cim2@pyuxv.UUCP (Robert L. Fair) (07/19/85)
George B. makes several interesting points about 'Good & Bad Music': >music has always relied on some sort of grammar to >maintain consistency. This grammar was imposed >either externally (by the Pope or society), or internally, >by the composers own rules. This is at first sight seems intuitively correct: the assumption is that sounds without any form or structure are not music, but just noise. As George goes on, the problem is recognising that form in the sounds: > The problem of deciding what is good and what is bad music then is >linked to the listener's ability to decide whether the composer is >using a consistent grammar. If the grammar is externally imposed the problem >is lessened. Music that relies on traditional harmonic grammar is familiar >enough that the listener can tell if "wrong notes" are being played. Anyone >who has heard a mediocre club band knows what I am talking about. OK, This is fine so far, but now things start to get a little hazy... > The rule that I keep is whether or not the performer or composer >maintains grammatical consistency (stylistically and harmonically) >throughout the piece. If the piece is inconsistent, I judge it to be poorly >constructed, and therefore bad. If the piece is consistent throughout, then >I judge it to be well constructed and therefore good. The first part of this seems OK - If a piece is musically inconsistant (without being *deliberately* inconsistant) and with poor structure then it is likely to be a poor piece of music. However, the second - a consistent piece is a good piece - is not necessarily true, indeed it is often totally false!! As a common example, many rock tunes are very consistant - many HM bands are *extremely* conistant, to the stage of being totally indistinguishable without counting the hairs on the lead singer's torso, yet how many people would regard that music as having *long-term* musical merit, in this particular case the repetition of themes is pretty brain damaging, with the notable exception of bands like MOTORHEAD. > The danger with music that uses a grammar that is fully internally >imposed both stylistically and harmonically is that the first time >listener will more than likely not understand the piece. >To take an extreme example, a performance consisting of a man dressed in an >ape suit, who comes out on stage, starts a chain saw, puts it down on the >floor and then leaves the theater, will undoubtedly cause confusion in the >audience (and a lot of heated "is it music" debate). Have you ever seem a German group called Einstenze Neubatan (Collapsing New Buildings) ? That is exactly what they do (Only without the Gorilla outfit) They are **tremendously** sucessful as well - it looks like lots of people like it. But do they go for the music?? Personally, I don't regard a load of chain-saws & power drills to be music - and even if I did, I wouldn't *pay* to see it - I'd go round the local construction site. Remember - It is the MUSIC that we are considering here, not the VISUAL effects, although that is worthy of discussion in its own right. > The advent of electronic means of score realization has brought >a new wrinkle. Before, the composer couldn't get away with truly awful >technique and a paucity of ideas, because the musicians wouldn't play it It actually takes quite a lot of skill to use electonic instruments properly, particularly to emulate classical instruments. While electronics can be used to hide a lack of ideas some exceedingly good musicians are now combining classical & electronic musics to produce a natural blend of the two, for example Mark Isham and the Penguin Cafe Orchestra. > We should make the effort to decide what is bad art and what is >good art and if we decide a piece is bad to say so loud and clear, because >simply to think: > because no judgements can be made, > I can therefore make no judgements > >will lead us (it has led us) into a black hole of mediocrity, with all pieces >being accepted as great, and all composers being hailed as geniuses. Yes - but remember what is good art to one person in a particular culture may be noise in another cultural group. Rob. Fair - Where has all the pickled herring gone ?