Effects of Laziness: Music Appreciation Essay (Essay Sample)

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Music Appreciation
The 19th century marked a significant period in the evolution of classical music. Prior to this century, music was primarily for entertainment, but this started changing with the emergence of the musical canon. Following the introduction of Beethoven and his symphonies, music audiences, particularly elite audiences, started to change their goal of consuming music. As the century progressed, Beethoven help influenced the emergence of the musical canon, which was seen as meaningful and valuable music performed in concert halls and preserve in musical museums. Factors that led to the emergence of musical canon include historicism and the re-emergence of writing music. The emergence of the musical canon changes the perception and purpose of art music since it changed the purpose and goal of music. The idea of writing symphonies helped popularized musical museums as it promoted the preservation of valued and meaningful music. Cage opposed the idea of musical museums, arguing that they restricted the audience beliefs of enjoyable music.
Historicism was one of the leading factors that led to the popularization of the conception of the canon. Historicism grew in popularity during the 19th century when the audiences prone to concert halls started developing familiarity with symphonies of previous composers. The emergence contributed to a change in music preference, as most audiences started to prefer classical works of the deceased instead of the new musical of the living composers resulting in the division between classical music and popular music (Burkholder 119). As a result, popular music lost its audience in concert halls as the audience started to perceive it as less enthusiastic, pushing it to places like nightclubs and theaters. Therefore, by the fall of the 19th century, concert halls serve as museums where performances and displays of symphonies of past music become popular but not new music.
Another factors factor that led to the conception of the canon was the writing of music. The re-emergence of writing symphonies was essential in promoting canon. Since popular music had dominated the music mainstream, performers of symphonies had failed to impress their audiences due to the approaches they applied in performance (Frisch 175). The re-emergence of writing symphonies helped bring back elements of performance that were already ignored. Following that re-emergence, classical music started gaining an atmosphere of lecture, where performers had to study and understand music. For this reason, music appeared to be more than just for entertainment purposes. Previously, music was for entertainment, but now its goal changed from entertainment to become what the audiences take away from the performance. Now performers expected audiences to know what pieces they will play in attendance.
The emergence of the musical canon was a revolutionary change in the conception and purpose of art music in multiple ways. Primarily, the canon changed the purpose of art music. Unlike popular music that primarily entertains, the musical purpose shifted to what the audience would get from the performance. The new elite music audiences had a different approach to listening to music. These elite audiences became dissatisfied with existing music and wanted composer-performance that could engage their attention. Therefore, they turn to Beethoven's work as his works resonated with them. Beethoven's symphonies and built canon of other composers met features these new audiences were seeking in art music. Beethoven was able to convey his feeling in his performance, for example, in his Symphony No. 5giving the audience more than just entertainment (Frisch 176). Therefore, his work was seen as meaningful music, which would further popularize the musical canon.
The writing of symphonies increased as a result of musical museums. Since there was high demand from the audience to consume music of the past, current composers believed that the only way their masterpieces would become relevant and maintain significance after they were deceased is by documenting them for preservation. Besides, the world was concerned with the musical ideal inherited from historical models, so writing music was the best way to continue to promote historical models. Works of the deceased composers were valued exclusively as autonomy when reviewed even though they lost social function (Burkholder 129). Most of these documented works in musical museums served the same purpose as works of lasting value. Writing music also would keep the valued music alive as people would study and continue their legacy. Generally, upcoming composers created their works based on the deceased composers. These composers sought to compose music that would convey something new but within the tradition of art music, integrating the