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century has revolutionized the extent to which most people have access to
music. All kinds of music are available to most people, 24 hours a day, at the
touch of a switch. (https://musicmagic.wordpress.com/2008/07/10/music-insociety) Such a wide range of available channels through which music
became broadcastable (radio, vinyl records and television), besides live
shows, empowered it to reach big audiences like never before.
Besides the advent of music records, another aspect must be pointed out. In
fact, a new live music culture has grown around pop music; pop concerts
reject posh theatres in favour of open-air venues and festivals. Since the
very beginning of this phenomenon, during the late 60s, with the iconic
Woodstock episode, its influence especially in youth culture has been
enormous. Festivals have become unprecedented experiences of mass
aggregation, in which young people can enjoy their favourite music in fullimmersion and for a relatively cheap price. Their importance is corroborated
also by the possibility of meeting and networking amongst the musicians
that attended them as live acts, especially in the context of national and
international festivals (e.g. during Monterey festival, artists from the West
and from the East side of the USA happened to meet each other for the first
time).
Popular music literally became one of the strongest cultural phenomenon of
the 20 Century, together with the so-named seventh art (cinema and
television). As I pointed out previously, especially among youngsters, music
allows people to connect and share cultural experiences and ideas. Some of
the cultural movements that came about with particular musical trends are
countless: the hippie movement of the late 60s, along with psychedelic rock,
and the hip-hop culture, along with rap and urban music, are just examples.
It is interesting to point out how these musical styles are internally
inseparable from the cultural movement the used to belong to, in a
relationship that involves both causes and effects in the musical production.
These examples will now be explained in detail. Psychedelia is at the same
time a result of the need for sonic experimentalism derived by the use of
hallucinatory drugs amongst hippies, and at the same time one of the most
important reasons why people felt attracted to the whole countercultural
phenomenon. Likewise, rap music is not only the means through which
ghetto people (mostly of colour) convey their frustration towards society (the
primary goal), but is also closely related to hip-hop dance styles and graffiti
art (the result is a fusion of these elements in hip-hop parties, without
differences in importance amongst all these different feature).
th
sound and music are the spine, but never the confines, for multimedia
performances that also encompass graphic and digital design, art, cinema,
science, illustration, philosophy, fashion, and moreis a testament to her
curiosity and desire to learn and team up with diverse experts and creators
(http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2014/06/11/biophilia-the-first-appin-momas-collection). These are words by Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator at
the Department of Architecture and Design of the MoMa, New York; Bjork, in
fact, is one of the first musicians ever involved in a retrospective exhibition
at the aforementioned prestigious museum, and could be therefore
addressed even as a visual artist with full rights. She also holds the title of
being the inventor of the album-app, as her 2011 work Biophilia was
published as an iPad application on Apples App Store in correspondence with
the release on iTunes. Every single song features a multimedia-graphic
extension, that includes playable digital instruments, mini-games and video
presentations, creating a full rounded artistic experience.
Considering the growing importance gained by music in society through the
decades, especially due to technology, what would be the new paths that are
likely to be taken in the future? It is very difficult to state, since many
changes are happening. Personally, I think that songs are slowly taking over
poetry in terms of social importance, diffusion and relevance of content.
Moreover, the fact that more and more musicians, such as the
aforementioned Bob Dylan, are being praised by academic representatives,
is encouraging a shift in this direction. Bob Dylan was awarded with the
special citation [], making history as the first rock and roll artist to be
honored. Singer, songwriter, author, musician, and poet, was recognized for
his profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by
lyrical
compositions
of
extraordinary
poetic
power.
(http://bobdylan.com/news/dylan-wins-pulitzer-prize). Therefore, it is very
likely that the work of singer-songwriters will be studied in schools along with
others classics of literature, since they are definitely influencing our
contemporary society with their lyrics more than poets or even novelists. I
also think that another powerful branch of knowledge to be explored more in
depth should definitely be music therapy, as it is scientifically proven how
powerful the influence of music on our brain truly is. Healing physical
sufferance, depression and other mental disorders through music could
become the new definitive frontier of alternative medicine. Being free of
material resources to have to spend on, it is therefore administrable at no
end without any chemical waste or pollution.
In conclusion, the functions that music can potentially have in society are
innumerable. Its historical importance is likely to never deafen, as one of the
most interesting phenomena in human culture. Citing a famous quote by H.
W. Longfellow: Music is the universal language of mankind. In such a
worldwide and multicultural era as nowadays, music is just necessary, and its
constant contribution in connecting people should never cease.
Bibliography:
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n/A. (2008). Dylan Wins Pulitzer Prize. Available: http://bobdylan.com/news/dylanwins-pulitzer-prize/. Last accessed 15th Mar 2016.