The Challenges of Music Criticism

Professional music journalism has a particular effect on the average music-listener looking for the information he or she needs before purchase or download. In a way similar to film reviews, reviews on albums or songs have a wider appeal than other media due to immediate release of the medium. The speed of how it reaches to the listener makes the music’s cultural impact stronger in many respects. As such, music criticism also has the potential to leave an impression on the public through the opinions of the journalist. There are certain complexities to it however, such as the distinction between the professional and the amateur. The internet’s mark on music criticism is a key part of the blurring of that distinction. The state of newspapers and journalism as a whole plays a role in how critics connect with the reader through the new media landscape.

The idea of authority is integral to music criticism. The critic’s review is, ultimately, one of opinion that can change. Edward T. Cone, a composer and music theorist, uses the statement of philosopher George Boas to comment that even after considering both the objective and subjective values of a work of art, the final product will be a review that will be personal and apply only to people like the critic (Cone 95). This becomes interesting when one takes into account the intended audience. A consumer of music wants to know what to buy so the onus is put upon the critic to provide the right information. A performer is looking for the knowledge he or she needs to perfect the craft. Then there is the music lover who just wants validation of previous concepts or decisions or new examples of them. The choice of who the critic must cater to in their reviews depends on so many factors (intent, financial gain, etc.) will affect the written content. To concentrate on the consumer is simpler but has no particular impact past the purchase, while writing for the performer means constant checks on the critic’s credibility. Cone connects the critic to an educator teaching the reader how to listen to the music. With that in mind, the music lover is the one that needs to be catered to in a review. It is the one whose opinion can truly affect something, whether by sharing the ideas of the review to others or synthesizing the opinions in the review into his or her work.

What this leads into is the debate between who should be considered as a credible music critic. The democratization of music opinions via new avenues blurs the lines between the professional and layman opinions on music. This is not something new in regard to music journalism – in the 1950s major newspapers were hesitant to include rock and roll music in the review sections of their publications seeing that it was too avant-garde for that time (Christgau 140). As a consequence of that, music lovers created fanzines and alternative magazines that served as training grounds for new writers. This is still the case now, with music lovers now posting their ideas and opinions on music on blogs or websites. Many of these writers are not journalism graduates like their predecessors, but laypeople who want a say in popular culture. This change fits in the idea of the critic as a professional layperson, another way Cone describes the profession in his essay (Cone 98). Even the most established music journalists, such as Robert Christgau, now have shifted to web-based online criticism, seeing the potential of seeing their opinions being read by millions worldwide. Music websites have their professional think-pieces sitting alongside reviews and top-ten lists written by self-taught freelancers whose post may be the first outside their personal blog.

That is not to say that the process has been an easy one for music journalists as a whole. Like the music industry, newspapers have taken a considerable hit in economic gains from the disruption caused by new media (McLeese 436). The ready availability of all media creates the expectation of it coming to the consumer free of charge to the detriment of those companies. That in turn allows them to ask journalists and critics to write at severely diminished pay rates or for no payment at all. These organizations have no issue in finding replacement in writers, as well; there are now millions looking to write about music in an established website solely for the exposure. This is inarguably exploitive and does a disservice to not just the profession but to the consumer as they now receive more but subpar information. While there are still possibilities for compensation, such as for a freelance writer in Australia who has made a career from a single review of a show (Fletcher, Lobato 155), for many it still remains a rarity.

Music criticism serves as gatekeeper to the songs one listens to everyday, creating a narrative that is both informative and enriching. The pressures critics face now is unprecedented; authenticity of the critic, which has always been an important part, is under the scrutiny of a larger audience that now has a stronger participatory role in the debate. However, now that the reviewer can easily become the critic there exists a possibility for interesting paths in the profession. While there are hurdles imposed by contemporary publication avenues, an avid and skilled music lover can take their opinions and make something of them in a way that is unconstrained by failing or unfair business models. The music critic can retain his or her relevancy in the new public sphere so as long as their work, whether factual or personal, can connect to music lovers who are reading as much as they are listening.

Works Cited

Christgau, Robert. "A History of Rock Criticism." Reporting the Arts II: News Coverage of Arts and Culture in America. [New York]: National Arts Journalism Program, Columbia University, 2004. 140-34.

Cone, Edward T. "The Authority of Music Criticism." Ed. Robert P. Morgan. Music, a View from Delft: Selected Essays. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1989. Pp. 95-106.

Fletcher, Lawson and Lobato, Ramon. “Living and Labouring as a Music Writer.” Cultural Studies Review 19.1 (2013):155-76 University of Technology Sydney.

McLeese, Don. "Straddling the Cultural Chasm: The Great Divide between Music Criticism and Popular Consumption." Popular Music and Society 33.4 (2010): 433-47.