week 5 - Can popular music ever really be unplugged?

In this day and age, it is extremely rare, and virtually unheard of to hear music that isn’t effectively ‘plugged in’. All kinds of music is now plugged in, even when you see a concert or an album advertised as ‘unplugged’. This is because it would be virtually impossible to play any kind of music to a crowd much bigger than 100 without some sort of amplification. However, amplification and electronic technology isn’t a bad thing, and is probably the reason why music is so popular these days. Paul Therberge agrees with this by stating that, in his opinion, ‘without electronic technology, pop music in the 21st century is unthinkable’. From the invention from Lee Deforest of the audion in 1904 to the Stratocaster in 1954 by Leo fender, this has all meant that in this day and age, we simply couldn’t live with music that is not plugged in in any way, so in my opinion, popular music cannot ever really be unplugged.

week 4 - what is world music and why does it exist?

Obviously there is a large number of interpretations about what world music is and why it exists because it is such a broad subject area. In my opinion, world music is music that is listened to on a worldwide stage. For example, I would I would class U2 as world music, because it is music that is listened to on a large scale across the globe. George Guilbault says world music is institutionalized, and is associated with music of the first and third worlds. I believe that any kind of music, from tribal African music to gospel music can be considered world music, as long as it is being transmitted across the world and consumed by these people. Id say that you could’nt describe one type of music as world music, as all music is interpreted differently by different people in different places. World music simply exists to entertain and to inform people of other music that is available and being produced in different parts of the world.

week 3 - Is popular music a commodity or an art?

Adorno claims that the popular music industry is an 'all consuming production line that churns out mass produced inferior commodities'. He hints that no music is original and that it is a 'commodity', all the same kind of thing sold in different packaging. He looks at part interchangability, used to streamline production costs and pseudo individualization which he says is used to provide the illusion of uniquesness necessary to market a commodity that is essentially the same as a host of others. However, I believe popular music is an art, and would argue against Adornos point. I dont believe that what the likes of Oasis and Westlife produce is just the same thing in a different form, and i dont believe that just anyone can pick up a pen and write songs of that quality. I believe you are born with the talent to be a musician, and what musicians write and produce is an art, because an art is something that people do that is unique, and that not a lot of people can produce.