Musical Masterpieces If You Listen Analysis

Problems between composers and the general public have been mounting for over one hundred years. As advanced music rapidly changes, the public seemingly fails to posses the musical knowledge necessary to appreciate modern works of contemporary music. In 1958, Milton Babbitt examined this relationship in a piece entitled “Who Cares if You Listen?” In the article, Babbitt asses the public’s feelings on “advanced” music and concludes that it should not concern composers if their work doesn’t get an audience beyond a few colleagues. Musical masterpieces including Babbitt’s Semi Simple Variations and Stockhausen’s Gesang der Jünglinge exemplify why this is the case. Despite efforts to reach out to the public by composers such as Krzysztof Penderecki, the divide that separates these entities is even greater today.
Prior to the 20th century, most great musicians worked for a royal patronage and had private orchestras. The dissolution of the patronage system left composers as independents and pressured to create works that could be appreciated by both the musically intelligent and the untutored layman. This ultimately was not attainable, leaving all composers with a lingering question: If it is impossible to return to the days of powerful and musically educated patrons, should they strive to appease the public? Babbitt argues against this and insists the
Although short in duration, the piece is enormously dense and complex, thus making it difficult for an uneducated listener to thoroughly enjoy. An example of total serialism, Babbitt employs a variety of textures, pitches and dynamics. To a person with an untrained ear, this may make the piece sound chaotic and overwhelming. Furthermore, the work is so complex that one must listen to it many times to appreciate. The general public is likely unwilling to do this, which further diminishes the chance that they will approve of