"There’s nothing so irritating as someone else’s ring-tone. First comes the jolt to one’s nerves. Then comes the thought, “You really think THAT’s amusing/good to hear?”, as a burst of One Direction or a mooing cow scrapes tinnily at one’s ears. Of course our own ring-tone is always a model of discreet wit and taste. And yet when it rings we’re always desperate to turn it off, which shows wit and taste aren’t really the issue. The ring-tone is simply beyond redemption. It’s irritation in its purest form, like cold calls or being put on hold.
The Spektral Quartet, a Chicago-based string quartet, begs to disagree. They think a ring-tone can be a moment of aural delight, and have commissioned 65 brand-new ring-tone-sized pieces to prove it, all available to download from the quartet’s website. They range from one second in duration to 40, and have been written by 47 American composers of all ages, races and styles."
To read the whole article, click here