IU Jacobs School of Music Summer Festival Orchestra

It is evident that music’s purpose in a culture or society transcends that which is merely written on staff paper. No matter the level of the performance by the musicians or the degree of participation by the audience, music is the bond that brings the necessary pieces together for a sustained and enriching cultural integration. On Friday, August 5^th, our class was able to observe and experience a part of Bloomington’s rich and vibrant musical culture for ourselves; the IU Jacobs School of Music Summer Festival Orchestra performed Rossini’s Overture to William Tell, Respighi’s Pine’s of Rome, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. The culture surrounding this performance, and others like it provides clear evidence to the value and importance live, presentational music has in cultivating social integration in a society.

The concert was held at the IU Auditorium, which is situated in the heart of campus. Its prominent location on campus is a clear indication of its value to the University and the surrounding community, as well as the identity the University wishes to promote for itself. The audience came from all directions to see the show, walking, driving, or riding a bus to get there. The event provided an opportunity, not only to witness the creation of beautiful music, but also to dress up, go out, and spend an evening with friends. Many at the concert probably went to dinner beforehand, as our class did, and this is the first of many indicators of the significance events such as these have in the creation and maintenance of a social group.

The performance was a clear example of presentational music. Presentational music is distinguished from other fields of music making most notably by the pronounced separation between the performers and the audience. Unlike participatory music, in which the performers and the audience are one in the same, presentational music requires the silence and acute attention of the listeners, and it is the role of the performers to provide continued interest for the audience. The performance Friday evening certainly attempted to fill this need with a varied and contrasting program. The performers have had time to rehearse the music, which provides for great attention paid to detail as well as greater opportunity for artistic expression. Similarly, individual virtuosity is greatly valued, evident by the number of opportunities to highlight talented soloists throughout the orchestra’s performance. These opportunities to emphasize fine-tuned skills are an important and integral part of all presentational music because the value of presentational music is judged by the skill and mastery of the music by the artists. This is another major distinction presentational music has from participatory music, which, in contrast, is judged by the level of participation rather than the level of musical ability. Participatory music places a strong emphasis on social bonding and flow, a goal probably held by the members of the orchestra on stage at Friday’s performance. The dynamics of presentational music, however, more strongly emphasize the audience’s celebration of the technical and somewhat selective, unique skill of the musicians.

            It is clear that one of the more powerful purposes for presentational music is not the music itself, but the social aspect of the gathering, the opportunity to see and be seen, and to speak to like-minded individuals. Different musical genres seem to form cultural cohorts around the idea that various musical styles present. For example, country or bluegrass music is often an icon for homegrown values of a simple, low-tech life. Classical music, on the other hand, holds more of a stereotype, or collective iconic image, of a more cultured or refined society, and therefore, the orchestra performance might be more likely to attract those individuals wishing to don a more distinguished or seemingly sophisticated identity. There is an assumption of class and style of others in attendance. The music of Mozart and Beethoven holds a strong cultural icon as more challenging, more exclusive music. Classical music is extremely challenging to play well, and it requires a great deal of specialized skill to be able to perform at the level of the IU Music School. The exclusiveness of the music was mirrored in the audience, and the structure and hierarchy of the two was also similar. Classical music is exclusive, and perhaps many of those in the audience attend such programs because of the desire to reinforce a personal image of exclusiveness or superiority. The demography of the audience at Friday’s performance can serve as a testament to this. Excluding the college students at the concert, the crowd consisted overwhelmingly of the elder, upper- middle-class. This is not to say that the audience was attracted to the symphony performance out of some deep-seated social arrogance, but rather, the audience was attracted to the performance due to a desire to endorse a belief in structure and order in their own lives. There is also an expectation of meeting and conversing with similarly minded individuals. Those at the orchestra concert perhaps were hoping for the opportunity to run into leading members of the University, the president and his wife, for example. This can be said of any presentational music. It is unlikely that every individual at a rock concert, pop concert, opera concert, or heavy metal concert is solely in attendance for the music itself. They are partially drawn to the performance with the expectation of socializing with others who identify themselves in similar ways. Music is used as the commonality by which social groups can connect and be maintained.

            It is also likely that people attend live, presentational music because it provides the environment in which the potential, rhematic themes of recorded, high-fidelity and studio audio art music can connect with the actual, dicent music of a live performance, possibly filling a need not only to connect with others in the audience, but also with the performers on stage. This is the reason why presentational music has not been replaced in the modern world by high-fidelity music or studio audio art. The social purpose of presentational music is still substantial, clearly indicated by the continued encouraged growth, maintenance, and attendance of live musical performances, such as that which took place Friday evening at the IU Auditorium.