Does music really change anything?

dd972

Something to ponder on the death of Pete Seeger, his heart was in the right place and he seemed like a good guy sending out the right messages, peace and love, egalitarianism and so forth.

But collectively as a species we've been singing to and about 'The Man' and his malevolence for ages now and it falls on deaf ears.

Think the point I'm trying to make is, any time one of these icons passes, Lennon for example, there's a great media gush about 'how they changed the world', 'made a difference' etc, I think this is a massive con trick based on giving something which is trivial and useless an importance it doesn't really warrant, music is essentially recreational, nothing more than a pleasing frisson to the senses, it's hardly saved the world from illegal wars and banking **** ups.

karaokeman

It depends on the artists philosophy of life, the world and anything relevant to the future of humanity.

We are all influenced by the thoughts and words of others. It's the same way poets and writers have changed the world.

Shakespeare gave us characters that represent the darkness in everyone. Wordsworth and other Romantic poets looked for understanding in human emotion, which remain relevant to the present day.

Music writers are no different, if they know their stuff, and in tune with how the world evolves it will leave a message we can either accept or ignore.

jobeenfitz

I don't know the answer to your question but maybe it has changed the world. How can we be sure that life would not be much worse without this music? I think it would be very hard to prove either way.

TeddyTedson

karaokeman wrote: »

It depends on the artists philosophy of life, the world and anything relevant to the future of humanity.

We are all influenced by the thoughts and words of others. It's the same way poets and writers have changed the world.

Shakespeare gave us characters that represent the darkness in everyone. Wordsworth and other Romantic poets looked for understanding in human emotion, which remain relevant to the present day.

Music writers are no different, if they know their stuff, and in tune with how the world evolves it will leave a message we can either accept or ignore.

There is no darkness in me, however there are various shades of grey

Pinturicchio

Music changes everything.

Holsten

Nope nothing.

kumate_champ07

any time music has an opportunity to change things the government will shut it down..

kumate_champ07

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_Justice_and_Public_Order_Act_1994

wil

TeddyTedson wrote: »

There is no darkness in me, however there are various shades of grey

Devenions gris:cool:

At least every revolution has it's own soundtrack.
Today we have OneCorrection, JustInbiber and MileyVirAss - the times they are a ppalling.

Muise...

You're confusing the medium of music with the words in the lyrics people sing to it, OP.

Music can change moods, make us dance, lull us to sleep - if enough people like it at the same time, it can change their lives a small bit, for a while, in some field on a summer night. Any other claims are just marketing.

Also, i thought Pete Seeger was long dead. *blushes.

Lapin

Try watching a movie with an Ennio Morricone soundtrack, such as The Good the Bad & the Ugly, The Mission, or Once Upon A Time in America to the sound of a Loony Tunes cartoon and see what difference music makes to your enjoyment of the film.

Now - Apply the same rationale to life in general.





Job done.

Karl Stein

Hitler.

Napper Hawkins

Music is the reason I haven't killed myself yet, so there's that.

cert2009

The only thing music changes is how much money an artist has in his pockets, all this change worrld stuff is rubbish

MadsL

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_Justice_and_Public_Order_Act_1994

When dancing in a field to music with a few of your mates became illegal, I knew it was time to leave the UK.

e_e

I think we'd all be dour ***** without music tbh. It's gotten me through many a bad day.

Mr. CooL ICE

Wait till Wyld Stallyns learn how to play... then the world will be changed forever

The Backwards Man

Music means nothing to me.








It means nothing to me.


Ooooh Vienna

DeanAustin

Pinturicchio wrote: »

Music changes everything.

Bollox it does.

As the old song goes, love changes everything...

topper75

Muise... wrote: »

Also, i thought Pete Seeger was long dead. *blushes.

So did I and l love folkie stuff. I must be a fraud.:o

Beruthiel

For me, music is almost, (I said almost) as important as oxygen.
I would find life very difficult without it.
I listen to it driving to work, in work, during my daily walks, at home. I'll travel to other countries to see my favourite bands.
I'm pretty much obsessed with music and it has enhanced my life no end!

tigger123

dd972 wrote: »

Something to ponder on the death of Pete Seeger, his heart was in the right place and he seemed like a good guy sending out the right messages, peace and love, egalitarianism and so forth.

But collectively as a species we've been singing to and about 'The Man' and his malevolence for ages now and it falls on deaf ears.

Think the point I'm trying to make is, any time one of these icons passes, Lennon for example, there's a great media gush about 'how they changed the world', 'made a difference' etc, I think this is a massive con trick based on giving something which is trivial and useless an importance it doesn't really warrant, music is essentially recreational, nothing more than a pleasing frisson to the senses, it's hardly saved the world from illegal wars and banking **** ups.

