Week 11 - Does the Music Industry create the Market?

Some may say that the music industry does indeed create the market, it definitely does have a lot of control over what exactly goes into it.  What is promotes is clearly all its own choice and the music selected to be in the market must all be there to make a profit.  The music industry needs this control to actually make money.  Once a certain type of music has proven to be popular the industry will leech onto this and find lots of different artists who would fit into this style.  In this way we are seeing the music industry create the market. However, the music industry cannot actually force the consumer to like a certain type of music so this can't always be done.  The music produced and put on the marker must firstly be popular with the consumer therefore in a way it is not actually the industry who creates it, it is the consumer.

Week 10

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Week 9 - Are Blackness and Whiteness useful concepts in the study of Popular Music?

Blackness and Whiteness are terms that are often used to define the origin of some music for example a lot of the time these are two categories that are used to define a genre of music as a whole.  We can always identify the sounds, instruments and rhythms that are commonly heard in a certain type of music and this is the same for Black and White.  It could be said that within music there is an obvious difference between the two categories for example the types of voice within both are usually very different.  Earlier in history it may have been easier to separate the different types of music due to clashes to do with race and when there was a more pronounced difference between the two but recently it has become more difficult to separate the music into these two different categories as black and white artists are crossing the borderlines of these genres and beginning to create music that would be seen as the opposition, the styles of black and white music are now becoming more mixed so now it could be said that the concepts of blackness and whiteness within music are not much use at all.

Week 8: Are Sub-Cultures a Sign of Revolt or an Expression of Style?

Subcultures are often seen as a way of rebelling or as a revolt however more recently we have seen this change with the development of subcultures that seem to be more about style.  Skin heads and punks are two subcultures that are still hugely recognized but perhaps for different reasons.  The punk scene seemed to be hugely influenced by style, it was a massive part of their culture and was used to shock and scare people.  It is perhaps the style that is  remembered more than the points they were trying to make about economic conditions.  Recently we are seeing more subcultures develop such as emo's and goth's however it would seem that these groups of people are heavily based on the way they look and are not focused on trying to prove anything.  In the past subcultures were used to revolt, skinheads wanted to try and prove points about work as well as rebelling against family etc.  Over the years however it would seem that subculture has definitely morphed into being mainly a style conscious thing.

Week 7 – Can Popular Music be a genuine force for political change?

In more recent times we have begun to see music used more and more to raise awareness and to motivate people.  Everybody listens to music at some point during the day whether it is on the radio or just by being in a shop that plays music however it is not altogether clear if the music changes peoples opinions on things or not.  Popular music can only be a genuine force for political change if the listener decides to listen to the message within the music, it is extremely easy for people to turn off a song that does not interest them therefore the point of a political message is lost.  Bands such as Green Day have used their music to show their own political views however we cannot be certain as to if the music is popular for that reason alone.  Music can only be a genuine force if the listeners and audience are willing to listen however this does not mean that it cannot try. 

What Is World Music and Why Does it Exist?

World music is mainly seen as being music from countries and places far away from our own, we would however not see american music as world music and perhaps this is because we share a language in common. There is no clear definition of world music even though when thought about all music could fit into this category as it is being created in this world, however most people would say music from countries that speak a language different to english would be seen as world music. World music exists for many different reasons but perhaps mostly to entertain different cultures and to inform other cultures of their existence and different styles. However when being created it is extremely unlikely that the creators of this music are thinking of pleasing other countries who don't speak their languages or listen to the different sounds their music produces and this is perhaps why the music is classed as being 'World'.

Is popular music a mass produced commodity or an art form?

Popular music has been viewed in many different ways and it is often set apart from 'serious music' (like classical music) as it viewed as being easier to consume and is also viewed as being for a lower class of people.  Because of this view a lot of people would say that popular music is definitely not an art form.  Adorno says that music is standardised and that music acts as social cement that brainwashes its audience and this can be seen in the sense that audiences these days accept what they are being given and they don't challenge it,  people are accepting computer generated music that has no originality anymore.  Music can be seen as an art form depending on the creator, a person who sits in front of a computer creating electronic music could not really be seen as an artist but musicians who create music from scratch including lyrics as well as classical artists would be seen as creators of art to many different people.  Music can only be defined as a popular commodity or an art form by the people who consume it.