Why Music Has Lost it’s Charms (Article)

They made music because they were paid to whether by church or as often nobility. For money, the definition of commercial. No one else could afford such frivolities to commission work. However, it was also consumed by the masses .. so popular and commercial though of what competition I can't speak. 

Best not to post about things you apparently know next to nothing.  Ever heard of patronage and the patron system?  Patronage isn't commerce or commercialism, nothing close.  And to say music for the courts of the nobility was consumed by the masses is so self-evidently wrong it isn't even funny.

Music for the Courts of Nobility is NOT the music we hear today. We hear the major works for the masters, which was commissioned by nobility and religious leaders, the latter which obviously had wide distribution, but the former also was used to appease the "masses" at least the much lesser nobles, merchants, etc.  There was little music for the masses at all then.

YOU may want to learn a little about say "Mozart" and what a patronage meant back then. Today's equivalent is employee with a rather defined salary whether for nobleman or religious leader, the definition of "commercial".  He eventually struck out on his own .... again commercial ... and then went back to employment.  It was called "patronage" back then, as unlike say a blacksmith, there was no inherent value or output you were being paid for, a frivolity so to speak, but absolutely his commercial paid career was making music, complete with the influence of his "patron".

@sns I agree we don’t value artists.  As a musician, I am quite aware as to how devalued artists’ contributions to society are.  It couldn’t be more apparent.

I’m not sure a business model that requires artists to receive 100,000 “plays” before they make $400, especially during inflation and a live-show-limiting global pandemic, has “nothing inherently wrong with it.”

This was a very strange article. 
With the massive wave of aging music lovers, these pieces, and my Lord! How many YT videos on how today’s music totally sucks. And the “good old days” with music history divided between BA and AA. (Before Auto tune and after Auto Tune).

reminder..there’s always something..EQ, Compression, Auto Tune or Melodyne! Kind of an engineers (record companies) are screwing with mother nature case.

The simple truth is right now, it is an amazing time to be into music.  Better than ever. Pick your medium, records, CD’s, streaming. Etc etc etc!

You have more options available than ever.

There are far more niches available, categories and sub categories. There are more avenues for artists to get their music recorded and out. You can have an entire studio in your laptop.
Record companies have always been easy targets. Some deserved. They have served and continue to serve a valuable function. 

Finally, it is becoming a bit tiresome when top ten list comparisons are made. Overlooked is all the lame or poorly recorded pop peppering the charts..1953? “  “ “How much is that doggie in the Window”…number three selling record. Comparing Led Zeppelin with Justin Bieber is hardly apples to apples.

There needs to be some context!

The simple truth is right now, it is an amazing time to be into music. Better than ever. Pick your medium, records, CD’s, streaming. Etc etc etc!

For sure, i can listen to any indian master or any Nordic jazz i wanted too...

Commercial industrial music is bad, but we have access now also to the best artists there is in the world...