My Aesthetic Manifesto

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Well maybe its not quite a manifesto, but I always wanted to have one of my own.  Really just some random thoughts on musical aesthetics

Q.Why is there near universal agreement that Beethoven's music is superior to Hummel's?

A.The classical music tradition is in essence a "market" wherein "values" of composers & works are "priced" - with a margin of error that diminishes over time (i.e. Josquin's reputation is more secure than George Crumb's).

The values and standards by which works are judged are the collective values of the participants within the tradition. It is a market, not a democracy. Those with more "capital"  (top conductors, performers, critics, avid fans as opposed to casual listeners, etc) have more say than the "average" listener (of which of course there is no such entity)

Aesthetic standards are contextual, but in the case of Western classical music are held within a tradition or culture. To be a part of the tradition requires assent to a set of aesthetic standards, that while subject to debate and change, are standards nonetheless. Attempting to faithfully perform the music of composers within the tradition, for example, is one of these standards. A pianist who took off on extended free jazz improvisations in the middle of the Waldstein Sonata would then be judged against this standard.

The same is true, say, with Polka musicians. It would be absurd to claim that one is a "Polka Musician" while denouncing beer, liederhosen, accordians and duple meters, while on the other hand expounding additive rhythms, a background drone, flexible intonation and the Sarod and Tabla as the true Polka instruments.

So if one wants to be an island and judge onto themselves, they are certainly free to believe anything they want aesthetically. However to be part of a tradition and culture requires, by definition, a submission to some set of standards, even if loosely defined and ever changing. Wiki defines culture as:

"generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance. Cultures can be understood as systems of symbols and meanings that even their creators contest, that lack fixed boundaries, that are constantly in flux, and that interact and compete with one another"

So on one hand this precludes rigid criteria for "greatness" but on the otherhand excludes relativism as well, as if everything is merely personal preference, there can be no interaction or competition within the system. You cannot exclude the collective element within the Classical tradition.