Numerous scholars have emphasized the influence of the sounds of the natural environment on the development of musical expressions by humans. In his landmark study of the music of the Kaluli of New Guinea, Steven Feld found that before he could begin to understand the Kaluli’s music, he had to first turn his attention to [...]
Exploring the boundary between sound & music 2:1
Interesting article from Music Think Tank If a Tree Falls in the Woods Can You Call It Music? By Keith Andrew Recently I was reading some material on the controversial yet highly influential experimental composer John Cage –most widely known for his ‘piece’ 4’33” which if you are not familiar with, is 4’33” of silence. A [...]
Has the Internet created a tyranny of musical choice?
In a thoughtful and thought-provoking follow-up to his article “The Barriers Of Music Consumption” Hypebot Associate Editor Kyle Bylin discusses whether the plethora of choices that have occurred with the shift in the music industry from the top-down major label model to the bottom-up “participatory culture of the Internet. Has an overload of choices caused an [...]
The Barriers Of Music Consumption (@ Hypebot.com)
“The Barriers Of Music Consumption” by Hypebot Associate Editor Kyle Bylin raises some important questions about how the digital age has changed our relationship with music. A must read, Bylin puts forth a provocative examination of how changes in the modalities of music consumption have affected the nature of individuals’ experience of the music they choose [...]
Long overdue attention to Appalachian blues
Classic Appalachian Blues from Smithsonian Folkways Various Artists SFW40198 The “mountain cousin” of the Delta blues, Appalachian blues bears the stamp of a distinctive regional blend of European and African styles and sounds born at the cultural crossroads of railroad camps, mines, and rural settlements. Drawn from deep within the Folkways collection and from historic live [...]
Elevator Music?
Interesting edition of GompArts, Will Gompertz’s column for the BBC, on a recreation of Martin Creed’s Work No 409 at the Southbank Center in London. The setting is an elevator and the work is a piece for vocalists whose voices rise as the elevator ascends and descends as it falls. Creed became well-known after winning [...]
