Michigan State University Music Composition

There is more music being written today than ever before. Anyone that owns a computer has access to sound manipulating technology and an outlet for their work. In this expanding creative world, it is a mistake to say that music is reaching or will reach its maximum potential value without it being heard by the public. Value is measured less by the ingenuity or challenging nature of a work than by whom the music influences and how it lives past the premier performance. This should not be taken to mean that music composed in an “ivory tower” institution has no merit or value. On the contrary, music composed using new and cutting edge techniques is extremely important and has influence throughout the musical field.

Unfortunately, public perception of new music coming out of universities and conservatories is generally negative, in large part due to the argument that an audience is not necessary for performances of new pieces. The modern audience has been alienated by an attitude of superiority or elitism from within institutions and attendance at new music performances has plummeted in recent decades. New music in any genre should be able to connect with an audience outside of the group that created it in order to create and maintain a healthy, viable musical atmosphere. It is possible to create an appreciative audience without sacrificing musical integrity and it is beneficial to the composer for a wider audience to hear his or her work.

Proponents of an isolated approach to new music cite the autonomy of each new work as a virtue and claim that the unique sound of each piece is indicative of a developing specificity in musical vocabulary. Some argue that the ability to hear and appreciate this type of music is gained only through study and an ability to immediately recognize continuities not based on obvious or assumable generalities resulting from the form. Music, however, is always produced in relation to the continuum of already created pieces. A work will always relate, in some way, to processes, techniques, and sounds that have come before it. The relationship can include anything from stylistic similarities, harmonic or melodic conventions, and/or the use of form but can also arise from a willful departure from established practices. Nothing can be called different, similar, new, or old unless it is compared directly with what came before it.

There is a large audience that is familiar in many ways with aspects of music historical progression. A basic knowledge is usually present or can be easily provided to the public in order to give new music context. Instead of an audience member feeling that he or she cannot understand the ideas being presented in modern music, it would be better to provide a basic understanding of the underlying principles or the overall ideas that tie a work together through a brief explanation or program notes. Giving the audience an idea of what to listen for in a piece of music often allows them to appreciate the work and can deter them from joining the ranks of fastidious opponents to new musical expression. Sometimes a brief word about the techniques used or the original inspiration for a piece is enough to give a listener grounding from which to appreciate what he or she is hearing. Modern composers should be able to create an appreciative audience by providing a context for their works, just as Romantic and later composers created programatic titles and stories to guide the listener’s perceptions. It is at least this minimal context that will allow the public to build a deeper understanding of what the composer is trying to say through his or her music.

The modern composer should not accept that his or her work is destined to be heard only in closed academic circles. This existence is death for new music and results in many isolated pockets of innovation that go nowhere. It is far more meaningful and valuable for composers to work toward a wider audience that will become receptive to new sounds. The modern composer must learn to think of himself/herself as an educator in service of the public in order to foster a community of creative discourse that will reverse what many see today as the death of the classically trained composer. There is no cause to lose compositional integrity or complexity in order to gain an audience. Audience members are capable of learning to appreciate new music if the composer is willing to provide the necessary context in which they can listen to the work. Nothing exists outside of the continuum of musical experience and it is the job of the contemporary composer to ground the contemporary listener in the time-line. Once a person has context for new sounds, he or she can begin to understand what is being heard and appreciate the art and language being used.

This was adapted from a paper written for a class. Sorry if it sounds a little stuffy.

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