start here

I have been wondering for some time now about the purpose behind one of the major purposes I feel for this blog--the engage with experimental music tagline. Why is it so important that people engage with it? On one level, it simply feels wrong to see such interesting music being produced that is primarily heard by other composers. Practitioners of experimental music would benefit from a wider audience, not only in terms of the market and of self-esteem, but for the dialogues that are possible across disciplines and expertise levels. I am interested in what people are attuned to as individuals, within this kind of a work. Experimental music is not simply experimental from the standpoint of construction, but also of perception. If the audience is made up of other practitioners, you are likely to get feedback that is specifically impacted by their practice. I love those conversations, and would not trade them for anything. But why not bring other people in who have other insights?

That's one reason, and a compelling one. But it felt like I was not getting at the entire sense of purpose behind the tagline. Then I found this quote from David Dunn's 1984 article, "Music, Language, and Environment."

While experimental composers are frustrated that their work not only inflicts confusion upon an audience which cannot be expected to be educated to each unique language, their comprehension unfolds as a slow and private interaction between the listener and the work put forth. This has become a near impossible task considering the societal pressures toward instant gratification. It is no wonder that composers and other individuals who struggle to make unique descriptions of the world feel themselves relegated to the same extinction status as the rest of that world's diminishing diversity. But, the act of putting forth private or vernacular systems of thought is not only a response to such loss but also a position stance against it.

A truly experimental work is a unique experience. Consumer culture knows what it wants, and where to get it. Experimental anything does not fit into that model. So the impact of mass consumption on diversity is not just physical, but mental.

I spoke with a friend about this, who is involved with a similar effort of preservation in her needlework blog. We agreed that communication is easier now than it was in the past. More people will hear, but fewer will listen. Because communication is easier, there is more noise. We all have to filter that noise somehow just to find our way from one point to another. So it's a matter of finding the people with this kind of openness to experiment--and here we are not talking about people with specific expertise, but those who are willing to walk down a road when they can't yet see around the corner. In my own niche, I am fighting for diversity in our environment.