The article considers questions of ethnomusicology and anthropology of music in the context of the work of the American anthropologist Alan Merriam devoted to definition of the place of ethnomusicology in space of judgment of theoretical, methodological and practical problems of a research in music anthropology are considered. The behavior of the person is considered as a music source, and this process is defined as continuous. Distinction of the subject field of a research within social and humanitarian approaches in the field of studying of music as sociocultural phenomenon is noted. Special attention is paid to a problem of identification of functions of music in the context of social behavior of the person, and such functions as are considered: emotional expression, communications, esthetic pleasure, symbolical representation, instruction of compliance to social norms, confirmation of relevance of social institutes and religious rituals, contribution to continuity and stability of culture.