Glastonbury

[Adam]

Wolfie

I am well aware that some rock groups have on occasions, for a gimmick, included additional instruments, which is why I said they "largely" stick to guitars, etc. Some rock groups have performed with symphony orchestras!  But the fact remains that most of the time, rock groups ignore the opportunities offered by the use of a wider variety of instruments and perform behind the flashing lights, the dry ice, the gyrations on stage, the horrendously loud volumes of sound (which will be damaging your hearing, by the way) to try and disguise the infantile nature of the music they are producing.

[Peter T]

Each to their own.

Music is a personal choice. It is not something one should preach that their choice is the correct one. I prefer a bit of beat to my chamber music but can still appreciate "most" types of music.

 

As for the Stones, imo they were far better than the Beatles and have made a bob or two. The interesting thing about some of these performers is their private lives and their hobbies.

[wolfie]

Your childish comment about Beethoven marks you as an inverted snob and suggests you are someone who ridicules anything you don't understand.

Bit rich coming from you. This thread was simply about someone who thoroughly enjoyed a concert by the Rolling Stones, it was you that came on and stated they were rubbish and that they had prospered because of a lack of musical education by the public. So if I'm an inverted snob then surely that makes you a snob.ie A person who believes s/he has a more refined taste in music and has much more knowledge in the field of music in general or the person who is a self described authority on what is or is not "good" music. I couldn't care less if you are into Beethoven or Alg is into CCR or Diz into the Eagles as long as they enjoy listening to and get pleasure from them, then isn't all that matters. 

[algy]

Bit rich coming from you. This thread was simply about someone who thoroughly enjoyed a concert by the Rolling Stones, it was you that came on and stated they were rubbish and that they had prospered because of a lack of musical education by the public. So if I'm an inverted snob then surely that makes you a snob.ie A person who believes s/he has a more refined taste in music and has much more knowledge in the field of music in general or the person who is a self described authority on what is or is not "good" music. I couldn't care less if you are into Beethoven or Alg is into CCR or Diz into the Eagles as long as they enjoy listening to and get pleasure from them, then isn't all that matters. 

Fair comment.

[Adam]

No it isn't fair comment, nor is it all that matters. If we all accept, or "enjoy" something that is inferior then there will be no cultural advancement.  I also could not care less what sort of music you enjoy. But if you are suggesting that just because you enjoy it, it is of equal value to, say, Beethoven, then there is no point in arguing with you because it is like saying black is white!

They each have their place, and a wedding reception would not be the place for Beethoven. But there can surely be no doubt that classical music is serious music, which stands the test of time, while the Stones, and indeed all pop music, is light entertainment of passing interest and not intended to be anything else.  I would say that even if we restrict the argument to pop music, the Stones are still rubbish - but then that is just my opinion!

[algy]

Adam, as has been stated, an ear for any type of music is down to the choice of the individual and as such no one should attempt to force their opinion regarding their preference on to anyone else, I personally can't stand the Rolling Stones, after saying that there are two of their songs that I quite like, 'Not Fade Away' and 'Ruby Tuesday', I'm sure there are many people out their who can't stand those songs, again personal preference!.

[wolfie]

If we all accept, or "enjoy" something that is inferior then there will be no cultural advancement.  I also could not care less what sort of music you enjoy. But if you are suggesting that just because you enjoy it, it is of equal value to, say, Beethoven, then there is no point in arguing with you !

Oh dear, where in my posts have I ever suggested that pop music is of equal value to classical?

 My attitude to music is very much that there is likely to be something to gain from listening to almost anything, and the most important thing is hopefully you enjoy what you are listening to. What is the point in listening to classical music and hating every minute of it just to prove you are more culturally advanced. What a sad person you are.

[Peter T]

50 years at the top isn't exactly fading away How many of the old classical musicians managed that?

 

This argument is like saying that ballet is the only form of dance?

[Adam]

Good to see you on forum duty on a Saturday afternoon, Wolfie!

You are quite right, of course. I don't think you have suggested that pop music is of equal value to classical music. But if you read my comment (which you kindly quoted) I didn't say you had.  I said IF you were suggesting that, there was no point in arguing with you.

It would now appear from your response that you and I may not be so far apart in our views.

I know where you are coming from, of course, because I have been there myself. Had the tee-shirt, as they say. I was an avid pop fan for years and had a huge collection of singles. This was much to the disgust of my parents as my father was a classical fan and my mother was a professional musician and music teacher. They told me I would see the light when I "grew up."  Being as rebellious as most teenagers, I did not believe them.

At school, my teachers were also derisive about pop music.

But when I was around 15/16 and began to wonder why a record which I bought one week, thinking it was the greatest ever, was never played after a month or two.  I wondered if it was because I tired of the lyrics (which then, as now, were pretty banal) and switched to instrumental music only. From here it was but a short step to jazz, which didn't really please my parents any more than pop, although they accepted that at its best it was acceptable.

I took up the guitar at the time everyone else did, at the beginning of the rock 'n' roll/skiffle era. But I didn't want to play pop - I wanted to play jazz. My guitar teacher (who was only a year or two older than me) was delighted. He was sick to death of teaching people who only wanted to play pop. We became good friends and I learned a lot about musical history, theory, etc, from him.

I was never really good enough to play jazz but I could knock out the pop tunes of the day, if forced to do so, which I frequently was by friends.

I later developed a liking for classical music and now listen to both jazz and classical. I don't play guitar any more but dab ble on the piano.

So you see, I am perhaps not the arrogant, musical snob you and others depict me as. I am simply someone who was influenced by people who I regarded as more knowledgeable than myself. I learned to know the difference between "good" music and crap.

I fully accept what Algy and Peter are saying about one likes and dislikes being a matter of personal taste. That is a different issue and nothing to do with whether the music is good or not.

I have said it before - there is some music I like which I know to be rubbish. There is also some music I know to be good which does not appeal to me.

Why people should feel personally insulted when I criticise some piece of music or type of music is beyond me. You can say what the hell you like about people's political views on this forum without being told you are "insulting" but when you criticise their music they descend on you like a ton of bricks!

[wolfie]

Good to see you on forum duty on a Saturday afternoon, Wolfie!

Yes, I spotted you on here but for some reason you didn't post.

 

I have some sympathy for you, because I've never had parents or teachers who were at all interested in what I was listening to and as such I listened to what I liked, and I am still doing it, even though some of it is the same as what I liked 50 years ago.