The Artificial Aesthetic

On my last trip to the South Pacific I stopped by the Island of Paong, where I met an older gentleman named Coco.

Coco is the world’s greatest coconut arranger. This is an art form that is totally unique to the island of Paong.

Coconut arranging is the art of placing coconuts on the beach and scattering them in a way that is pleasing to one’s eye and soul.

Coco had a knack for creating the most beautiful abstract patterns to the local people. To my novice eyes they were just coconuts strewn all over the beach, but to the trained eye of a Paongying, it was art on the highest level. Art on be cherished, talked, and written about.

After my wonderful vacation in the South Pacific I headed over to Thailand where I had the opportunity to hear the greatest orchestra in the country. Well, since I am a musician I thought would at least have point of reference, but when I heard the orchestra, I just heard a series of sounds. The patterns, tonality and structure were so alien to my western ears I might have well been listening to a Martian orchestra. I could detect the incredible talent and craftsmanship of the musicians. But as music that was pleasing to my ears, or that I could comprehend, it was not. Yet all of the Thai's agreed that this was great Thai art.

In art we must have context. Without social context we have no reference points for making any kind of aesthetic judgments. Art must reflect its time and culture for the society to recognize it as art.

So what is my point?

Academic Music!

What is this?

I have no problem with academics in music. Academic institutions are important for teaching and nurturing all types of music. It is only when the academic composer looses all touch with the society they come from that the term artificial aesthetic applies.

Regardless of how complex or simple the music is, it still must have some connection and reflect the society it comes from. Good or bad art must have relevance and context to a society so the society can make an educated aesthetic judgment, if not it is an artificial aesthetic that only the artist understands.

It is my belief that one of the causes for mass exodus of listeners from today's concert halls is when music looses its relationship to the society.

On the other hand, a modern day pop musician or rapper is so organically connected to their world that they are able to capture and reflect their world to their audience.

If the so called "classical music" is to survive it must follow the pop model, with a more sophisticated sensibility, and try to capture and reflect its time and culture path and inject the poetry back into it as well.

David Chesky