Who Cares if You Listen?
E839762
"Who Cares if You Listen?" is a famous 1958 essay by composer Milton Babbitt that defends the autonomy and complexity of contemporary classical music and questions the necessity of broad public appeal.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
essay
ⓘ
music aesthetics essay ⓘ |
| argues |
complex musical languages require specialized training to understand
ⓘ
composers should be free from commercial pressures ⓘ contemporary serious music need not appeal to a mass audience ⓘ the composer of advanced music is analogous to a scientific specialist ⓘ universities can provide a supportive environment for advanced composition ⓘ |
| associatedWith |
Princeton School of composition
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
postwar serialism ⓘ |
| author | Milton Babbitt NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| discussedIn |
debates on cultural elitism
ⓘ
music theory literature ⓘ musicology scholarship ⓘ |
| editorialChange | title changed by High Fidelity editors from The Composer as Specialist ⓘ |
| field |
composition
ⓘ
music aesthetics ⓘ musicology ⓘ |
| genre |
aesthetic essay
ⓘ
music criticism ⓘ non-fiction ⓘ |
| hasPerspective | modernist ⓘ |
| hasReputation |
defensive of academic new music
ⓘ
provocative ⓘ |
| influenced |
discourse on new music in the United States
ⓘ
perceptions of academic composers ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| mainSubject |
audience reception
ⓘ
autonomy of art ⓘ composer–audience relationship ⓘ contemporary classical music ⓘ modernism in music ⓘ music theory ⓘ serialism ⓘ |
| notableFor |
controversial title
ⓘ
impact on debates about elitism in contemporary music ⓘ influential defense of academic serialism ⓘ |
| originalTitle | The Composer as Specialist NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| positionOnAudience | questions the necessity of broad public appeal ⓘ |
| positionOnMusic | defends autonomy and complexity of contemporary classical music ⓘ |
| publicationType | magazine article ⓘ |
| publicationYear | 1958 ⓘ |
| publishedIn | High Fidelity NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| targetAudience |
educated lay readers interested in contemporary music
ⓘ
music theorists ⓘ musicians ⓘ musicologists ⓘ |
| timePeriodDiscussed | mid-20th-century American music ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.