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.