Music

An essay on music by me

"Music has magical powers and affects everyone in identical ways"

Discuss and analyse the merits of this statement.

"They say music can alter moods and talk to you,

Well can it load a gun up for you, and cock it too?"

-Eminem

The instructions read "Discuss and analyse the merits of this statement". I shall be discussing the demerits of this statement as I find it false.

I shall first elaborate my point of view on the statement.

I feel this statement superficially defines music and portrays it as a two-dimensional entity while we all know that music is a three dimensional entity and that it is far too profound to be described in words. Music may be magical at times, but at times it is quite the opposite. This part of the statement can still be defended but the next segment is what I find outrageous.

Music does not affect everyone in "identical ways". For this too happen, our individuality of musical choice and basic individuality of mind would have to be stripped. The mathematical and scientific term for our cognatic state would be known as "a constant". Just like in a mathematical problem, a constant remains unchanged; our minds would be the same and our thinking process identical.

Even this does not ensure the "identical" effect of music as, if our minds are the constant, music is then the variable and there are thousands of forms of music that address different issues and thereby affect different people differently.

The effect of music not only depends on the listener but also depends on the cultural context of the listener. It depends on the political set up the individual belongs to, his religion, his intellect.

For example a Bob Marley song entitled "Get Up, Stand Up", which talks mainly about liberation and standing up for your rights will have different effects on a sixteen year old in Pakistan, a dictatorship and a sixteen year old in India, a democracy. Assuming that these two adolescents are Reggae and Bob Marley fans and enjoy this type of music. Though the youth in India will feel somewhat roused by it, he will feel helpless like a rebel without a cause; the youth in Pakistan will almost feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins.

A new study about music has progressed over the years and has developed a name, Ethnomusicology. Ethnomusicology is the study of music in its cultural context. Wikipedia calls it the anthropology or ethnography of music.

I shall now discuss the first part of the statement in detail; it deals with the "magical powers" of music. Let me add here that what “magical” here implies is only the ethereality of magic and the “dark side” of magic is not taken into account. This is because I do not feel the topic implies black magic, it is the simplistic definition of magic that a 7 year old would think of. So therefore I shall refute this statement by refuting music’s “magical” powers.

I agree that music possess magical powers that relax, heal and stimulate the mind at the same time. We all have become aware of the Mozart Effect, which is a scientific study that claims that classical music stimulates brain activity positively more than any other form of music. Though it will be wrong and almost criminal of us to give so much credit to music as a whole as to call it "magical". Certain forms of music have been known to blind people and fuel hate inside their minds. Gangsta Rap and Death Metal are two forms of this immoral and damnable form of music. Gangsta Rap is also used in the brainwashing of child-soldiers in Africa. This fact was communicated and shown to the masses with an English film called "Blood Diamond" that released in 2006. With its strong lyrics and the oozing violence, it has a number of detrimental effects on not only a child but anybody.

Gangsta Rap ever since it developed in the United States in the 1980's has been a centre of controversy. It has been accused of foul themes such as extreme violence, drugs, the darkest form of misogynism, sexual promiscuity, homophobia and maximal profanity. Nearly all of the artists in this genre when it first started were of the African-American community and were nearly always belonging to the streets. This is how John H. McWhorter, in his article 'How Hip-Hop Holds Blacks Back' writing for the City Journal in the summer of 2003 put it,

"…that ghetto life is so hopeless that an explosion of violence is both justified and imminent—would become a hip-hop mantra in the years ahead."

Soon Gangsta Rap broke out of the "black" tag it bore and people of all colours started identifying with it, and now there are more white customers in the U.S.A. of Rap than Black, Gangsta Rap brainwashes like no other genre of music, I feel that Gangsta Rap has brainwashed and killed the intellect of a whole generation of American children. Those who didn't identify with it are the ones that got out alive. Not only is Gangsta Rap leading to the downfall of American children, with the tide of globalisation spreading, youth all over the world have been exposed to this attractive looking lifestyle. In the early and mid 20th century they had War Propaganda being spread viciously in every country, Russia, U.S.A., Germany, Britain, France etc., this century's equivalent of War Propaganda is probably the misleading of the youth, and one of the elements is Gangsta Rap.

Death Metal which at first glance seems much more detrimental than Gangsta Rap as it involves the far blacker themes of Satanism and other obscurities is less harmful. A form of Death Metal called Blackened Death Metal is a genre of music which is the lowest form of music possible includes the themes of dismemberment, Satanism, Neo-Nazism, Nihilism (which is prominent in Gangsta Rap as well) and some other rather graphic ones.

The only reason Death Metal is not as harmful as Gangsta Rap is that it does not have a large enough audience to maim, only very few deranged, damned human beings have found it to suit their taste.

Different types of music have different effects and not all are magical. Music is one medium that has become immensely popular among the youth of the world and this is not entirely healthy. I have said before that I feel music has become a new sort of propaganda around the world as the youth brainwashed by blatant consumerism have indulged in this material lifestyle without knowing the adverse effects of it.

The second segment of the statement which states the "identical" effect of music is extremely wrong and this is because of the simple reason that the conditions of the individual that the music acts upon are never the same for even two people.

Music acts on two levels, external and personal. The external plane includes history, political framework, society and economy. This means that the persons history as well as the history of his region comes in the picture along with, the political system in which he lives in, his position in the local or national society and its traditions and the state of the economy of the state (no pun intended).

The personal plane includes his likes and dislikes, the facets of his disposition, his own life history, his experiences, his religious beliefs etc.

Another extremely important factor is that is the mood and state of mind of the listener at the time.

Music can charge us, it calms us, and it will wake us up if we wish to be woken from our oblivious state. Music does to us whatever we let it do. I feel music is like a liquid; it takes any shape you want it to take and is free-flowing.