An Awful Lot of Us - Quote from Douglas Adams
"One of the most important things you learn from the internet is that there is no them out there. It's just an awful lot of us."
said Douglas Adams in 1999. 1
It's a tribute to his genius that he wrote about the internet so beautifully back in the ebronze age (7 years ago).
This blog forms part of my study for Certificate IV in music technology at Adelaide University's Electronic Music Unit. Each week we have a forum - usually incorporating a presentation from an interesting guest. My commentary on these forums and guests will form the body of this blog. Welcome.
Yesterday a lecturer posed the questions of whether technology is allowing non musicians the ability to create music, and whether this is a good or a bad thing. I don't know that these questions are unique to our time. If you read Douglas Adam's article he postulates that the internet allows us to recover from a brief period (circa 100 years) where the majority of people are passive consumers of art and return to a more universally creative and active artistic experience. This reminds me of folk festivals, where away from the bright lights of superstar performances, the pubs are filled with circles of crusty, bearded folkies strumming away earnestly, "jamming". The circles are open to anyone who cares to join. At any time you can join in or fade out and just listen, so that everyone can be equally performer and audience member. There is a self editing requirement, if you can't play the piece it is polite to face this fact and not play it badly! I like to imagine that this is what life was like before mass music distribution. If we wanted to hear music, we made it ourselves. There was no them and us in music...just an awful lot of us.
We can consider the lecturer's question by looking to a pre mass distribution time and considering the quality of the music then. Was Beethoven's music compromised by the general population creating their own music rather than having it created for them by commercial music interests? I honestly can't see how.
If you are looking for reassurance that normal folk are up to the challenge of actively engaging with music, and contributing to the human musical experience, consider the exuberance of the numa numa guy. . 2
His unbridled and highly contagious joy is surely testament to the human need for ACTIVE musical expression. I challenge you to watch this guy and not feel his delight!
1. This piece first appeared in the News Review section of The Sunday Times on August 29th 1999 from http://www.douglasadams.com/dna/19990901-00-a.html
2. http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/206373
said Douglas Adams in 1999. 1
It's a tribute to his genius that he wrote about the internet so beautifully back in the ebronze age (7 years ago).
This blog forms part of my study for Certificate IV in music technology at Adelaide University's Electronic Music Unit. Each week we have a forum - usually incorporating a presentation from an interesting guest. My commentary on these forums and guests will form the body of this blog. Welcome.
Yesterday a lecturer posed the questions of whether technology is allowing non musicians the ability to create music, and whether this is a good or a bad thing. I don't know that these questions are unique to our time. If you read Douglas Adam's article he postulates that the internet allows us to recover from a brief period (circa 100 years) where the majority of people are passive consumers of art and return to a more universally creative and active artistic experience. This reminds me of folk festivals, where away from the bright lights of superstar performances, the pubs are filled with circles of crusty, bearded folkies strumming away earnestly, "jamming". The circles are open to anyone who cares to join. At any time you can join in or fade out and just listen, so that everyone can be equally performer and audience member. There is a self editing requirement, if you can't play the piece it is polite to face this fact and not play it badly! I like to imagine that this is what life was like before mass music distribution. If we wanted to hear music, we made it ourselves. There was no them and us in music...just an awful lot of us.
We can consider the lecturer's question by looking to a pre mass distribution time and considering the quality of the music then. Was Beethoven's music compromised by the general population creating their own music rather than having it created for them by commercial music interests? I honestly can't see how.
If you are looking for reassurance that normal folk are up to the challenge of actively engaging with music, and contributing to the human musical experience, consider the exuberance of the numa numa guy. . 2
His unbridled and highly contagious joy is surely testament to the human need for ACTIVE musical expression. I challenge you to watch this guy and not feel his delight!
1. This piece first appeared in the News Review section of The Sunday Times on August 29th 1999 from http://www.douglasadams.com/dna/19990901-00-a.html
2. http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/206373
posted by aajodie at 9:20 AM
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