TomCat wrote:
I think the only people that appreciate music these days are musicians themselves......the public today see it as a noise to fill the space in their conscience.....
Joe Boyd (60s producer/entrepeneur - worked with Muddy Waters, Pink Floyd, John Martyn, Nick Drake etc etc) once observed that most people want music to be a sound track for their lives.
Music gets appreciated or liked or valued in ways that are not specifically to do with music. A lot of people link it to events in their lives (this is Joe Boyd's theory I suppose) - "they're playing our song", "this was my Dad's favourite song", "this was the song that was playing the first time I kissed the man who is now my husband".
It can be used as a fashion item.
And, yes, it can be used to fill a space.
Some people use music in ritualistic ways. Some communities may have songs that mean something to them or that help create a sense of identity - even if the original meaning of the song is forgotten. I have friends who sing certain songs around the braai. They don't sing those songs for the sake of the song, they sing them because that's what they sing in their family, they are asserting their heritage I guess.
Music gets used as a rallying call, a way for like-minded people (or people who have bought into the same fad) to celebrate what they have in common. Punk is a good example. IMO there was some very good music came out of that scene (
London Calling is a fab album), but for most people it was about the look, meeting people with the same chips on their shoulder. Malcolm McLaren made sure that punk couldn't just be enjoyed for the vigorous music that it was. (this would be another application of Boyd's theory)
Music gets confused with showbiz and entertainment. Madonna, Britney, the Spice Girls, even Michael Jackson (who had real, considerable gifts as a vocalis) were about show biz more than just music. It was the shows, the costumes, the lights, the dancers, the SPECTACLE, and not just the music. Madonna may be a great entertainer, but she's not a great singer or a great songwriter.
I could go on.... there are lots of ways in which music is not enjoyed for itself but as a part of something else or as a peg on which other things can be hung.
