Sep 26, 2009
Adorno is an Idiot Egghead
Serious music, for comparative purposes, may be thus characterized: Every detail derives its musical sense from the concrete totality of the piece which, in turn, consists of the life relationship of the details and never of a mere enforcement of a musical scheme. For example, in the introduction of the first movement of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony the second theme (in C-major) gets its true meaning only from the context. Only through the whole does it acquire its particular lyrical and expressive quality — that is, a whole built up of its very contrast with the cantus firmus-like character of the first theme. Taken in isolation the second theme would be disrobed to insignificance. Another example may be found in the beginning of the recapitulation over the pedal point of the first movement of Beethoven’s “Appassionata”. By following the preceding outburst it achieves the utmost dramatic momentum. By omitting the exposition and development and starting with this repetition, all is lost. - Adorno, On popular music.
” Adorno doesn’t know what he is talking about. ”
01. Alarm Will Sound - blue calx
Acoustica (Cantaloupe, 2005)
02. Björk - Ambergris March
The Music form Drawing Restraint 9 (2005)
03. Medeski Martin And Wood - Bloody Oil
End Of The World Party (Just In Case) (2004)
04. Matmos - Roses And Teeth For Ludwig Wittgenstein
The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast (2006)
05. The Third Eye Foundation - stone cold said so
Little Lost Soul (Merge Records, 2000)
06. Alva Noto - u_07
Unitxt (Raster Music, 2008)
07. Björk - Hearts & Bones
Unreleased (2001)
08. Cujo - Traffic
Adventures in Foam (Shadow Records, 1996)
09. Plug - 7.10
Drum n Bass for Papa (1997)
10. Hauschka - Old Man Playing Boules
Room To Expand (Fat Cat, 2007)
note: Eat DnB Adorno. I for one would argue what Adorno think is popular music is simply his limited perception of postwar swing and popular big bands, with which he tries to make generalized view what pop music is about. But then again, he wrote it in 1947. Modern recording pop music haven’t truly begun. At any rate, above are pieces that so called “serious music” from Adorno era couldn’t possibly pull. Frequency range, instrumentation, relationship of ‘concrete totality’ vs. detail (or whatever he wants to call it. Could it be that what he called ‘concrete totality’ is simply a degree of frame? a perception in size that could involve anywhere between a single note to involved entire piece. IMO, the current difference between Adorno so called ’serious’ music vs. pop is simply instrumentation. A lot of today’s pop music has fairly elaborate ’structure’, more so than 18th century pieces. For eg. Miles Davis’ Kind of Blues uses far more elaborate system than single modal pieces. Coltrane or Ornette Coleman certainly have something to say in that area. In electronic department, IDM is devoted to explore rhythm structure that is nearly impossible to do on traditional instrument. Above all, reliance of chord and melody is completely inverted in Drum n Bass. Even the most avant-garde ’serious music’ still relies on instrument that produces “standard” pitch with tone pattern, instead of any permutation of frequency and sonic shape.
So, never fear my fair readers. Pop music is still annoyingly novel as ever if it wants to.
image: poportis
The artist (ensemble) for the first track is Alarm Will Sound. Acoustica is the title of the record.
I think Adorno is right. I don’t understand your note, really. What Adorno is trying to explain really is the effect of the context in music. I remember Keith Jarret’s Köln Concert Part 2 as a big example of what this man tries to say: the central chord change would never work without this pedal during minutes. Context was (and is) another effect in music, like the coup de theatre or climax in films.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXZqoQa5zkU
BC,
Thanks, I fixed it.
Marto,
Well, Adorno would consider Keith Jarret not ’serious’. He lumped all jazz as pop. But again, this was 1939-1947 when he wrote that book.
He is saying that all pop music, jazz included is really pre-fab work. The large structure is all the same and that detail relationship with large structure isn’t all that important. This as oppose to ’serious’ music.
The list above, tho to be fair, popular music is entirely different 60 years ago, has few fun things I like to think as counter point. Various form, crazy beat vs. structure, standard pop using different instrument, etc. Basically, form is varied, detail relationship to large structure does play role, and pop can do things beyond tone and pitch. (eg. pure rhythm and lyrics)
unitxt short film / sound: alva noto featuring text+voice: anne james chaton actor: kyusaku shimada
Adorno about Popular Music
Ok… but only by the piece of text you quoted it seems to be more a theoretical analysis of musical techniques more than a 40s musical study. Or I misread… ;)
Track 01 sounds a bit Aphex-Twinish to me.
I think your point would be better served if you selected a text where Adorno is actually talking about pop, rather than where he is providing an Hegelian analysis of compositional form.
As it is, it just seems as though you took the opportunity to say against Adorno what everyone else has already said- which, unfortunately, is often equally misdirected- but in this case it is a complete non sequitur.
To Gavin: simply cuz the track is composed by Richard David James… The Alarm Will Sound crew is an orchestra which plays Aphex Twin compositions. And Blue Calx is one of his a.k.a.s
Can you explain why you wanted to critique adorno in the first place?
Well for one he is an easy target. The kind of widely read academic text that I can debunk with my left pinky before breakfast is over. It makes an amusing blog post. In a way it’s my pet peeve how big lecture often waste time on irrelevant musing of kranky old man who doesn’t know what he is talking about and has zero relevancy to music.
So what if he can show cute example of Beethoven does one nice trick in a giant 15 minutes piece. A modern IDM does similar trick 20 times before the first 12 bars are over just by shifting pattern endlessly.
But like I say, it’s kinda cheapshot since we are talking about 60 years technological gap.
I like MdM and your posts, squashed, but with all due respect I think you should apologize to Adorno for ridiculing his timeless ideas just to make an amusing post.
not until you point me out which part I was wrong.