Abstract
This study presents a preliminary analysis of the process of aesthetic legitimation of Noise music genre. Noise is known for its abrasive sonic content and provocative performative practices, which make it problematic to be viewed as legitimate art for a wide audience. Yet, cultural fields possess the power to reposition cultural genres as art, and there are evidence of emerging aesthetic legitimacy of Noise, including the existence of critical reviews on Noise releases. This study builds on recent empirical research on and conceptualization of aesthetic legitimation and evaluation of cultural productions to explicate the valorizing strategies exercised by music critics in reviewing Noise releases. For the analysis, 148 Noise album reviews by mainstream music critics were collected. Using quantitative content analysis of 39 reviews as a pilot stage of investigation, the study concludes that Noise albums are positioned with heavy use of “autonomous art“ ideology which emphasizes aesthetic qualities of the works, extra-sonic meanings they may convey and specific aesthetic intentions and skills of the authors. Providing a coding list applicable for further quantitative analysis, the study suggests that critics also recognize the problematic nature of Noise and employ other aesthetic categories which resemble “popular aesthetic” focusing on potential audience’s experiences of music (as opposed to “autonomous art” ideology). Further analysis of the reviews provide a more comprehensive picture of the legitimation of Noise. Particularly, it is crucial to trace the change of occurrence of different categories over time on obtained and yet to be collected data.
Presenters
Mikhail FrolovStudent, MA, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moskva, Russian Federation
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
The Arts in Social, Political, and Community Life
KEYWORDS
AESTHETIC VALORISATION, AESTHETIC LEGITIMATION, NOISE MUSIC, SOCIOLOGY OF ART