I think you have to consider the times that Seeger, Lennon, Dylan et al where inhabiting. Ideas spread much quicker through songs and records back then, so things like protest songs were very important for spreading a message and mobilising young people: no Twitter, no Facebook, no Bieber punching photographers. So in that way they did change things. I think maybe you're viewing their music and what it meant through too modern a filter.

SPS1

Any great change in history, has come from direct resistance, armed or targeted at profit.

The suffragettes didn't win their protests by peaceful means, the Vietnamese didn't get rid of the Americans because of hippie protests in America instead by guerrilla warfare, the Indians salt match, the 1916 rebellion etc etc.

When you've an oppressor, they aren't going to forfeit their power through peaceful means.
So in that sense, singing about love and all will not change anything, it may serve to further a protest towards arms/boycott though.

recylingbin

In the year 2012 a comet approaches earth, threatening to end civilization when it impacts. On the streets of Japan, a single music store remains open, its proprietor insisting to his customers that the world is not coming to an end. He plays a forgotten song recorded by an obscure band 37 years ago, and insists that somehow, this song will save the world. A series of short stories spans the years from the recording of the song in 1975 to the modern day, and shows how--in roundabout fashion--the man in the music store is absolutely right.

Love that film.

nelly17

I agree with the OP espicially about the likes of Johnm Lennon, does it actually change the world? thats a pretty big ask. Can it have an impact? For sure , Live 8 , Live Aid, the Freddy Mercury Foundation. They have had an impact but it has to be said none of its impact has been massive in the grande scheme of things.

I do think however it also has its medical uses if you take in the treatment of Denentia for example

sadie06

nelly17 wrote: »

I do think however it also has its medical uses if you take in the treatment of Denentia for example

I am currently involved in this type of work, and it is astounding to see music bring people out of themselves and add a little bit of joy to their day.

Music is everything to me, and when I am not involved in it, I don't function well! I believe that all the little ways it changes peoples lives worldwide on a daily basis add up to significant change overall.

Yamanoto

Pinturicchio wrote: »

Music changes everything.

I think you'll find Love Changes Everything

anncoates

Pinturicchio wrote: »

Music changes everything.

Climie Fisher, right?

fatknacker

Musical pioneers have been influencing style for centuries, and bards promoting satire through verse have surely been catalysts for uprisings/rebellions/revolution.

Muise...

anncoates wrote: »

Climie Fisher, right?

:eek: imagine if the wind changed (like The Scorpions said) and the record got stuck like that forever. :eek:

A nice line on this (stolen from I don't know where)

Prince Esterhazy was a 'great' man in every conventional sense: landowner, politician and soldier. But history only recalls him because of a musician he employed.

Music changes the world in ways that ultimately matter more than a lot of things we imagine are more 'important'. Beethoven has been adopted by pretty much every tinpot dictator between his day and ours. They're all gone, he remains.

TheDoc

No it definitely hasn't changed the world, the world we live in, or how we live our lives. It can however obviously change the shape of future music for sure. With artists sighting their inspirations and the likes from musicians past by.

But I get your point OP, when the media, critics or fans make out that an artist, or music, somehow changed the world or something monumental, I've a hard time believing it.

I'm a big fan of music like many, and have a varied taste ( At the moment Gary Numan getting a lot of airtime in the car) but it's just something to "have on" for me. I don't become overly enveloped in the lyrics, I don't get mushy over it. Sure some tracks will send chills down my spine, most of them containing no lyrics.

But I can hand on heart say that music has never "helped" me get through a rough day, or any of that talk.

Like everyone I guess, people are affected by it in different ways. If music was gone tomorrow, I'd miss it, but my life wouldn't implode around me because of it

Muise...

TheDoc wrote: »

No it definitely hasn't changed the world, the world we live in, or how we live our lives. It can however obviously change the shape of future music for sure. With artists sighting their inspirations and the likes from musicians past by.

But I get your point OP, when the media, critics or fans make out that an artist, or music, somehow changed the world or something monumental, I've a hard time believing it.

I'm a big fan of music like many, and have a varied taste ( At the moment Gary Numan getting a lot of airtime in the car) but it's just something to "have on" for me. I don't become overly enveloped in the lyrics, I don't get mushy over it. Sure some tracks will send chills down my spine, most of them containing no lyrics.

But I can hand on heart say that music has never "helped" me get through a rough day, or any of that talk.

Like everyone I guess, people are affected by it in different ways. If music was gone tomorrow, I'd miss it, but my life wouldn't implode around me because of it

really?

UCDVet

Music is exactly as powerful as prayer.

jobeenfitz

UCDVet wrote: »

Music is exactly as powerful as prayer.

Shhtirring with a big spoon there!

Roger Hassenforder

Nonsense, Bono singlehandedly brought down the Wall, and got Mandela out of jail...

Muise...

Roger Hassenforder wrote: »

Nonsense, Bono singlehandedly brought down the Wall, and got Mandela out of jail...

in fairness, t'was the Hoff that brought down the Wall.

fryup

no harm in trying......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yU0JuE1jTk

.jacksparrow.

