Friday, March 31, 2017
Constants and variables, screaming edition
Listening to a dramatic piece by Liszt, obviously designed to display his own virtuosity on stage. Got thinking about those piano and violin virtuosos of the 1800s. Liszt, Paganini, Gottschalk. All had long leonine hair, all loved to toss the hair around while playing, all had screaming teenybopper fans.
Classical music was called longhair music because of these dudes.
Cut to 1960. More male performers with screaming teenybopper fans, more long hair. By now the association with classical was obsolete, so longhair music became rock.
Cut to 1980. More male performers with screaming teenybopper fans, more long hair. By now the association with rock was obsolete, so longhair music became heavy metal.
One big exception: 1940, Frank Sinatra. He never let his hair grow, and never tossed any part of his body around. Just stood in one place and sang, and still got screaming teenybopper fans. Was he significantly better than the performers before and after him, or was long hair simply unthinkable in 1940?
Labels: Constants and Variables
¶ 6:31 AM
