I played bass drum in a high school marching band. It was easy to take too wide of a backswing and hit any pedestrian who encroached on our route of travel. Not wise, but easy, and what can I say, it happened.
Although a small part of the article, the section about the Netflix protests got me thinking about the long relationship between music and the labor movement. Cory Doctorow has a great new piece about the current state of unions and labor - https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/13/i-want-a-roof-over-my-head/#and-bread-on-the-table. Got me thinking about Woody Guthrie and the intersection of the early union battles and folk - the people's music (https://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/online/guthrie/labor-movement). Music is one of the single most powerful tools we have as a society to unite people for a cause - good or bad. Think of the power of a song to easily convey a message that we can all understand, and/or interpret through the lens of our own lived experiences. The best songwriters (John Prine, RIP!) can communicate a world of emotion in a few short lines. And yes, I believe the right song at the right time can change the world. Thank you Ted for all the wonderful stuff!
I’m thinking its the people that are dangerous, might say the music is powerful… However from the looks of the one whaling away that tuba could be positively lethal.
This one is a whopper! Thanks so much for this. So many things to unpack! From the Plato quote to "Siren battles" ("tie yourself to the masts, Argonauts!") to corridos tumbados to "for reasons beyond the control of festival organizers or artists.” Awesome. I'm reposting...
Ted, I’m a songwriter (nothing I’ve made has gone to general distribution ). Just one among many, as attested by a “Christmas Open Mic” last night. The rules allowed only original writing of songs to do with Christmas, and we ran for 1.5 hours last night on Zoom, from 7:30 to 9 pm, my time. I feel proud to have participated, though at the time I felt like a drop in the bucket of beautiful, feeling songs by 20+ fellow writers. In the 70’s a few of us were calling ourselves “Woody’s Children” because we closely identified our growing writing abilities with the dissemination of change. Some made the charts, some made a difference ( John Prine..Brandi Carlile....) Thanks for this look at music and musicians all over the world, and throughout history.
This is extensive research!! Thank you for highlighting all of this! This made me think of how there is new, neutral sounding, but definitely manipulative music designed by neuro-marketing specialists. I think I’ve heard it in Ikea. It’s deceivingly gentle but definitely psychotic! Does it make people want to shop more. Does it quel arguments between couples who always fight there? Should I stop going there?
It’s a great piece. If there was any publication collecting and dispersing such an expansive and hilarious view of its subject, I’d subscribe to it. Wait a minute - I already have!
I live in New Zealand and thought the Siren battles were a joke. Now I'm just glad I don't live in a neighbourhood where they are doing that. The Power of Love can go on somewhere else.
Jose from mexico here, "Corridos tumbados" are more about drugdealers than anything, which normalize it and make kids in rural áreas want to grow and be drugdealers when they grow up.
Music is, and always has been, weaponized by those who wish to control others. Ironically, most musicians don't want to control anyone. They just want to play music.
I played bass drum in a high school marching band. It was easy to take too wide of a backswing and hit any pedestrian who encroached on our route of travel. Not wise, but easy, and what can I say, it happened.
Although a small part of the article, the section about the Netflix protests got me thinking about the long relationship between music and the labor movement. Cory Doctorow has a great new piece about the current state of unions and labor - https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/13/i-want-a-roof-over-my-head/#and-bread-on-the-table. Got me thinking about Woody Guthrie and the intersection of the early union battles and folk - the people's music (https://www.themorgan.org/exhibitions/online/guthrie/labor-movement). Music is one of the single most powerful tools we have as a society to unite people for a cause - good or bad. Think of the power of a song to easily convey a message that we can all understand, and/or interpret through the lens of our own lived experiences. The best songwriters (John Prine, RIP!) can communicate a world of emotion in a few short lines. And yes, I believe the right song at the right time can change the world. Thank you Ted for all the wonderful stuff!
I’m thinking its the people that are dangerous, might say the music is powerful… However from the looks of the one whaling away that tuba could be positively lethal.
Rock the Casbah!
This one is a whopper! Thanks so much for this. So many things to unpack! From the Plato quote to "Siren battles" ("tie yourself to the masts, Argonauts!") to corridos tumbados to "for reasons beyond the control of festival organizers or artists.” Awesome. I'm reposting...
There is nothing more painful than the screaming of Celine Dion.
Ted, I’m a songwriter (nothing I’ve made has gone to general distribution ). Just one among many, as attested by a “Christmas Open Mic” last night. The rules allowed only original writing of songs to do with Christmas, and we ran for 1.5 hours last night on Zoom, from 7:30 to 9 pm, my time. I feel proud to have participated, though at the time I felt like a drop in the bucket of beautiful, feeling songs by 20+ fellow writers. In the 70’s a few of us were calling ourselves “Woody’s Children” because we closely identified our growing writing abilities with the dissemination of change. Some made the charts, some made a difference ( John Prine..Brandi Carlile....) Thanks for this look at music and musicians all over the world, and throughout history.
We Canadians have known how dangerous Celine is for years- especially when she sings in English!
This is extensive research!! Thank you for highlighting all of this! This made me think of how there is new, neutral sounding, but definitely manipulative music designed by neuro-marketing specialists. I think I’ve heard it in Ikea. It’s deceivingly gentle but definitely psychotic! Does it make people want to shop more. Does it quel arguments between couples who always fight there? Should I stop going there?
It’s a great piece. If there was any publication collecting and dispersing such an expansive and hilarious view of its subject, I’d subscribe to it. Wait a minute - I already have!
Oh, the joy of making music. Good gigs are hard to find.
I live in New Zealand and thought the Siren battles were a joke. Now I'm just glad I don't live in a neighbourhood where they are doing that. The Power of Love can go on somewhere else.
If I lived within earshot of even one Celine Dion song, I would locate the perpetrator and break his stereo. There's only so much a man can take.
In Iran, a song was the background of the protests against the regime last year.
Jose from mexico here, "Corridos tumbados" are more about drugdealers than anything, which normalize it and make kids in rural áreas want to grow and be drugdealers when they grow up.
So yeah like Robin hood...
Music is, and always has been, weaponized by those who wish to control others. Ironically, most musicians don't want to control anyone. They just want to play music.