In the recent Music Summit (February 2003) Ministers invited key players from the music world to share their views on how the Licensing Bill should be delivered to ensure live music can flourish in the future. Those who attended represented writers, managers, record labels, music teachers, students and grass root musicians.
Culture Minister Kim Howells said:
"We want live music to flourish in this country. That's our endgame”.
Speaking about new licensing bill aiding Musicians in freedoms and protections and to aid entertainers.
However such discriminate leanings towards pop music still exists. Two former New Zealand Prime Ministers displayed two clashing viewpoints. In 1938, the then Prime Minister Robert Muldon, heading a National (Conservative) administration, justified a continued argument for a cut in the sales tax on records, this being a two tier system as such a tax was not applicable to other cultural products like books, etc. He claimed that Pop Music could not be considered cultural (even with the masses endorsing in it)
“If you use the word “culture” in its normal sense, I don’t think Splitz Enz and Mi-Sex are cultural”
He did receive a fair amount of backlash to this comment the Arts Council Director of New Zealand, saying the importance lay in the economic, social, and cultural growth of records to New Zealand (Shuker, 1994: 55).
In stark contrast to this, the 1986 Labour Prime Mister raised objections to high art culture forms. He tagged the government of being the ‘inevitable funder’ of the New Zealand Orchestra. His favour lying with the local pop group ‘Peeking Man’, who were playing to a wider audience and receiving no funding.
The Localised State of Affairs
“British music is living proof of the possibility of the state acting in the vanguard of culture”… (**Mulgan and Worepole, 1982: 62).
The trend has been for funding to find its way through to Western Classical Music and its off shoots. The Arts Council and Regional Arts Associations often concentrate Opera, Ballet etc. This tradition also dominated the BBC, until the success of pirate radio, and the in the 1960’s the uprising of rock music forced itself into BBC Programming.
The Mid 1980s saw a shift to more radical polices towards Pop Music. Local Authorities led the way for initiatives, concentrating on live performances initiatives for local musicians to play, rehearse and record. Pushing away from ‘art’ to towards an emphasis on popular culture and media. The benfireis were football clubs, records companies, independent film and video-making sector. The government addressing this issue as a type of ‘Regeneration’ for local communities, and local economies.
Cultural Imperialism, Globalisation and the Hybrid
As Cultural Imperialism as a concept developed through the historical, political and economic of means, by the raping of Third World Countries in the nineteenth century, the rise of the Super Capitalist nations such as the US and Western Europe led they way in terms of Fashion, cultural products, fashions and styles to a global market all which have underlying cultural values, and ideals crossing over
“Globalisation implies that’…any given place is permeated by cultural discourses else where”…(Barker 2000: 11)
Many Sociologists have argued such affects hinder the developing of local culture. Its evident in terms of Mass Media and Popular Culture – the international media flow, American TV stations setting up camp across the globe, Rupert Murdock being a Prime Example.
The largest export for the USA must be its culture, which has seeped through to so many countries across the globe and many to which have applied and adopted such Anglo American Influence. This grew in the 1970’, 1980’ with countries such as France, Canada, Australia and New Zealand (and of course the UK did not pass this by, but have also been good exporters to USA themselves) being takers of American popular culture (Shuker, 1994: 59, 60). This trend leads to the argument that focuses upon the media as a threat rather than aid to the domination of Western Culture.
This is where the local and global cultures become hybrid cultures. This has led countries like Canada employing quotas for its own national music to be broadcast for a set amount of hours. American popular culture has become the common culture in many countries across the globe since the 1950’s a reason for this maybe musical production and distribution everywhere has led to musical hegemony.
The Globalised Genre or the Local Genre Globalised?
Being next to America, Canada is awash with music from their neighbour as they can pick up their radio stations etc. all of which undermines their own national music output. Other factors don’t help, the largest Record Companies that exist within Canada are foreign owned, with about 90 % of Canadian Domestic Total Record sales going to Multinationals.
Its far more costly to produce an indigenous product and is inferior with regards to foreign imports on a production etc. As record distribution, is also dominated by nationals, and with radio stations employing a US style programming format and music tones, the Canadians only have a small share of the national market of record sales, about 10%. Even when a big Canadian Artist releases a record, indigenous sales are still quite low. Take Bryan Adams 1984 release “Reckless” just passed the 1million plus mark in sales in Canada.
Steps that Canada employ to try to improve their status in a domestic front:
- Encourage nationhood and cultural identity via the media and communications technology
- Government schemes
- 30% of AM Radio Programming must be written, preformed or produced in Canada
- FM Radio also though slightly differently
Define ‘Canadian’?
- Music composed by a Canadian
- Lyrics written by a Canadian
- Music performed by a Canadian
- Or music recorded in Canada…
Two of the above three are required for it to qualify as Canadian Music.
The example of Canada raises questions on a global scale, of how local musicians and cultural nationalism within music is being lost. The UK have a good record for promotion their own UK bands, artists and exporting them out across the globe. However America still has a heavy influence in number of genres and scenes within the UK. And its not until the Americans apply a certain creditability to local genres of music descending from Latin America and the farming fields of the Punjab does such local music and musicians get some recognition and scope for themselves to reach out.
There is much cultural diversity in the UK similar to Canada. Looking at current phenomena of Asian/Indian themed songs in current mainstream music its not until America hip/hop community decided to sample a piece of this local music (namely ‘Dr Dre’, ‘Missy Elliot’ ‘Truth Hurts’) does it get coverage and its not until then local musicians who have been producing this music for years with and without fusion get any sort of promotion and mainstream Chart recognition - even though such musical communities (the British Bhangra scene) have been forced to set up a mini-industry within the UK consisting of small independents and distribution labels .
Taking the current hit single by ‘Punjabi MC’ – “Mundian to Bach Ke” (Beware of the boys), although it was produced over five years ago (and number one in the UK Bhangra charts over three years ago), its not until America takes this sound to the world does the original product receive the success and critical acclaim for its music it should. So is America no longer or has it ever been “American” in the first place, or does America mean simply “America the global”?
References
Shuker, R (1994) ‘Understanding Popular Music’, 53, 55, 59 - 60
Strinanti, D (1995) ‘An Introduction to Theories of Popular Culture’ 12 – 13, 165 – 168
*Culture and Anarchy’ 1869 in Russell, R (2001) ‘Mass Media and Popular Culture’, Lecture notes
**Mulgan and Worepole, 1982: 62 in Shuker, R (1994) ‘Understanding Popular Music’ 56
Barker, C (2000) Cultural Studies, 11
Bibliography
Shuker, R (1994) ‘Understanding Popular Music’, Routledge: London
Street, J (1993) ‘Local Differences? Popular and the local state Popular Music 12
Strinanti, D (1995) ‘An Introduction to Theories of Popular Culture’, Routledge: London
Hutchison, D (1999) ‘Media Policy – An Introduction, Blackwell: Oxford
Wallis, Roger and Malm, Krister (1992) ‘Media Policy and Music Activity’ Routledge: London
Frith, S (1993) ‘Popular Music and the local State’ in Bennet, Tony et al, Eds, Rock and Popular Music Routledge: London
Barker, C (2000) Cultural Studies, Sage: London
Websites Consulted
Other Sources
Garner, K (2003) ‘Music and the Media’ Lecture Notes, Division of Media, Culture and Leisure Management, Glasgow Caledonian University
Russell, R (2001) ‘Mass Media and Popular Culture’, Lecture notes, School of Social Sciences, Glasgow Caledonian University