world.