The Homogenization of Music – part of evolution or lack of creativity?

 

Photo by Marius Masalar on Unsplash

The Homogenization of Music – part of evolution or lack of creativity?

Jazz and Classical music have both followed this trajectory: after a period in which new styles developed and there was one common practice (one way of composing, one style) during each period, the music came to a point where a consciousness of its history developed, some nostalgia existed for older styles, and many different styles could co-exist in the same time period.  In Jazz, after the new styles of New Orleans Jazz, Swing Era Jazz, and the early modern jazz styles such as bebop, the period up until now has seen all of these styles co-exist, and a performer like Wynton Marsalis will make obvious references to earlier styles of jazz in his compositions. (In Classical Music, after the various style periods such as Classic, Romantic, Modernist, etc., we have an era today that we call Postmodern, where a composer is free to write in any style he or she wishes, either the most complex and advanced, called the serial technique, where a composer uses a certain order or series of pitches and may not write with pitch center (a pitch we experience as a stable point; think of how you feel at the end of the national anthem)) or in a more conservative style with pitch center and consonant, (pleasant sounding) goal-oriented music  (music moving towards the goal of the pitch center).

Perhaps the looking backward contributes to a weakening of the art form itself, although that is controversial. Do you think if we are looking backward that means that we have no new ideas?  I have posted two pieces, one jazz, and one classical, that are based on some form of older music.  The jazz piece is entitled Processional by Wynton Marsalis. What are the references to older styles of jazz and gospel music that you can hear? Does the piece sound like a march? In what city was jazz often outdoors and connected with marching? The classical piece is Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams. (Thomas Tallis was a Renaissance composer-- active in the 16th century. ) The Fantasia is based on a hymn by Tallis, posted here. 

What is the relationship of the piece to the music it is based on? Does the music represent a creation of something new or is it just rehashing something that has already been composed. Why would a composer want to work with older music? There is certainly an element of nationalism in the case of Vaughan Williams. He was in a sense drawing attention to earlier English music. But don't we value originality very highly in our day and age? And is plagiarism an issue? Doesn't music have to evolve into something new? 

I believe that incorporating historic musical styles into contemporary styles can be novel. Sometimes it may seem that the blending of sounds is just a regurgitation of the original older sound but others times it can become the genesis and jump off point to a whole new genre. Wynton Marsalis’s Processional reminds me of the old song When the Saints Come Marching In. Marsalis’s song has a very marching band sound to it. The marching band sound was started in New Orleans, Louisiana. Wynton Marsalis grew up in a very musical family. He grew up in a musical environment and loved to fuse jazz with popular music of his time.

Regarding Ralph Vaughan William’s piece, Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, I believe Williams is paying an homage to Taillis’ original song. A composer may want to work with an older song to draw inspiration from it. There is an element of nationalism when working with an older song if the new song is done correctly. Originality is highly regarded in our day and age but there is nothing wrong with incorporating new with the old. Sometimes it is the only way to introduce older music to a younger audience. I don’t believe plagiarism is an issue. With changing times, music will always evolve. But it’s evolution may not always be forward and linear. Like time and space, music can evolve in a warped continuum which expands to include all music thus creating a new sound of its own.

Photo by Alexey Ruban on Unsplash