In the pre-modern tradition, the
aesthetics of music or
musical aesthetics explored the mathematical and cosmological dimensions of rhythmic and harmonic organization. In the eighteenth century, focus shifted to the experience of hearing music, and thus to questions about its beauty and human enjoyment (
plaisir and
jouissance) of music. The origin of this philosophic shift is sometimes attributed to
Baumgarten in the 18th century, followed by
Kant. Through their writing, the ancient term
aesthetics, meaning sensory perception, received its present-day connotation. In recent decades philosophers have tended to emphasize issues besides beauty and enjoyment. For example, music's capacity to express emotion has been a central issue.