Saturday, 21 February 2009

How useful is Richard.A Petersons production culture perspective of Rock'nRoll?



Reading Petersons thoughts on Rock'n'Roll music in 1955, I disagree with some theories. His report doesn't discuss the musical creativity and how the technology of music was evolving rapidly, i.e the guitar, making music sound different, exciting and shocking audiences as it was something they had never heard before. Not only was music evolving,so was fashion and culture, people were becoming open to new ideas. This was mostly to do with the War, people trying to forget bad memories and becoming more liberated. I feel that Rock'n'Roll was a catalyst towards the dramatic social changes.I disagree that artists like Elvis and Berry were not responsible for the birth of the genre. Of course the artists took advantage of the circumstances, but they should take credit for what they did for the history of music. Although Peterson is correct that a baby boom wouldn't have produced a teenage audience in 1955, children born during the war would have been teenagers by this time, and this created the big audience, and popularity because they would have also had bad memories of the war, many with lost family members. I believe it became a sort of escapism, the change in society was reflected in music.

Word Count: 202

Sunday, 15 February 2009

What is Popular Music?

Popular music could be described as music that appeals to a wide audience. There are diverse genres that can all be named popular, from classical music to indie rock. For something to be popular it must be recognisable by many, and successful. Popular music can be influenced by current affairs, urban culture and many other factors such as television programmes and sport. In the music charts at present there are a diverse range of music genres all in the same top 40, from 'The killers', to 'Take That' and 'MGMT'. All very different in their style but similar in their popularity. They are all seen as popular due to their high record sales and fan bases. Popular music can be related to by the public easily as it is usually given television, radio and magazine marketing regularly so that the public are aware of the artists. Popular music is enjoyed collectively by large groups of people no matter what its style or purpose.

Word Count: 162