179,854Messages
9,130Senders
30Years
342mboxes

← back to listing · view thread

From:
M Mercer
To:
Date:
Tue, 10 Apr 2001 16:14:30 -0400
Subject:
Re: [idm] Re: Definitions Don't give Music or Art Justice
Msg-Id:
<F96upLzm8WG2sKgFYAM000042fe@hotmail.com>
Mbox:
idm.0104.gz
quoted 13 lines From: matt loathing <servusindustry@yahoo.com>>From: matt loathing <servusindustry@yahoo.com> >To: Josh Bown <josh@undertone.com> >CC: idm@hyperreal.org >Subject: Re: [idm] Re: Definitions Don't give Music or Art Justice >Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 12:55:51 -0700 (PDT) > >I completely disagree with that line of thinking. >First off...using pop music as a focal point for your >argument towards classical technique training does not >make any sense....since Ms. Spears and many other "pop >stars" became famous not because of their training but >because...as rule humans especially americans >gravitate towards mediocrity....
i think you misread the post.... i don't think the author was implying that britney spears is popular because of musical skill. (and i can assure you, she is not.) and i think there's no argument against the rule you've just stated, at least not from me. i think his argument was that maybe the amount of crap would be curbed if a more intellectual approach was taken..... in a perfect world.
quoted 19 lines Second of all...what does not make any sense to me is>Second of all...what does not make any sense to me is >the idea that people should be "taught" how to be >creative. > >Creativity is all about stepping outside of >boundaries. >And please don't tell me you have to "learn" the >boundaries so you are able to adequately step outside >of them because that's a load of crap. > >Classical music and technique is nothing but a bunch >of mathematics and you don't need to learn classical >music to put together amazing compositions or to play >amazing music..... >If needing to learn anything about classical music is >imperative is maybe the concept that most classical >composers were making pop music for their time. >So perhaps we can equate that Beethoven was just >another Brittany Spears!!
?? hmmm..... food for thought i guess. Was Beethoven admired for his hip dance moves and vinyl body suit? Did he do Pepsi ads? Or better yet, could Britney Spears lip-sync quite so well if she was deaf? If a pop star falls and no one cares, does it make a sound? I think this would be an example of overly simplistic arguing.... in which a composer as hugely influential and important as Beethoven is reduced to "a bunch of mathematics." To the contrary I find relatively little about Beethoven to be a matter of mathematics. The overall framework is in fact pretty simple, i.e. sonata form, rondo form, etc.... but the goings-on within that framework is sometimes pretty amazing. Schoenberg and the 20th century serialists are more on that ultra-math end of things, but give it some credit: it had never been done before. Artists like Oval are achieving somewhat similar results by randomizing sounds and letting software run itself basically. Now if only Markus Popp was a boy-band icon.... On the original topic, I don't necessarily agree with the idea of imposing theory on artists, because for some it works as a good foundation, and for others it simply tosses a set of rules over what was originally completely creative work, creative because there _were_ no rules. Those who want to pursue such avenues based on theory and history, etc., will do so, and their work will most likely reflect that for the better, because it was done with constructive intent.... anyway, enough of this from me. bye matt +------------------------------------+ m.mercer :: systm audio-visual communicator http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/98/systm.html mmercer@kent.edu :: vletrmx@hotmail.com _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: idm-unsubscribe@hyperreal.org For additional commands, e-mail: idm-help@hyperreal.org