How Many Times Do You Have To Listen To Understand A Piece Of Music?

If I’m critically listening, not hearing at a holiday party at someone house, once.  Some music grows on me like an earworm.  My kids music sometimes.  I’ve heard it so many times I know every word by heart but I wouldn’t put it on my playlist.  

There are many composers that people I respect tell me that I ‘have” to get.  Schoenberg and his school are the most frequently cited.  So after years of trying I finally understand the music, but I still don’t much care for it

About 16 bars is usually enough for me to know whether I want to listen further.

Tried out Nine Inch Nails yesterday.  Felt like I was being screamed at by an alien being.  Went through 10 tracks at about 12 seconds each, that was plenty for the rest of my life.

No I don't get it.

Regards,

barts

@fatdaddy2 Your comment on Springsteen made me laugh out loud.
@onhwy61 Depends. Some music grabs me immediately and all I want is more of the album, and the artist. Others take a few more listens, or just being in the right mood. Sometimes learning something about the artist’s life is enough for a second listen. I was once ready to chuck a disk as unintelligible garbage until I looked up the bio of the artist, one Chet Baker. I was intrigued, and gave it a second listen, I ‘understood’ it much better the second time around and treasure it now. But not when I want to dance. 🙂

Note: I had purchased a rather large collection of assorted CDs and was trying to pare them down to size. I have quite a stack of ‘Punk’ CD’s you can have for free. I tried every track on them to make sure they played, but not more than two seconds on any of them. I don’t like being screamed at. But I can remember, days in my adolescence when I might have been screaming right along with some bands in the 60’s, just not this stuff.