Who Will Save The Music
By: Lloyd Spencer
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Will music survive another 20 years? Yes most definitely but will it be quality or just a sad collection of soulless pre-made beats and canned vocals. Right now you can turn on the radio and hear 40 songs that sound just alike all talking about the same thing. Artist used to try to be different and original, now they are content to just be part of the crowd or herd. Gone are the days when great groups like Earth Wind and Fire, Queen, Funkadelic etc would make an album and take you on a musical journey. They used to use various techniques such as experimental chord changes, pick ups, slow downs, break downs combined with excellent story telling and great lyrics. |
The Problem The source of the problem is very simple. We are raising a generation of kids that are used to the ready made, simple and quick life. Fast food, video games, text messaging are all examples of this and the list goes on and on. From a musical standpoint, they have PC software, keyboards and drum machines out there that let any aspiring song composer whip together a tune in minutes. Push a button and get a song it?s that easy. No longer does a person have to spend long hours practicing and mastering an instrument. Gone are the days when you have to know chord structure, rhythm signatures and all the underlying nuances that make a great song come together. These skills determine the difference in making either a Sam Cooke?s ?A Change Is Gonna Come? or the idiotic ?Laffy Taffy? by Atlanta band D4L. An even sadder statement is that crappy song dominated the radio charts nationwide last year. When a young aspiring musician or producer sees the success of songs such as these they think why spend all those hours and days getting my skills together when it?s obvious that you can get a hit without all the hard work. The Solution Reversing the downward spiral in the quality of music is really just us, as parents and teachers, getting back to basics. We have to get involved with our children at an early age and get them interested in some form of music. I know every kid is not going to grow up to be a concert pianist or the next jazz great like Charlie Parker but that should not be our only goal anyway. Most kids get some benefit from their interaction with music. It has been shown to enhance learning and language development. Building vocabulary, listening and language skills have all shown to increase in children that are involved with music. On top of all that, recent brain research has shown that when children sing and move to music that both the left and right sides of their brain is stimulated at the same time. This process allows for new learning and better memory. So, you see, there are benefits to getting involved with music and on top of all that maybe we can raise a whole new generation of great musicians.
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