Week 5 - Can Popular Music ever be Unplugged?

When considering the literal meaning of 'popular' music which is 'music accessible to a wide audience' I feel the idea that it could ever be 'unplugged' is impossible for most genres of music. Due to the fact that in order for popular music to be available to a mass audience, technology is needed. As Kevin Holm-Hudson stated ' Without electric technology popular music in the 21st Century is unthinkable'. If popular music was unplugged there would be no electronic amplification ie microphones, electronic guitars, keyboards or electronic drumkits, and this would remove many musical genres such as rock, punk and heavy metal, as they rely heavily on the use of the electric guitar in performances. It would also be impossible for bands to play and sing for large audiences as without microphones the instruments would drown out the voice and the sound would not carry. However it is possible for 'unplugged' music to be relatively popular, for example gospel choirs do not use electronic instruments or microphones, and do have quite a large fanbase, however it is generally not as popular as other types of music, although popular singers do release 'unplugged' albums which are successful, I feel genres such as pop and rock, could not continue to be both massively popular and 'unplugged'.

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

The term 'World Music' was first coined in the 1980's as a marketing term and was used to broadly classify the many genres of non-Western music, including folk, indigenous and also non-Western pop and classical music. However what we in Western Europe think of as World music, is 'local' music in it's country of origin. As Jan Farley states " The Relationship of the 'local' and the 'global' in popular music is one of the most complex, controversial and significant issues of the new millenium." World music can thus also be defined as "Local Music" which could include hearing a student band in the SU, a band performing local, indigenous music or the product of multinationals investing in "Local" talent. World music exists globally today due to the fact that major labels have begun signing talent who perform indigenous "Local music" such as the Lobi Traore Group, and marketing it around the world. The internet has also helped to spread and popularise "world music" However some musicians are highly critical of the term "world music" and see it as a "parochial, catchall marketing term for non-western music of all genres."

Week 3: Is Popular Music a commodity or Art?

The argument that pop music is a commodity is put forward by Adorno in his Dialectic of Enlightenment. He stated that it was not art, as pop is standardized and not unique. Unlike classical music, which he greatly enjoyed and considered to be a high art form as it is always changing, and focuses on melody and harmony, rather than pop which concentrates on timbre and connotations. Other arguments to suggest that pop is a commodity is the fact that the music industry can be described as an all-consuming production line that churns out mass produced, inferior commodities. Whereas an art-form is thought to be something that is unique, and more about expression than making money. However on the other hand pop can be described as an art form which aims to attract the masses.It is a melting pot that borrows and assimilates elements and ideas from a wide range of musical styles, giving it individuality and changeability. Overall Adorno cannot be proved right or wrong as it is a theory and his own personal opinion.