Bob Dylan and the song hurricane, look it up sometime

smurgen

It changes everything, it helps satisfy one of the most basic human needs,the need to identify with others. Any person who's into lyrics will have undoubtedly gain a perspective on their own lives from listening to the way others talk about theirs in music.
Also john Lennon was an insincere attention seeker. The fact that he's seen as a symbol of peace is a joke,the man used to beat his ex wife.

Capt'n Midnight

The date for the lavish banquet at the Astoria Hotel was set for 9th of August. The invites had been printed. Some of the most powerful people were due to attend.

Only problem was they couldn't get to the Hotel.

Possibly the most in your face music ever

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leningrad_premi%C3%A8re_of_Shostakovich%27s_Symphony_No._7#Performance

kumate_champ07

no matter where you are in the world, I Bet if you stick on Jammin' by Bob Marley everyone in the room will smile while that song plays

Frank Lee Midere

dd972 wrote: »

Something to ponder on the death of Pete Seeger, his heart was in the right place and he seemed like a good guy sending out the right messages, peace and love, egalitarianism and so forth.

But collectively as a species we've been singing to and about 'The Man' and his malevolence for ages now and it falls on deaf ears.

Think the point I'm trying to make is, any time one of these icons passes, Lennon for example, there's a great media gush about 'how they changed the world', 'made a difference' etc, I think this is a massive con trick based on giving something which is trivial and useless an importance it doesn't really warrant, music is essentially recreational, nothing more than a pleasing frisson to the senses, it's hardly saved the world from illegal wars and banking **** ups.

No humanity will never change. Music is just background to our lives, beautiful as it is.

Frank Lee Midere

Muise... wrote: »

in fairness, t'was the Hoff that brought down the Wall.

Actually the "Free Nelson Mandela" song might be one example of music making a difference. However the writers might have been a bit pissed off with the actual release of Mandela as the song disappeared from airplay.

Roger Hassenforder

Frank Lee Midere wrote: »

Actually the "Free Nelson Mandela" song might be one example of music making a difference. However the writers might have been a bit pissed off with the actual release of Mandela as the song disappeared from airplay.

Simple minds/peter gabriel can console themselves that poor old Biko wasnt as fortunate.

fryup

smurgen wrote: »

Also john Lennon was an insincere attention seeker. The fact that he's seen as a symbol of peace is a joke,the man used to beat his ex wife.

no he didn't, they had heated arguments like most couples but he wasn't a wife beater

Rothko

fryup wrote: »

no he didn't, they had heated arguments like most couples but he wasn't a wife beater

He admitted it himself

Ash.J.Williams

dd972 wrote: »

Something to ponder on the death of Pete Seeger, his heart was in the right place and he seemed like a good guy sending out the right messages, peace and love, egalitarianism and so forth.

But collectively as a species we've been singing to and about 'The Man' and his malevolence for ages now and it falls on deaf ears.

Think the point I'm trying to make is, any time one of these icons passes, Lennon for example, there's a great media gush about 'how they changed the world', 'made a difference' etc, I think this is a massive con trick based on giving something which is trivial and useless an importance it doesn't really warrant, music is essentially recreational, nothing more than a pleasing frisson to the senses, it's hardly saved the world from illegal wars and banking **** ups.

people are talking about macklemore and madonna this week in the same way as people spoke of Dylan back in the day.....so i guess we're F***ed

Ash.J.Williams

Lapin wrote: »

Try watching a movie with an Ennio Morricone soundtrack, such as The Good the Bad & the Ugly, The Mission, or Once Upon A Time in America to the sound of a Loony Tunes cartoon and see what difference music makes to your enjoyment of the film.

Now - Apply the same rationale to life in general.





Job done.

The metallica pre-show intro of ACDC/morricone is one of the greatest things in the world!! It's a long way to the top then The ecstasy of gold...amazing!

beks101

Of course it changes things. Who wants to imagine living in a music-less world?

On a personal level, I'm not by any means music-obsessed, can and have gone considerable periods without, but it just adds colour and soul to my world.

It helps to balance me when things are otherwise erratic and disorganized. It's autobiographical - there are some albums I would credit with getting me through the most difficult periods of my life, ranging from breaks up to mental illness to bereavement.

And sometimes a certain song will just evoke an overwhelming emotion and affinity in me unlike anything else - that no words or writing or running or therapy could ever get out of me. It's almost like a punch in the gut and sometimes brings a very uncomfortable feeling or issue I've been having to the surface, and from there I'll deal with it and move on.

I think a lot of people experience music in this sort of profound way, and collectively, that's what changes things.

This is my favourite expression of how profound a personal impact music can have:

"So in some sense Henry is restrored to himself, he has remembered who he is and he's reacquired his identity for a while, through the power of music"