Forum – Week 12 – Scratching (2)
Hi Grandma..
Writing an entry about today’s session feels unusually repetitive. There was certainly some overlap of content due to its improvised nature. Stephen is hardly to blame but I wonder how much incentive there is for postgraduate students to make presentations to our forums. Nevertheless the second instalment of scratching study was entertaining. I’m not sure if scratch notation serves more purpose than writing traditional rhythm slashes on the correct record line would. It sounded open to interpretation – not that there’s anything wrong with that, but rhythm slashes may provide the same guide in this circumstance and if so, why come up with a new system?Looking at Chris Cunningham’s work was refreshing, even if it was the second time. I feel that much of this music and media would better serve components of Elder's music theory/history subjects that explore post classical/romantic styles. The way these subjects stubbornly cling to a period between 1940 and 1960 for most of their content in presenting ‘new music’, a period dominated by pompous, tediously methodical, and musically uninspiring composers is absurd. Much interesting music has been made since those awful years and we must seek ways to incorporate it into academic study.
Reference:
Whittington, Stephen. “Forum – Week 12 – Scratching (2).” Workshop presented at EMU space, level 5, Schultz building, University of Adelaide, 5th of June 2008.
posted by David J Dowling @ 4:44 PM
7 Comments:
QUOTE: "Much interesting music has been made since those awful years and we must seek ways to incorporate it into academic study."
Well said. I do often wonder why the so-called "modernist" period of music is presented as if it *were* still current. The music made by the artists today, no doubt, gives a nod to commercialism, yet ironically it exploits technology in far more creative ways and has greater appeal. But then is music allowed to be appealing?
No!!
More Ligeti for everyone. And Gorecki, and all future modernist Hungarian/Polish composers !!!
In fact, anyone whose names ends in i...
Spaghetti.
You make a good point about the mid 20th century "new music." I know they broke from the past/war etc etc but honestly last time I checked that wasnt that 'new'. Has music been written in the last 50 years or was Elvis was the anitchrist? I wouldnt discount the 40s-50s as significant nor exciting periods, by why does anything written for a guitar get treated like blasphemy at the gates of academia?
Further, composers like Cage and Schaefer went to great lengths to show us that music is sound. So why only some sound? Why is some silence 'high art' and some noise 'popular'?
Its a CURIOUS paradox
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In some ways I've enjoyed presenting things to the Forum as it's a casual atmosphere and as a result there's a limited amount of preparation/pressure. The content over the years has certainly been hit and miss, but I did especially like the instrument building workshop and jamming with DJ Tr!p...
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