POPMS
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Pop-M-S @ 1626.
Today, in tutorial, Geoff played two pieces of music then asked if the way we take to both pieces would be different if either one was made up of samplers. Consecutively, the discussion went on and it was mentioned that most artistes would have been influenced by some other artistes and genres any how.
My question is: Can music ever be completely original? To answer that, one has to ask just what is the meaning of "authentic" really.
What really is authenticity? It seems like every genre derived its roots partly from other genre or genres. Is rock n roll unoriginal because it has its roots in blues, country and gospel? And since a wide spread of popular genres now are influenced by rock n roll, are these bands the synthetic and fake because their sound is partly derived from another sound that has gone before?
Does original music exists really?
Just what is original?
- posted by sg girl @ 4:40 pm
Friday, April 02, 2004
Pop-M-S @ 16:24.
"Christian music" has changed so drastically. From hymns and churches which disallow any musical instruments to genres like Christian rap and Christian dance and churches with praise and worship music resembling the stuff we hear on commercial radio. There's radio-friendly pop, there's guitar-driven acoustic music, there's synthesizers and electrical drumbeats fading in and out, there's very loud electric guitars, heavy beats and basslines which won't be out of place at even a Metalica gig. You even hear deejays on some records scratching various effects. Influences are aplenty, punk, indie, trace... etc
I'm unable to link MP3s to this site since I don't have server space to hotlink MP3s to but refer to the CD I burned and submited which contains samples of different genres of Christian music.
[The MP3s in the CDR are from two Australian praise and worship groups - Adelaide's Planet Shakers and NSW Hillsong. They are both prominent in the praise and worship music industry. The former has set up a new church in Melb and is in fact meeting at RMIT's Storey Hall 6pm every Sun. There's also a track from an American Christian rock group which "covered" a worship song.]
Selling records to both commercial and Christian music lovers, bands like Jars of Clay, POD and Sixpence None The Richer replaces the likes of Amy Grant and Michael W Smith with sounds that would no doubt have been frowned upon by the earlier church.
Christian music is not the only one who seem to be adopting the sound of the day. Bands like Native Deen, a muslim rap band from Washington DC, makes music not unlike 50 Cents and other rap stars but with lyrical difference. are not uncommon.
Some would say the church is copping out when it seems to adopt musical changes from the secular world. Though it might be true that the change of the church's sound is in part to remain relevant or reach out to the world, the reason for the change could simply be because the young folks within the church is using this generation's music to express their adoration for the Almighty.
William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, once asked, "Why must the devil have all the good music?" and decided to "appropriate" tavern and popular songs and changed their lyrics to glorify God. (Incidentally, Christian band Striper put the title to a rock n roll song in the 1970s. Yeah, there was Christian rock n roll).
Should the theme and object of your song - in this case, God - automatically create walls around your music and limit your target audience? Should music has boundaries?
- posted by sg girl @ 4:42 pm
