In
as much as what has become the modern
definition of popular music is not musical, its ploy merits study. It is a very clever musical ruse that parades itself as being genuine. Without true emotional effort and learned
musical technique, pop falsely masquerades itself as stellar performance. How is this accomplished? It is simple. The guitar traditionally has not been included in early
music education for a reason. The
simple strumming of strings does not teach a potential musician how to count
internally. Anyone with basic physical coordination can move their hand
in one direction and reciprocate over the strings of the guitar creating the
traditional strum. Unfortunately this rhythmic concept
that is created is not representative of the spacing of notes found in European classical and American jazz
music. When 8th
notes are generated from this intimate, proximal, alternating gesture they are
spaced too closely together. The initial stroke by obligation of
having to arpeggiate six strings is projected ahead of the beat.
What should be a single pulse
becomes a flam that erroneously
abstracts where exactly a traditional single attack should occur in other styles of music. It replaces a solitary intellectually
prepared attack with a grouping of two.
“Ta da!” Quintessentially
this is how modern pop is defined
and performed. Irresponsibly pop
musicians do not count or feel
time internally. Instead they use
the crutch of kinesthetics to fabricate a false representative feel of time.
The resulting feel, not
the affective defining of rhythm, tempo, and time is stretched over the top of
what traditionally would be a single downbeat. The two 8th notes that are produced both ahead and behind the beat are pulled together with tension rebounding
one another like a teeter-totter.
It is interesting that while the spacing of these notes is too close to
actually define time, the
rebounding that is necessary in Swing music is present. How
much a guitarist flexes their wrist determines this amount of swing. Hauntingly parallel to the unique
characteristic of Rock ‘n’ Roll,
the pop beat can be heard to swing and be straight at the same time creating an
engaging result. It is unfortunate
that because thought, emotion, and soul are not involved, the resulting
rhythmic concept inherently is incapable of producing a human feeling. Traditional accents or syncopations are
replaced instead with a smooth bed of repeating 8th notes. The most surprising characteristic of pop rhythm is that although it is insipidly sweet, some
listeners perceive it to be rhythmically aggressive. The genre of Techno exhibits this same quality.
Sonically it deceives the
listener. The strum motion of the
upper arm pivoting at the elbow over the strings of the guitar cannot be found
in any other obvious human motion except sex. This is why pop
rhythm is used as a foundation for porno music. While good for providing the backdrop of erotic
sexuality activity, it kinesthetically produces no defined dance beat. It
does not breathe and allow the limbs to reciprocate freely. Instead its strokes are forced and seeded with tension, the overt quality that pop aficionados seem to
enjoy.
When
a pianist attempts to perform in pop style, a stark and rude realization will
occur. The ease with which it is
created on the guitar and bass is absent.
The piano also uses a reciprocating percussive action, but is it is not
equipped with the upstroke emulating the
strum of the guitar. The pianist must wait for the key to reciprocate before again striking
it. This delay in Cristofori’s
original piano action is what created the feel of early piano music. It is interesting over the years that pop has found its way
into the piano resulting in its subordinate technique. The approach that resulted was a complete
departure from the classical methodology of piano instruction. Personally I have seen as many as five
kinesthetic approaches to pop realized on the piano. They all were surprising to me as a classically trained jazz
pianist. The first was stabbing
fingers, fingers that were extended straight and hurled at the keyboard in a
gesture simulating the early attack of the guitar strum. The second was curled fingers, fingers
that were curled inward toward the palms as tightly as possible minimizing the
motion necessary for repeated notes.
The third was penguin arms, forearms that were held stationary parallel
above the keyboard with the fingers free to dangle limply on the keys. The fourth probably is the most common
and can be characterized by the playing of Sir Elton John. Unlike traditional musical grooves that
require a tightening of the muscles to define strong rhythmic patterns, pop
uses a loose body movement undulating alternately between the arms.
Stevie Wonder must be credited as the most masterful of this purveyor
pop keyboard music.
What
must be understood is that traditional musical rhythms and their notation do
not lend themselves to the pop
approach. The grift that has been
created in commercial music is that by choosing pop for musical performance, all other traditional rhythmic styles will be
discarded. Any musical style that
has emerged, been developed, and found its way into print must be re-interpreted to be performed in this derivative style. This interpretation abandons the more engaging
feels of what once were viable and popular forms of dance. It substitutes a base, derivative,
artificial time feel that is incapable of engaging movement in the human body. For this reason people do not dance at pop concerts. Instead these concerts represent the glorification of the pop
artist, the sentimental masturbation of the
public, and the generating of revenue.
It
should be possible for pop and artistic music to coexist. The lines of demarcation clearly should be defined. The artistry of real music never should
bear Jesus’ cross of persecution.
Artistic music is necessary for the sustenance of humanity, and it cannot
be replaced with cheap, shallow, shortsighted fodder intended for the consuming
masses.
