Monday, October 5, 2009

Never Mind The Styles (Or: What Is Art?)

What's with all those genres? Country, hip-hop, rock, folk, etc... New artists often define their songs in those terms. "This is a country-style tune" they might say. And then you listen to it and discover that it sounds nothing like what YOU think of as "country." The world is full of hybrid songs which don't really belong in any clear box or category.

So what is it about those styles? What's in a name?

It seems to me that inasmuch as any of those labels convey any meaning, it must have something to do with "belonging" and by extension, with an "idea of belonging." Think of it like this. In the days when Western movies were king, young people everywhere idolized their gun-toting heroes, they wanted to be a little bit like them, and do what they did. The music those horoes listened to (or at least the soundtrack made you think so), was mostly Country & Western. It comes as no surprise, then, that this genre was doing really well in the mainstream back in those days.

But as cultural icons change, so does the music which accompanies them. Folk was the music of rebellious intellectuals who wanted to question everything. The likes of Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen opened up popular music to meaningful lyrics. Rock in almost all of its early guises was the music of liberation and a break with convention. And so was punk and - perhaps even more so - hip-hop. All of these styles came from real environments and as the public-at-large learned to identify with them, the style would enter the mainstream consciousness new idols would appear and imitators would spring up like mushrooms after rain.

Many of the subsequent superstars were not, by any stretch of the imagination, the real thing. Was Johnny Cash a cowboy? Was Cliff Richard a rebel? Was Vanilla Ice a boy from the hood?

So, while the music by many contemporary artists may not be totally true to its roots, and is, for the most part, only a vague imitation of the originals, one must not jump to the hasty conclusion that it is therefore invalid or too derivative to be worth anything. In fact, it might even be quite the contrary. Do you have to be an astronaut to be able to imagine how he or she feels? Does it mean you aren't allowed to study astrophysics? Or at least to make "space" tunes? Do you have to live in the ghetto to empathize with those people's plight and later write a passionate song about it?

Clearly, no. In fact, we must remember that all art is just a synthesis of influences, and those influences can not only be widely divergent, but they can also be personal as well as imaginary. A song - or any piece of art - needs to be judged not so much on the "authenticity" of its originator but on the cohesion, poingnancy and beauty of its creation. Does it create something within the listener? Good art, good music, is completely capable of doing just that! In fact, it may even be the very definition of art, that unless it contains the power of creation within itself it isn't really art.

And what is it that good art might "create?"

Starting with provoked thoughts, vague or particular emotions, feelings of sadness, happiness, anger or joy, a wish to enhance the communication with others, or the wish to retreat and think some things over - that's what art is all about. And never mind the styles...!

Don't forget to read my newest sub-blog - "Write a Song About This!"

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