Culture Literature & Language Essay Research Paper (Essay Sample)

Music Essay:
‘The classical music sector (including opera) receives 85% of the total investment made by Arts Council England in all forms of music. By comparison popular music receives only 3%. Is this reasonable and fair? Provide an argument for maintenance or change in this status quo. Your answer should address 1) questions raised by cultural theorists such as Theodor Adorno and others who write about the different contributions made by different forms of music; 2) the role of the public sector in countering the impact of market forces alone as a determinant of supply in the music industry.’
The classical music sector (including opera) receives 85% of the total investment made by Arts Council England in all forms of music. By comparison popular music receives only 3%. Is this reasonable and fair? Provide an argument for maintenance or change in this status quo. Your answer should address 1) questions raised by cultural theorists such as Theodor Adorno and others who write about the different contributions made by different forms of music; 2) the role of the public sector in countering the impact of market forces alone as a determinant of supply in the music industry.
The binary opposition of classical vs. popular music is one that has existed for a very long time. In order to better understand this dichotomy it must first be made clear the definitions of ‘popular’ and ‘classical’. As Richard Middleton explains ‘all music is popular music: popular with someone’. Popular music is generally defined by that which has wide appeal and is made for monetary gain. As Middleton points out, in treating songs in this way you are ‘neglecting their role in cultural practises or ‘way of life’’. This will be looked at in more depth later on when the work of Theodor Adorno is studied in regards to the role music plays in today’s culture. Classical music in this instance is defined as being any music that is created for the intention of ‘art’ instead of commercialism. This includes opera and orchestral music. In order to understand the funding decisions made by the public sector in regards to classical music it is important to understand who the major bodies are. Arts Council England is a body that distributes public money to the arts throughout England. By working within the public sector alongside government departments such as the DCMS (Department Culture Media Sport) the Arts Council must make decisions on what should and shouldn’t be funded based on their own aims and objectives aswel as those of the government and the potential benefits of local communities.[Middleton, R (1990) ‘Studying Popular Music’ Open University Press, Buckingham, pg. 3] [Op. Cit. pg. 6]