Glenn Branca, New York underground prophet and famous curmudgeon, contributed an opinion piece to the New York Times yesterday, declaring music to be dead:
"For more than half a century we’ve seen incredible advances in sound technology but very little if any advance in the quality of music. In this case the paradigm shift may not be a shift but a dead stop. Is it that people just don’t want to hear anything new? Or is it that composers and musicians have simply swallowed the pomo line that nothing else new can be done, which ironically is really just the “old, old story.”"
A simplistic argument, to be sure, too general for any kid of serious critique. No examples are presented. No reason for the paradigm shift are put forth. The "pomo line" which Branca claims "musicians have simply swallowed" is equal to the theory he implies in the piece, which is that the true nature of music is in the search for a completely new sound. As if he and his contemporaries were not completely indebted to the ideas of John Cage and Fluxus artists before him.
So, going by what Branca is saying, has music always been dead? Or is it truly alive, because it can't escape its history? [New York Times]
Idiot. For a truly informed piece on the state of music http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pitchfork_gives_music_6_8
November 26, 2009 at 11:35 a.m.
Steve
Multiple typos here. Editors?
"too general for any kid of serious critique"
"No reason for the paradigm shift are put forth"
November 26, 2009 at 11:36 a.m.
scott thiessen (vnc)
Its not the end...its just different. I do believe this is one of the most exciting times for music. Especially indie music...
Music has fractured into a thousand niches... and one cannot view our current state of music as a linear progression. Just when I think I'm jaded I've always been surprised by a release...a subtly...a live interaction between musicians... and look around...its easy to take the local for granted...except when you are on the other side of the world.
I am surprised that music seems not to have gone forward as quickly as I expected...but out there is someone right now, unknown, not respected, is doing something worthwhile...
November 29, 2009 at 12:33 a.m.
glenn branca
No. I contributed my FIFTH opinion piece to the Times blog and I would suggest that you read the others before you start jumping down my throat, calling me names and using one paragraph of my article as a "simplistic argument".
Glenn, you hit the nail on the head and I'm glad someone has the balls to step up and give a negative view on music. Music is embarrassing at the moment. I recently just left my band (in Dublin) - for a few reasons - but one of the main ones was what direction they wanted the band to go in. They gave me all of this "but this one will sound good on the radio" crap. I wanted out. I'm a big fan of everything Mr Branca has done throughout his career (100 guitars in Dublin a few years ago was a particular favourite)... and I would like, if I may to extend the idea that Glenn proposed into a possible solution: Agreeing as I do with what Glenn says and realising that the monopolisation of music has reached a ridiculous point, I say we take all of the past "practised" performances out of the way (i.e. going to see a band play songs you know every word of - which is a lot like listening to a CD) and we head into the realm of unrehearsed live performance. This is the way that I write music, by taking the elements of chance and concentrations of reality, to perform on the spot, improvise. This is where you separate a real band from a fake one. I realise that this idea descends from Jazz, but as Glenn touched upon, Jazz is dead and obviously one dimensional. I would love to go to a show, lets say for example, a Branca show, and at the start of the performance an announcement is made declaring all of tonights music completely unrehearsed and improvised. THAT would excite me. THAT is the future of music.
December 8, 2009 at 12:35 a.m.
Michael Waller
I think Glenn Branca's music is pretty f'n awesome. I saw him at Issue Project Room for his "Lesson #3 for Steve Reich" and I was definitely hanging on the edge of my seat.
His idenification of the advent of "Muzak" is what people should be talking about. Karlheinz Stockhausen sure did write alot about that term (back in 70s and 80s).
This paradigm shift, which looks to be a "dead stop", is music which is created by human beings. Being a 'level-human' is definitley not hip and not new. Supra-humanity is way cooler. Perhaps afterall, Glenn is just a few rungs away from the top of the ladder.
Idiot. For a truly informed piece on the state of music http://www.theonion.com/content/news/pitchfork_gives_music_6_8