There are such civilizations here on earth: ants. Termites. Honey bees.
replyIf you squint hard enough, you might see the music/art directly in the structure of their civilizations
replyThe question is: do the bees see music and art in their structures. I doubt it. One of the defining characteristics of music and art is that they have no obvious direct connection to reproductive fitness.
replyMaybe it's not an obvious direct connection, but in general good artists seem to get more action than the average person.
replyOnce you understand the role of happy in positive reproductive outcomes (long term, not pre- or immediately post-natal, their role is fairly obvious.
replyHmm, what does "civilization" mean actually?
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replyHondo.
replyThat's part of the premise of the movie "The History of Future Folk".
To appreciate music and art you need a sense of harmony. An alien species with aversion to harmony would produce similarly disgusting civilization: its music will be noise and its art will be chaos.
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