Music

After reading an article about how music corrupts the average teenager... I got obsessed.

I agree that certain things are just plain dumb to sing about and are only out there as an attention getting/ money making scheme. BUT in general the following is my opinion so enjoy my ramblings of thought:

It is said that music is the expression of the artist’s soul. It is the wanting to hope, discover, find, mourn, and to be heard. Before the twentieth century music from a different culture was a commodity. However in today’s society, and specifically with in the American culture, a variety of music is accepted or listened to.

Many people believe that music, certain types at least, is to blame for the corruption of society. I n my opinion this belief comes from not understanding ones culture, and the ever growing phenomena where people shift the blame of an event off themselves onto another object. The American culture is made from a variety of races, beliefs, practices and customs. It seems rational that there is a variety of artists therefore music.

In times past music remained very much the same within a certain culture. For example, European societies, sang a vast majority of Christian or classical types of music, while African cultures danced along to the rhythms of drums. The only time a culture would experience a new music was either when another group took over or when societies grew close in proximity.

During the last four thousand years the history of music has experienced very little change. In the past one hundred years the world’s population has grown. With this growth we are all forced to live within a very close proximity to one another. As the cultures blended, people’s thoughts reluctantly grew, and therefore so did the spectrum of music.

Not only did the blending of cultures bring a variety of music to our society, advances in technology have been helpful in bringing in a wide variety of musical traditions and artistries to a wider audience. In this past century we have seen the most growth in technology, education, human equality, people’s rights, acceptance, etc. than ever before. With the exponential growth in society it has left some people and cultures with very little time to adjust. People get easily agitated with change. If something bothers them or makes them feel uneasy about society, they blame shift or refuse to look further into why certain events are actually happening.

In our society, teenagers run slightly more rampant than ever before. Suicide, depression, unmarried teen pregnancy is a growing occurrence. Instead of looking at why this is happening, something as small as an artist’s expression thru music gets blamed. If a kid has blue hair and piercing the kid gets type casted as an alternative listening depressed kid. This isn’t always true. Music is merely an expression, just as clothing and hair styles. In this ever expanding society, every child and person can find some type of music they relate to and that helps them get thru an event.

Not only does music help an individual get thru an event. It helps a society to teach. Children learn about historical events, the 50 states, and many other things thru song. The fact that music is variable and culturally relevant means that it appeals to everyone. It is a universal language that has been around since the time man could bang rocks together and will be around until the time we no longer exist.

In my opinion music isn’t to blame for a bad or good society. Music is the mere reflection of a society; it is the expression of the cultural soul.