Bruce Baugh, “Prolegomena to Any Aesthetics of Rock Music”

1.       OVERVIEW

2.       Rock music has its own aesthetic standards, that either uniquely apply to it or do so in a specially appropriate way

3.       Classical formalist aesthetics don’t apply

4.       Form versus matter is a basic difference classical and rock

5.       Matter in rock involves three (bodily) elements

6.       One: Expressivity of notes

7.       ROCK’S AIMS AT BODILY FEELINGS NOT INTELLECTUAL RESPONSE

8.       Rock aimed at arousing and expressing feelings

9.       Judged by feelings the music produces in listener’s body

10.     PERFORMANCE KEY

11.     Rock is a performance oriented tradition

12.     Performance is key aesthetic object for rock

13.     Not addressing what makes a good rock song

14.     Explains why singer, not song, which is important

15.     CLASSICAL FORMALIST AESTHETICS OPPOSED TO ROCK AESTHETICS

16.     Classical aesthetics excludes from musical beauty what is central to rock

17.     Compositional form is crucial

18.     Matter does count in classical music (it’s not exclusively formal)

19.     Performance also matters in classical music aesthetics

20.     JUDGING (OR CREATING) ROCK VIA FORMAL AESTHETICS A MISTAKE

21.     Mistake to judge rock by standards of classical music aesthetics (e.g., form)

22.     Rock dismissed as insignificant because of simplicity of its forms

23.     This simplicity of form is real in rock (not a misperception)

24.     Condescending to suppose rock music has value only when approximates compositional forms of baroque/romantic music

25.     When Rock musicians made this same mistake they tried to produce “art rock” or the “rock opera” which was silly

26.     ROCK MUSIC FOR DANCING

27.     Rock music is for dancing

28.     When classical music meant to be danced to, the music regulates the dancers rather than the dancers regulate the music (as in rock)

29.     With rock, the music is regulated by dancers (instead of other way around)

30.     TECHNIQUE, FAITHFULNESS TO SCORE NOT IMPORTANT IN ROCK

31.     Rock has performance based standards of evaluation, not compositional or formal ones

32.     Bad rock band’s beat not quite right, even though correct time signature and tempo being observed

33.     With rock, faithfulness to the music rarely arises

34.     Unimportance of virtuosity (outstanding skill/technique)

35.     Wrong notes are okay