MUS111H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Asian Dub Foundation, Walter Benjamin, Gauhar Jaan
Document Summary
Week 3: theoretical approaches to music & culture in the 20th century. Week 2 recap: music notation as technology, piano"s role in social and cultural formations in early 20th c, laws of media , musicking vs reification, capitalization & industrialization of music technoculture. Analytical focus on tech and implications tech and culture inherently connected. Today"s lecture: technology & (mass) media"s impact on culture, frankfurt school , adorno & benjiamin, culture, radio (briefly, toronto school, mcluhan, innis. The frankfurt school: walter benjamin, max horkneimer, theodor adorno, herbert marcuse, marxism -> neo-marxists (founders of critical theory, focus on culture rather than politics. Benjamin : popular music, opposes art for art"s sake , music as activity, mass participation. Adorno : social significance lost in mass production, music as thing: commodity fetishization, mass conformity, music & mass production: recap, early 20th century. Mass production of instruments: pianos; ukuleles; saxophones; guitars.