Monday, July 25, 2005
Hooks
To sing, or not to sing--and just play it back, that is the question. …
Lyric (catchy) music is sometimes looked upon, since 1945 anyway, as old fashioned. But Barber, Hanson, Fine, and others kept the flame alive in the tonal/classical world. Pop music pretty much took over the genre where any widely spread vocal music was concerned.
“Hooks” can be important, certainly in the commercial music world. But I think it runs deeper than that. Something that’s more often left out of the discussion is the physicality of making music, and the internal physical resonance that provides to singers, players, and listeners alike.
A pianist in the midst of a Chopin or Beethoven Concerto is working hard, as are the Stones and James Brown. They can be as much fun (or more) to watch as to hear.
I sang in Mahler 2 at Indiana University recently, with Roberto Abbado conducting. Abbado is a fine conductor, the real deal. The orchestra played with vitality and freshness. Soprano Christina Pier and mezzo Leslie Mutchler sang like angels. And the last movement was especially vibrant due to the superb preparation of the chorus by conductor Jan Harrington. Popping a CD in the player simply cannot compare with the visceral vibe of standing in the middle of that.
All this is to point up that music is still a physical activity, both to make and to consume. It’s why amateur choruses still exist. It’s why community bands play on. It’s why people go to live concerts. And it’s a quality that composers sometimes forget when we line our notes up neatly on the paper and have the computer play them back.
Recording can be great, and electronic music can be magical. But call me hedonistic. For my money, the live performance and music with a physical resonance, maybe even a catchy tune with a hook, is where the action is.
posted by Cary Boyce
10:40 AM
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