Week 5 - Can popular music really ever be unplugged?

Unplugged music is that which does not utilise modern technology in any part of its production or distribution, and P. Thelberge suggests, ‘without electronic technology, popular music in the 21st century is unthinkable’, indicating that if popular music were to be unplugged, then this would limit artist’s distribution, thus turning full circle and arguably not being popular music due to the restricted groups in which it can be played to. However, it can also be argued that music can be unplugged and still remain successful, for example the popularity of acoustic music that exposes the talent of musicians without the support of technology, even this category of music needs the aid of technology in the sense that if it were to be played the masses it would need technological amplification.

To conclude, popular music is in a category of its own that is dependent on technology to exist, yet evidently there is a market for unplugged music that again survives on the exact opposite.

Week 4 - What is World Music and why does it exist?

World music is associated with its use of rhythm and usually associated with musics from Africs, yet has recently become more inclusive (now with inclusion of American, Asian and European music), albeit a product that has derived from aggrieved, disadvantaged or third world populations., in order to represent a small subculture through the fusion, as Tony Mitchell (1993) notes, of modern and traditional music.

At an linguistic level, world music is associated with the translation of lyrics to those other than English. It can also be argued that world music has been institutionalised through the construction as a sub-genre, advertisements, festivals, radio and television programmes.

World music supplies a sense of cultures as being homogeneous, as well being used as a concept of race though its biological and musical characteristics. So therefore, it can be argued that world music is not necessarily about a particular repertoire or group of people, but about the importance of particular musical practices in relation to that of mainstream, inviting a choice of musical experiences. It can also be said to be a reminder of the hierarchical dominance that the music industries enforce upon music markets with the ability to keep at bay any music which falls outside that of mainstream.

Week 3 - Is Popular Music a Mass Produced Commodity or a Form of Art?

Adorno agues that popular music is standardized, for example, the part interchangability which is used to streamline costs can be seen in music where the same musical structure has been used in one song, and changed slightly to produce something different. (E.g. Hank Williams, 1974, Move It On Over, and Bill Haley, 1953, Rock Around the Clock). This illusion of uniqueness that Adorno argues is necessary to market a commodity, is in essence the same as the host, which is called pseudo individualisation.

Gendren agrees with Adorno arguing that classical music focuses on melody and harmony whereas popular music is more concentrated with timbre and connotation, yet recognition and the ability to create a three minute piece of music has not been expressed; it is much like trying to downsize a 1500 word essay to 150 words...very hard indeed! However this does not necessarily mean that popular music is less of an art. If art is an expression of an artist then whether it has elements of standardization or pseudo individualisation it is still arguably art. So as there are elements of originality, whether intentionally or not (as the voice is original) it can be argued that the popular music industry is not an all consuming production line that churns out mass produced, inferior commodities, as Adorno believes!